There are lots of answers to this question! Many people think that living in a country with a Christian background is enough to qualify, or perhaps it’s all about being a ‘good’ person.
The problem about some of these answers is that they’re a bit vague, and they don’t really get to the heart of the matter. Put simply, a Christian is someone who has decided to trust in Jesus Christ and follow him for the rest of their lives. This is an amazingly exciting concept – a Christian is someone who knows God personally through his Son, Jesus. But why is all this necessary?
Well, Christians believe that everyone is separated from God as a result of what the Bible calls sin – which basically means our selfish attitudes and thoughts. By thinking we can do without God – by ignoring Him or rejecting Him (the Bible calls this rebellion) – we find ourselves at odds with one another and unable to live up to our own expectations let alone anyone else’s! This is as true of you as it is of me, all people vicars and villains, heroes and hoodlums, teachers, doctors, politicians, hairdressers, rich and poor – you name it. Without God we are missing the whole point of life, and we can never be what we were created to be. The Bible puts it this way: “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God”(Romans 3 v.23). The next question is what do we do about it?
Nothing can bridge the gap between ourselves and God. Not money, nor doing good deeds, nor making resolutions to be a better person. We all know from experience that although we are sincere, willpower alone is not enough to change us. Each of us is guilty of turning our back on God, and nothing we can do will ever alter that.
BUT
God has done something about it himself. Jesus has bridged the gap for us, by dying on the cross to make it possible for us to know God afresh, offering us forgiveness for our rebellion in the past, and giving us hope for the future.
To summarise, a Christian is someone who has:
A ccepted that there is a problem, and that they are a ‘sinner’.
B elieved that Jesus is the only one who can do anything about it.
C onfessed their need for Jesus to put things right, and trusting him.
If you want to know more about becoming a Christian, please contact us, and we will be happy to reply to you.