What is a "Christian"?

After a recent question by a brother in a group I participate in regarding the definition of "Biblical Christianity", I thought- maybe we should dive even deeper, to figure out what a "Christian" is. This may seem like a rather sophomoric question, but I believe it is an important one. Whenever we see surveys reported that say there are x number of "Christians" in the US, what they don't tell you is that this is "self identified", and includes every denomination and "Christian cult" out there. Indeed this country has a lot of mpeoplr who will check the "Christian" box, but don't really even know what that means!

So, if we boil it down, what is a "Christian"? I mean this in the sense of the kind of Christian who is a brother (or sister) that Jesus said In would love as a sign that I am His.

This ties in with several theological debates, including Free Grace vs Lordship Salvation and Calvinism vs Armenianism.

Linguistically, to be a Christian would literally mean follower or imitator of Christ. Paul wrote that believers should be imitators of him as he followed Christ. This is why some early Christians were labeled "Paulitians"...followers of Paul.

So, does that mean that some one who acts as a sacrificial servant, seeking after then good of others is, because this is "Christ-like", a "Christian"? Jesus said in that a day is coming that many will stand before Him and list off all the good stuff they did in his name... And he will say to them "depart from me he workers of iniquity, for I knew you not".

So it would seem to mean that outward appearance isn't "it".

In the New Testament, we find examples of one " becoming" (or nearly so- king Agrippa) Christian... all hinged on one, single "event": a turning point when knowledge becomes faith, faith in the Son of God, not just in Who He was and is, but more importantly, what He accomplished through His death and resurrection., and by next logical and natural step- acknowledging His Lordship in and of our lives (Romans 10:9).

Any " Christianity" that leaves out the total faith in Christ Jesus, is but vain religion. It is but noise.

Or put another way- all the "Christian" stuff you do will be meaningless in the day you stand before the Judgment of Christ, for without genuine faith, He will say "depart from me... I never knew you (Matthew 7:21-23)! All our works are as filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6).

So,a " Biblical Christian" is someone who has responded to the Holy Spirit's drawing and the gift if faith, through Grace, in the Who, What, and Reality of Jesus Christ. All of this leading to, or resulting in, "living faith" as James wrote of.

Where do you stand? Jesus said "if you love me, keep my commands". Jesus said " by this they will know you are my disciples, that you have love one-for-another".

We can get hung up in the "how's" of salvation... Whether it is a "free-will choice" or if we are predestined by God unto salvation (with no choice). But ultimately, what is important is that you are either born-again, regenerated by Christ, imputed with His righteousness, and destined for eternal life, or you are unregenerate, and headed for eternal condemnation.

All the "good works" in the world don't make you a Christian. All the church attendance or religious activities don't make you a Christian. Only the Blood of Jesus can make you a Christian.

posted from Bloggeroid

Death Penalty and the Christian (and An Ironic Twist)

There is a great deal of controversy and debate over the death penalty/capital punishment.  Many well-meaning Christians point to the death of Jesus Christ on the Cross to pay for our sins.  They look to scripture that clearly says that we all deserve death for our sins.  Unfortunately, while scripture does say that the "wages of sin is death", the death is an eternal death, separated from God in Hell and the Lake of Fire.  We all will indeed die one day.

Others point to the Old Testament Law and its clear demands for death in a wide variety of crimes.

So what should our attitude be towards the death penalty?  Did Jesus' death somehow eliminate the "need" for capital punishment?  I submit that the Death Penalty is not just morally correct, but is biblical.  Further, the death penalty, applied liberally is not a violation of the US Constitution's prohibition on "cruel and unusual punishment" (8th Amendment).

In Genesis 9:6 we read “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image."

It would seem obvious that human life is extremely important to God!  Why?  Because we are made in His image.  God's word clearly identifies murder as grounds for being put to death.  If one were to read further, God even made provision to spare the lives of those who shed blood by accident or through what we might define as "justifiable" circumstances by today's terms.

Scripture also squarely places the authority to wield the sword in the hands of the government.  Even if we have a hard time seeing where "good" comes from our governments, God has ordained and empowered governments.

At no point has God removed or changed His mind regarding murder.  Some point to Jesus and His intervention when the woman "caught in adultery" was going to be stoned to death.  What most fail to realize, is that Jesus' statement “Let him who is without sin among yoube the first to throw a stone at her” John 8:7, was not an undoing of the Law, but was a conviction of the hearts of the men who were, in reality, testing Jesus.  They had hoped Jesus would argue against the law, but instead the Law was turned back on them - because of the hypocrisy they were demonstrating.  Where was the man involved?  It takes two to commit physical adultery!  Jesus was not condemning the death penalty, He was condemning hypocrisy.

But that brings us back to the death penally, applied through the laws of this nation and our states.  

The Old Testament law commanded the death penalty for several acts, including murder (Exodus 21:12), kidnapping (Exodus 21:16), bestiality (Exodus 22:19), adultery (Leviticus 20:10), homosexuality (Leviticus 20:13), prostitution and rape (Deuteronomy 22:24), and other crimes.

