What Is A Christian?
How the Bible, the historical church confessions, and our greatest Christian authors answer this all-important question
A Loving Message to You
from Faith Bible CHurch
Part One: Introduction and What Does the Bible Say?
Part Two: What Do Preachers & Authors of Earlier Times Say?
Part Three: What Do the Great Creeds of the Church Say?
Part Four: What Do Modern Writers & Commentators Say?
Introduction
What is a Christian? We are burdened and not alone in our belief that the modern church, in its eagerness to bring in the masses during a time of increasing godlessness and secularism (certainly a worthy motive), has weakened its influence in the world by not giving a careful, scripural answer to the most basic Bible question of all: "What is a true Christian?" John the Baptist's message of "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew 3:1), was also the message of Jesus (Matt. 4:17), and also of the Apostles, who insisted to their hearers "that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance" (Acts 26:20).
One of the most significant characteristics of our Savior's earthly ministry -- a theme found in nearly all of His parables -- was His continual challenge for His hearers to examine their hearts to be sure their devotion to God was genuine. This was nothing new, for centuries earlier, Jeremiah had pressed that same theme when he said, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked. Who can know it?" Perhaps Jesus' most sober warning is found in Matthew 7:22-23: "Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.'"
But it seems the last 100 years have brought us a new, "kinder, gentler" gospel, one which expects little of its recipients, and gives little in return except a bold, but often unfounded, assurance of eternal life. The great doctrinal creeds, with all their scriptural proofs, which carefully spelled out the Bible doctrine held in common over the centuries by believers, have been abandoned; the old message of "repent and turn to God" has become merely to "believe" in its easiest sense; and the so-called "carnal Christians" who too often fill our church pews, instead of being challenged to "Repent therefore, and be converted," as would have been done by every great preacher and evangelist up to and including C.H. Spurgeon, are now routinely reassured that, regardless of long-term backsliding, spiritual apathy, and lack of fellowship with God, they can still be still be born-again Christians. This is a modern perversion of the true Gospel, and may God save us from such delusions!
Please consider prayerfully the following thoughts as we examine briefly the issue of biblical salvation by considering what has been said about it (1) by noteworthy Christian leaders of earlier times, (2) by Scripture, and (3) by the great historic creeds of the Christian church. We believe that SALVATION is man's most important issue to know aright. But it seems the hard Bible truth about it has been neglected in our modern gilded age. It is our hope and prayer that your heart will be challenged and even encouraged as you consider what the Bible says about God's great and powerful gift to those whom He loves.
What Does the Bible Say?
In recent years, two radically different views of salvation have been offered. One of them, by far the most common in our day, offers Christ, comfort, heaven, and all the promises of the Christian life to anyone who shows even the slightest interest in pursuing a relationship with God. The other side, like a voice crying in the wilderness, insists that being a Christian will involve serious, lifelong commitment to Christ, a love of holy brethren, obedience to Christ's commandments, testing by persecution, and evidence that God has permanently changed the heart and life and thus a nuw birth has taken place. Because these two "gospels," one easy and one demanding, contradict each other, the average person has often settled into the dangerous belief that the truth is somewhere in the middle, and such would be the "balanced view."
The problem is that "the middle" is not a fixed location – for, as one side moves further to the extreme, the "middle" also moves. We believe, and can prove from church history, that this is exactly what happened over the last 150 years. The issue at stake, then, is not “What is the balanced position?” but “What is the Biblical position?” With that in mind, we urge you, dear reader, to read the following Bible passages with an honest heart, asking God to remove any prejudices that might cloud your understanding, as you seek the truth on the issue that trumps all others: the issue of what, according to God, is a true, biblical Christian.
Bible 101: A Principle for Understanding the Bible.
So what exactly does the Bible say about salvation? In the effort to reach busy people in our fast-food age, salvation is often presented as a "plan" having a few simple steps, each with a supporting Bible verse or two, which the would-be Christian can follow and proceed to instant assurance of the forgiveness of sins before God. But promises of eternal llife are never made to mere casual seekers, and salvation has become over simplified. Major Bible doctrines cannot be summarized into a few verses taken out of context, or built upon a few proof texts while ignoring others. We need not all be theologians, but we must be willing to look at the Scriptures as a whole before we can determine what the Bible teaches on any given subject.
