What is a Christian?

from the old testament

• Even before Jesus entered into human history as a man, Deuteronomy 6:5 expressed the attitude all of God’s children should have toward our Lord: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.” This command comes after Moses had presented God’s Law to the nation of Israel. Jesus later describes that command and the charge to love others like this: “On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 22:40). Love for God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit though presented in the Old Testament, is the foundation of Christianity.

from the new testament

• John 3:3 records this conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus in which Jesus describes what a true Christian will experience: “Jesus answered him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.’” Nicodemus, a Pharisee, was baffled by Jesus’ words, but Jesus meant that accepting Him as Savior means becoming a new person (2 Corinthians 5:17–21).
• A Christian wholeheartedly believes in the truth expressed by John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” One cannot be a Christian without accepting Christ as Lord and Savior.
• In part of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 7, Jesus presents the characteristics of a genuine follower of Christ—including not hypocritically judging others, seeking the Lord, and treating others as we would want to be treated. Verses 21–23 of that chapter says, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’” Anyone can call himself a “Christian,” but the name alone doesn’t make someone a follower of Christ.

implications for today

Social media influencers gauge their success by the number of followers they have. Key figures in the early church also had followers, but theirs took the form of factions, which Paul chastised the Corinthian believers for having (1 Corinthians 3:4). Paul wasn’t impressed by his “followers” because he knew that believers weren’t supposed to be devoted to him or Apollos or Peter or any other human being. True Christians follow Jesus. Only Christ has the power to save. He came to earth, humbled Himself by taking on human form, and endured the suffering of all humanity—all to save those who put their trust in Him (John 3:16–18; Philippians 2:5–11; Hebrews 12:2). Knowing this, true followers of Christ live to please the Lord, which we’re enabled to do by the Holy Spirit. When we “subscribe” to Jesus, we are assenting to a life in which we will experience the joy and contentment of the Lord even though that involves turning away from much of what the world considers important—money, power, prestige (1 John 2:15–17). Being a Christian involves sacrificing what we want, to live in a way that God wants us to. A Christian’s life should be characterized by love (John 13:34–35; 1 John 4:9–12). It should also be characterized by intentional growth in the Lord through things like regular Bible reading, prayer, fellowship with others who love Christ, eschewing hedonistic pursuits, actively obeying God’s commands, and even loving our enemies (Romans 12; Ephesians 4; James 1:22). The Bible teaches that true Christians understand who Jesus is and, through the power of the Holy Spirit, try to conform themselves to Him.