While God often did show mercy when death was the "due" (David's adultery and murder being one example), and the truth that every sin we commit should result in the death penalty because the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23), ultimately the death due for sin is an eternal death, separated from God in an eternal Hell and Lake of Fire. This should remind us of how thankful we should be that God demonstrates His love for us in not condemning us (Romans 5:8).

But we must recognize that God gave the authority to apply the death penalty where appropriate.  And while Christians should not celebrate executions, we should not rail against it either.

This brings up one of the biggest ironies of all in my mind (or maybe it is hypocrisy?):  How many people are staunchly against the application of the death penalty, yet are just as energetic in promoting abortion.  Will we protect the blatantly guilty, while destroying the unborn who are the closest to "innocent" we ever are in this flesh?

Think about it.

Church Web Site? How Can We Be Found?

OK.

Without a doubt, a web site can be a valuable tool for a local church, particularly a young church that hasn't had a great deal of exposure and publicity.  Add to a web site, the use of social media (Twitter, Facebook, Google+, etc.) can really help get a church "out there" to be found by those looking.  Indeed, I have a friend, Brandon Cox who is leading a church plan in North West Arkansas, that had its beginning through social networking!  When that church plant (Grace Hills Church) launched, they already had a core commitment and a large number interested - and they have grown consistently since!

So about 8 months ago, I was able to get a web site up for the church I pastor here in Clinton, Arkansas: Clinton Missionary Baptist Church.  Within a few weeks, a search in a major search engine for "Baptist Church Clinton Arkansas" would show ClintonMBC.com as a first-page result!  I was happy.  I though I had figured out how to get a web site notice!

Fast-forward to today.  As I was making a few adjustments, out of curiosity, I used a few different search engines to search by those same terms.  Clinton Missionary Baptist Church only shows up via the Facebook page - and even then, well down the list!  Apparently, as the page has expanded with content, the page has actually fallen down the results list.  Even searching for "Missionary Baptist Church Clinton Arkansas" results in a somewhat disappointing return.

So - the question becomes - other than paying for advertising, how what else can I do to get search results that are more productive?  I know that being linked to from other web sites can help.  What else might help out?  Inquiring minds want to know!

A Brief, But Urgent Call for Discernment ("Heaven Is For Real")

Almost four years ago, a book began making huge waves, especially among Christian readers.  The book:  "Heaven Is For Real: A Little Boy's Astouding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back".  This book followed on another book that made nearly as large as another book of its "ilk" - "The Shack".  And much like that predecessor, it swept the "Christian" book sales charts.  And now, a Hollywood production of Heaven Is For Real is set for theatrical release this year.  This presents us with a new urgency for discernment (Hebrews 5:14; 1 Corinthians 2:14).

Heaven Is For Real, the main title of the book is where the reality and truth ends.  What is most sad about this, is that these books garner such a huge following from professed Christians because they have indeed not practiced discernment.  Discernment begins with the Word of God.

Heaven Is For Real flies in the face of scripture over and over.  Whether it be the clear picture in the Bible that the Apostles were the last to see Jesus in His resurrected form, or Paul's statement in 2 Corinthians regarding the one who is swept up into Heaven who heard (and saw) things that cannot be told, such a story of a young child getting to see, and ultimately return to essentially give "new revelation" is an assault on all things Biblical.

This book and those like it are all about appeal to the fleshly need for "signs and wonders".  We cannot just rely on faith, as the Bible clearly says we are to do - waiting until our faith becomes sight.  WE walk from experience to experience - living vicariously through the writings and uttering of those who supposedly have "been there, seen that".  It is a sad statement to the condition of many people's "faith".  Romans 10:17 says faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God - not signs and wonders..

Particularly troubling are those who say that this book "changed their life".  If your life change came about from a work of the imagination of a well-coached 4 year-old instead of the Word of God and the working of the Holy Spirit, then you haven't seen real, eternal life, change.

I will not rehash a comprehensive list of blatant contradictions with scripture contained in this book (and assumedly in the coming film by the same name), but just a brief highlight:

• Jesus' horse is rainbow colored? Compare to Revelation 19:11
• The child says the Holy Spirit "shoots down power from Heaven".  Compare to Acts 1:8 - the Holy Spirit Who is present WITH us.
• Everyone in Heaven has wings (except Jesus)

Some might ask how this child could know about his sister who apparently died before birth, or about his grandfather who he had never been given details of.  The Apostle Paul answers that for us: 2 Corinthians 11:14-15.

Dear reader - Heaven is, indeed real.  Not because some 4 year old was coaxed (coached) into telling a story (likely a dream while under anesthesia) as fact, but because God has told us that in His divine revelation called The Bible.  But the fiction (dangerous fiction for the spiritually immature) contained in this book and forthcoming movie present a slanted and unscriptural view of God and ultimately, redemption.  If you desire to know all that can be known about Heaven and Jesus Christ, then look no farther than the Word of God, which gives all that God has revealed to mankind.  Spend time in The Book.  Otherwise, your theology might be as flakey and erroneous as that of a 4 year-old child, and your salvation based on faith in fraud.  Is it worth your eternity?  

