I Am a Christian, So Who Am I?
We have all experienced or heard the conversational question that sometimes gets asked when one person is getting to know another. “So, are you religious?” The response can be a myriad of differing replies, one of which is, “Yeah, I’m a Christian.” That answer usually puts the respondent into the broad and vague category of Christianity in the 21st century. The real question is, what does it mean to be a true Christian according to the original biblical meaning? If we put aside all of the tradition, all of the preconceived notions, and all of the countless denominations, what does the Bible say it means to be a genuine and sincere disciple of Jesus?
Christianity is the world’s largest religion with over 2.4 billion followers (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christians#cite_note-globalreligiousfutures.org-1) , but the key question is: how many are true followers of Christ versus simply identifying as Christians? The Bible explains that genuine Christianity revolves around complete reliance on and the complete following of Jesus. It acknowledges God’s plan for salvation through His son. Scriptural passages like John 3:16-17 and 1 Peter 1:18-21 highlight Jesus’ role as the Redeemer who saved humanity through his sacrifice.
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We are “new creatures”
2 Corinthians 5:17 emphasizes that being “in Christ” makes a person a “new creature,” representing transformation and renewal. This is a much bigger deal than most of us think, as it has everything to do with being guided by God’s spirit for the sake of personal growth in Christ and the sacrificing of our own will and desires. True discipleship requires self-denial and cross-bearing (https://christianquestions.com/bible-questions/what-does-cross-bearing-mean/) (Luke 9:23), which demonstrates commitment beyond passive belief. This commitment was foreshadowed in predestination found in Ephesians 1:3-6, which describes how faithful Christians as a class (not predestined as individuals) were chosen before the world’s foundation
