Tuesday, May 3, 2011

What does it mean to say that you're a Christian?

Jesus said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me." - John 14.6
And in Acts 4:12, Peter says, "There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."

That being said, I believe non-Christians can still be saved. Romans talks about how God will judge each person according to what we know. "When Gentiles who have not the law do by nature what he law requires, they are a law unto themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that what the law requires is written on their hearts, which their conscience also bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or perhaps excuse them on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus." - Romans 2. 14-16

Putting all of that together, I believe that is all are saved through Christ and only Him. I think C.S. Lewis said it best in Mere Christianity, "We . . . know that no man can be saved except through Christ; we do not know that only those who know him can be saved through him."

For the people to whom Christ IS revealed, they are given the opportunity to accept Him, and they cast judgment upon themselves if they refuse to receive the truth that He came to die for us and to cover our sins. Luke talks about the day that Jesus sent out followers to towns ahead of his own visits. Jesus said, "Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you; heal the sick in it and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.' but whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into the streets and say, 'Even the dust that clings to our feet, we wipe off against you; nevertheless, know this, that the kingdom of God is near.' I tell you, it shall be more tolerable on that day for Sodom than for that town." -Luke 10.8-12

I recently read a very good summary, in my opinion, on how to become a Christian once the gospel of Christ is made known to you, and I'd like to share. It is from The Handbook on Catholic Apologetics by Peter Kreeft and Ronald Tacelli. here are 4 basic steps, and these are highly paraphrased:

1) You first must believe in God's existence and power. This is like trying to find your way somewhere using a map. You would first have to believe the map is accurate and is capable of getting you to your destination before you start on a lifelong journey to get there.

2) You must be repentant of your sins in acknowledgment that sin is not the road to God and it is not His intention for us. This is like seeing that you're on the wrong road and are willing to leave it.

3) The third step is accepting Christ as Lord and Savior of your soul, thereby accepting His saving grace. This step is like turning onto the right road, as Christ said He is the way, the truth, and the life. In this step, the faith we have in trusting in the Lord plants the "tree of Christ" in us.

4) Jesus said, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." - Luke 9.23
Christ calls us to a daily walk of Christian living in which we deny ourselves and live for Him. Ephesians 2.10 says, "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." The Christian actions and works of love we do become the fruits of Christ's tree within us.
(In Matthew 7. 15-20, Jesus talks about discerning a good tree from a bad tree by the fruit that it bears.)

Following these steps, is the best simple way I've come across that will ensure I get to the destination I want for eternity- heaven.

2 comments:

Andrea Garcia said...

Ah! My soul is literally so excited to read that your research is finally put down into words! I'm sure God is smiling happily upon you, knowing that not only are you doing & spreading his work, but you do so eagerly.
I thoroughly enjoyed the 4 steps of becoming a Christian. When you first showed them to me I was amazed, and now reading them again I am now inspired. Keep doing your research, because I know it is helping me to believe even more of my faith, because the truth is there. Once I know the truth I'll never stray. I love you so much more for posting this. I am so impressed!

alex said...

printed this out at work....will be reading this tonight :)

you are awesome miranda!