Government is God's minister? Struggling with Romans 13

I've been chewing on Romans 13 today.  I am struggling in several ways, but most so in comparing the governments we see in the world today - some that are truly the living definition of "unjust" and "ungodly".  Government that could not be any more "anti-Christian" in nature - yet I go back to Romans 13, particularly the first 7 verses, and I am truly struggling to reconcile my heart and thoughts with the writer's words.

What kind of government did the writer see?  I seriously doubt it was any more "godly" than what we see today.  Yet how can we reconcile that with phrases like:

• "for he is God's servant for your good" 
• "Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval"?  

Right here in the US, there are Christians being forced by the government to engage in activities that blatantly fly in the face of the Bible.  When bakery owners, who are trying to live their lives and run their business affairs according to God-glorifying principals, yet when they choose to not produce the wedding cake for a "homosexual marriage", they find themselves on the losing end of a lawsuit.  This government that is suppose to be "God's agent for our good" is somehow not exactly pressing the biblical agenda.

Indeed, a list is rapidly growing of Christian business owners who have found themselves on that same losing end, over the same basic point.  This post isn't meant as a treatise on the immorality or sinful nature of homosexuality and by extension, "gay marriage", as the Bible speaks extremely clearly on the issue (despite the denials of many).  Indeed - this issue jus presents the "controversy of the day" in an ever-expanding list of ways government seems to act radically in opposition to what God teaches in His Word.

We have a government here in the US that has openly lied to the people, lied to the world, all with no obvious positive end to "justify the means".  We have politicians who openly mock God and the Bible.  Yet all of this (and a lot more) pales in comparison to what is happening in many nations around the world.   Try "being" a Christian in Iran, where the simple mention of Jesus Christ as God, as the Savior will get you arrested, tortured, and possibly put to death.  While this might bring glory to God when a Christian stays truth through it all - to his (or her) death, is is very hard to see how that could be such a "great thing" from a fleshly point of view. In fact, not a day goes by where direct, and even violent persecution against Christians isn't happening at the hands of "those in authority".

How can we reconcile the words of Romans 13 with what we see transpiring al around us - the very real evil on display?  The simple answer: Faith.  We many never in our lifetime see how what the government has done that was truly for "our good" or for the glory of God.  But God's Word says it, our job is to trust it!

Does that mean we are to just sit down and shut up and "comply"?  I don't believe so.  While scripture says that we are to submit to the authority, here in the USA, we live under a system that was put into place over 200 years ago that was based on the term "Freedom".  But those framers, while suffering from their own serious moral issues, recognized that true freedom relied on two things - acknowledging God and government that is restrained.  That restraint included the rights enshrined in the Bill of Rights, which begins with the 1st Amendment.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

The framers of the Constitution saw the need to allow the free expression of religious faith.  But let us understand that the "religion" in they eyes of the framers was "Christianity".  It was no Islam.  It was not Buddhism, and it was not Atheism (by definition IS a "religion").  That does not mean that the writers desired to force everyone to follow "Christianity", as the "establishment" part clearly prevents.  But it was primarily about citizens being able to live out their faith.  Their eyes were clearly focused on not repeating the state-inflicted religious persecution (not the perceived inconvenience of seeing a cross displayed, or the ten commandments on a courthouse wall) that had become so prevalent in Europe (what we can understand as a state religion).  Many of those governments put Christians to death for the "crime" of not following their official version of "church".

Yet our nation that enshrined the freedom to express (and literally live) our faith, is now engaged in systematically taking those rights away from us.  Is it any wonder that any professed Christians are becoming discouraged, or even dangerously jaded?

And then we come back to Romans 13.  And I think about what the early Christians faced - martyrdom.  They faced officials and authorities that directly sought the destruction of Christianity.  Recall, this is the exact mission that Paul, still known as Saul, was officially authorized to engage in.  Then I think of the relative peace that the early church saw in Jerusalem, along with great growth - it took the resurgence of persecution to disperse the Christians, carrying the Gospel with them.

And indeed, some of the greatest advances of the Gospel came under the most extreme of persecution.

So - what can we conclude?  If you are a born-again Christian, you must have faith that God will use the government to your good and for what will ultimately bring Him the most glory.  That may involve persecution.  But this also should inspire you to take advantage of the law and the Constitution of this nation and to actually speak up and stand up for what is right according to God's Word.  Seek to live your life (and run your business) according to God's standards.  And when conflict between these arises (as our current political atmosphere indicates will happen), then stand on the Word of God, and be willing to accept what may come, even by the Government.  We enjoyed a lot of freedom and protection in this nation as "Christians", but we are losing it step-by-step because of complacency and failure to speak up while we could, influencing the culture in a Godly way.

Peter and his companions in ministry were arrested, beaten, and threatened to stop preaching Jesus Christ.  The refused to comply- instead it pushed them to be even more bold in speaking the truth to the lost world.