Are You Ready To Become A Christian?

WHAT IS A CHRISTIAN?

 A dictionary definition of a Christian would be something similar to “a person professing belief in Jesus as the Christ or in the religion based on the teachings of Jesus.” While this is a good starting point, like many dictionary definitions, it falls somewhat short of really communicating the biblical truth of what it means to be a Christian.

The word “Christian” is used three times in the New Testament (Acts 11:26; 26:28; 1 Peter 4:16).

Followers of Jesus Christ were first called “Christians” in Antioch (Acts 11:26) because their behavior, activity, and speech were like Christ.

The word “Christian” literally means, “belonging to the party of Christ” or a “follower of Christ.”

Unfortunately over time, the word “Christian” has lost a great deal of its significance and is often used of someone who is religious or has high moral values but who may or may not be a true follower of Jesus Christ. Many people who do not believe and trust in Jesus Christ consider themselves Christians simply because they go to church or they live in a “Christian” nation. But going to church, serving those less fortunate than you, or being a good person does not make you a Christian.

A true Christian is a person who has put faith and trust in the person and work of Jesus Christ, including His death on the cross as payment for sins and His resurrection on the third day.

John 1:12 tells us, “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”

The mark of a true Christian is love for others and obedience to God’s Word (1 John 2:4, 10).

A true Christian is indeed a child of God, a part of God’s true family, and one who has been given new life in Jesus Christ.

WHY SHOULD I BECOME A CHRISTIAN?

 Jesus Christ declared that He “did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). The question then arises – why did we need to be ransomed? The idea of a ransom is a payment that must be made in exchange for the release of a person. The idea of a ransom is most frequently used in instances of kidnapping, when someone is kidnapped and held prisoner until a ransom is paid for the person’s release.

Jesus paid our ransom to free us from bondage! Bondage from what?

Bondage to sin and its consequences, physical death followed by eternal separation from God.

Why did Jesus need to pay this ransom?

Because we are all infected with sin (Romans 3:23), and are therefore worthy of judgment from God (Romans 6:23).

How did Jesus pay our ransom?

By dying on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins (1 Corinthians 15:3; 2 Corinthians 5:21).

How could Jesus’ death sufficiently pay for all of our sins?

Jesus was God in human form, God come to earth to become one of us so He could identify with us and die for our sins (John 1:1, 14).

As God, Jesus’ death was infinite in value, sufficient to pay for the sins of the entire world (1 John 2:2).

Jesus’ resurrection after His death demonstrated that His death was the sufficient sacrifice, that He had truly conquered sin and death.

HOW CAN I BECOME A CHRISTIAN?

 This is the best part. Because of His love for us, God has made it exceedingly simple to become a Christian. All you have to do is receive Jesus as your Savior, fully accepting His death as the sufficient sacrifice for your sins (John 3:16), fully trusting Him alone as your Savior (John 14:6; Acts 4:12). Becoming a Christian is not all about rituals, going to church, or doing certain things while refraining from other things. Becoming a Christian is all about having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. A personal relationship with Jesus Christ, through faith, is what makes a person a Christian.

WHAT IS THE CHRISTIAN LIFE SUPPOSED TO BE LIKE?

 The Christian life is supposed to be a life lived by faith. It is by faith that we enter into the Christian life, and it is by faith that we live it out. When we begin the Christian life by coming to Christ for forgiveness of sin, we understand that what we seek cannot be obtained by any other means than by faith. We cannot work our way to heaven, because nothing we could ever do would be sufficient.

In Romans 1, Paul says that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the power that saves us, the gospel being the good news that all who believe in Him will have eternal life. When we enter into the Christian life by faith in this good news, we see our faith grow as we come to know more and more about the God who saved us. The gospel of Christ actually reveals God to us as we live to grow closer to Him each day.

Romans 1:17 says, “For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: ‘The righteous will live by faith’.”

 So part of the Christian life is diligent reading and study of the Word, accompanied by prayer for understanding and wisdom and for a closer, more intimate relationship with God through the Holy Spirit.

The Christian life is also supposed to be one of death to self in order to live a life by faith. Paul told the Galatians “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). Being crucified with Christ means that our old nature has been nailed to the cross and has been replaced by a new nature which is Christ’s (1 Corinthians 5:17). He who loved us and died for us now lives in us and the life we live is by faith in Him. It means sacrificing our own desires, ambitions, and glories and replacing them with those of Christ. We can only do this by His power through the faith that He gives us by His grace. Part of the Christian life is praying to that end.

The Christian life is also supposed to persevere to the end. God is not pleased with one who “draws back” from Him after making a commitment, but those who live by faith will never draw back, because they are kept by the Holy Spirit who assures us that we will continue with Christ until the end (Ephesians 1:13-14)

So the Christian life is one lived by faith in the God who saved us, empowers us, seals us for heaven, and by whose power we are kept forever. The day-to-day life of faith is one that grows and strengthens as we seek God in His Word and through prayer and as we unite with other Christians whose goal of Christ-likeness is similar to our own.

HOW SHOULD CHRISTIAN STAND UP FOR THE FAITH IN SUCH AN ANTI-CHRIST WORLD?

 As Christians, the two things we can do to stand up for Christ are to live according to His Word and grow our own knowledge of Him. Christ said, “let your light shine before men…” (Matthew 5:16). This means that we should live and act in a way that supports the Gospel.

We should also arm ourselves with knowledge, both of the Gospel (Ephesians 6:10-17) and of the world around us.

1 Peter 3:15 says: “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.”

 All we can do is live and teach as Christ would and let Him take care of the rest.

Critics of Christianity have become more and more vocal recently. This is partly because there are many people who do not believe in God or understand the truth about Him at all. Yet, the apparent swell in anti-Christians is also due to perception. As with many topics, those who truly despise Christianity are the loudest and most vocal of the non-believers. The vast majority of those who do not believe don’t really care enough to bother believers. The few angry, vocal, bitter unbelievers make enough noise to seem more numerous than they are.

Most non-believers have not had personal reasons to see Christians negatively, but they sometimes hear so much from the loud anti-Christians that they just assume it is so. They need examples of Christ-like living to see the truth.

The important thing to remember is that no one, no matter how persuasive, can force anyone to believe anything they don’t want to believe. No matter what the evidence, no matter what the argument, people will believe what they want to believe (Luke 12:54-56). This is true for both sides, since the angry antiChristian types are some of the least tolerant people around. But conviction is not a Christian’s job. The Holy Spirit convicts people (John 14:16-17), and they choose whether or not to believe. What we can do is present ourselves in a way that is as Christ-like as possible. Most of the “beating up” that Christianity endures involves actions that are not in line with Biblical teachings, or arguments that are deliberately twisted. It is sad that there are many atheists who have read the entire Bible, word for word, looking for ammunition to throw at Christians, and that there are many Christians who have hardly read the Bible at all.

ARE YOU READY TO BECOME A CHRISTIAN?

If you are ready to become a Christian by receiving Jesus Christ as your Savior, all you have to do is believe.

Do you understand and believe that you have sinned and are worthy of judgment from God?

Do you understand and believe that Jesus took your punishment upon Himself, dying in your place?

Do you understand and believe that His death was the sufficient sacrifice to pay for your sins?

If your answers to these three questions are yes, then simply place your trust in Jesus as your Savior.

Receive Him, by faith, fully trusting in Him alone.

That is all it takes to become a Christian!