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What is a Christian?
"And He said to them all, If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me." -Luke 9:23
With so many Christian denominations to choose from, how do we know where to firmly plant ourselves? Before we answer that, let's take a look, from a Biblical perspective, at a few of the characteristics of a Christian.
1. According to Luke 9:23, a Christian takes up his cross, (meaning a giving up of worldly passions and desires) and by a personal choice, surrenders his or her own plans and ambitions to the Lord Jesus Christ and where He leads.
2. A Christian loves his or her brother or sister in Christ.
"A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another, as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are My disciples, if ye have love one to another." -John 13:34-35
3. A Christian is loved by God, our Father, because he or she loves Jesus, and believes that Jesus has come from God.
"For the Father Himself loveth you, because ye have loved Me, and have believed that I came out from God." -John 16:27
4. A Christian retains Jesus' commandments, and follows them. Doing so results in receiving both the love of God and the love of Christ.
"He that hath My commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth Me: and He that loveth me shall be loved of My Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him." -John 14:21
Next, the Bible teaches that in Antioch, a place in Syria, the disciples were called Christians for the first time.
"And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch." -Acts 11:26
If we break down this verse, we see the following:
disciples - Greek: mathetes
The word is used of the disciples of Jesus; of all who manifest that they are His disciples by abiding in His Word and of those who believed upon Him and confessed Him (as their Lord). A disciple was not only a pupil, but an adherent; hence they are spoken of as imitators of their teacher.
Christians - Greek: christianos - signifying an adherent of Jesus
The final analysis? Being a Christian -- following and imitating Jesus Christ -- is not about "religion" nor is does it fall under any "denomination". It's about a growing, obedient, and abiding relationship with God, through His Son Jesus Christ.
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