This principle may be understood when we think of reading the events recorded in the four Gospels. An account of an event in one Gospel may be found recorded in one, two, or all three of the other Gospel accounts, often with apparent contradiction until we look more closely and understand the different perspective or audience intended. Consider the following example. Mark 2:13-17 records the call of Levi the publican, an event also recorded in Matthew 9:9-13 and Luke 5:27-32. In the Mark and Luke accounts, this man is called "Levi," whereas in Matthew's account, he calls himself Matthew. Which name is correct? Obviously, both are correct: he went by more one name. In another event recorded in three Gospels, when Jesus was asked why His disciples did not fast, Mark's account (Mark 2:18-22) gives us the impression that those asking the question included both the disciples of John and the Pharisees; Matthew (9:14-17) mentions only the disciples of John as the interrogators, and Luke (5:33-39) could give us the impression that they were only scribes and Pharisees. Which of the three is correct? We believe all three, but certain details noteworthy to one writer, and important for his audience, were not as important to the others. In reading all three accounts, we have a more complete understanding of the event. This principle of biblical interpretation applies to the determining of any Bible teaching: When two passages appear to contradict each other, we are not free to chooe the one we prefer; they must be reconciled into a unified whole.
Bible 102: Understanding the Bible on Salvation
Let’s apply this axiom to the biblical doctrine of salvation. Some will cite verses such as John 3:16, Acts 16:31, Romans 10:9, and others, to prove that all that is necessary for salvation is to "believe." To their insisting that we are saved by believing, we say "Amen”: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved,” Paul said to the Philippian jailor in Acts 16:31. But the Bible tells us of many who "believed" in some way, but were not saved, such as those in Jerusalem during the Passover feast, when "many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did. But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man" (John 2:23-25). Even "the demons believe, and tremble" (James 2:19)!
This means that until we consider what the Scriptures tell us about those who have “believed” unto salvation, we are preaching to the world a half-truth and not the whole counsel of God. The Apostles' words to the jailor in Acts 16:31 do not exist in a vacuum, and do not give an adequate "gospel" for all. The verses before it give us some idea of how God prepared the heart of this jailor for receiving saving faith. The verse after it, which says “they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house,” indicates that Paul had much more to say before the jailor and his household before they would even know what or in Whom they were believing; and the verse after that, which says the jailor “took them that very hour of the night and washed their wounds,” indicates the immediate fruit of his newfound faith. Thus, to be saved is indeed to "believe," but the Bible truth about salvation cannot ignore the following truths (See our article on this site, What is the Gospel? for further discussion of many of the following passages). Because they may be familiar verses to you, we urge you to read them especially carefully and think about what they are really saying:
1. The true "believer" is one who receives the Scriptures as the God-given record of eternal truth.
John 5:47: "But if you do not believe his [Moses’] writings, how will you believe My words?"
1 John 5:10: "He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son.”
2. The true "believer" is one who has been elected or appointed to salvation, and drawn to Christ by God.
John 6:44-45: "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him… It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.”
Acts 13:48: “Now when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord. And as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.”
3. The true "believer" is one who has repented, not by his own will, but through an act of God, yet one that effects a change in the will and actions.
Acts 11:18: "When they heard these things they became silent; and they glorified God, saying, ‘Then God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance to life.’"
2 Timothy 2:24-25: “…be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth.”
Acts 26:20: "[I, Paul], declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance.”
Ephesians 2:8-9: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
4. The true "believer" is one who has had a complete change of life and heart.
2 Corinthians 5:17: "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”
Romans 6:6: “Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.”
5. The true "believer" is one who lives according to Christian belief and practice.
Romans 6:14-18, 22: "For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not! Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness…. But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life.”
Romans 8:1, 6, 9, 13-14: “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit…. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace…. But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His…. For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.”
Galatians 5:22-24: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self–control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”
Titus 2:11-14: “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.”
1 John 2:3-5: "Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, "I know Him," and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him.”
6. The true "believer" is one whose mouth will utter the truth that his heart has received.
Romans 10:10-13: "For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says, 'Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.' For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For 'whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.'"
7. The true "believer" is one who will continue steadfastly in the faith.
Romans 2:5-9: “God…will render to each one according to his deeds: eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; but to those who are self–seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness––indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil…”
Colossians 1:21-23: “And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight –– if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard.”
1 Timothy 4:16: “Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.”
Jude 1:24: “Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, And to present you faultless Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy.”
This is by no means an exhaustive list, but points to the fact that to "believe" is not merely acknowledging a set of facts about the Gospel, going to church, using Christian vocabulary, and willingly involving oneself with Christian people in doing Christian things. Scripture has told us many things salvation, and God will doubtless require more of our generation, which has been given the complete Bible paid for by the blood of the martyrs, than knowing merely a few proof tests for a shallow "gospel" that is too powerless to offend anyone. Certainly the greatest preachers, evangelists, missionaries and writers of church history never defined salvation as broadly as it is defined today. Evidence for this fact is presented in the following section.
