What is Christianity?

-
If someone came up to you and asked, “What is Christianity?”, what would you say? I would bet that you would get 100 different answers from 100 different people. 

So, can Christianity be properly defined? Yes.


Christianity simply put is a religious worldview based on Jesus Christ as presented in and throughout the Christian Bible.

Where do we get the term Christian from? It comes from the word Christ. No, Christ isn’t Jesus’ last name. Christ means, “messiah, anointed one.” Simply put: a savior.

So, is Christianity a religion? Well, yes and no. Yes, because it answers four key questions about reality: origin, destiny, meaning, and morality. By answering these questions, Christians build a worldview. Christianity’s worldview is built from the Bible.

But Christianity really isn’t a religion because religion is a list of dos and don’ts. Religion tells people how they can gain salvation, how they can gain access to God or many gods. Religion is all about what you do to achieve a desired result.

Christianity has nothing to do with what we can do. Why? Because, Ephesians 2:1-3 says, “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world… among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.”

People are sinful and totally spiritually dead, cut off from God. Our sinfulness separates us from God and nothing we can do can repay that spiritual debt.

But what comes next in Ephesians are two of the sweetest words in all the Bible: "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved."

What is Christianity? It’s the belief that because of our sinfulness, we can’t save ourselves. But God, being rich in mercy and grace, sent Jesus Christ to pay for our sins. Because of this act of mercy and grace, we have an unending relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

How did Jesus accomplish this?

1 Corinthians 15 says, “Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.”

Christianity establishes who we are, who God is, and what He has done to save us if we are willing.

Reflect: Which part of these passages is hardest to believe (our sinfulness, God’s mercy and grace, the resurrection of Jesus, something else)? Why? Which part is the most appealing? Why?

Respond: If Christianity is true, what difference does that make for you?

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Can Christians Be MEGA SURE of God's Existence? Part 1

-
Image
Why is there something rather than nothing? Have you ever considered this question? Why is there something rather than nothing? Why are we here? Why is the earth here? Why is the universe here? Why is there something rather than nothing. Every world view has to answer these questions. Not just the Christian. Not just the theist, but the pantheist, the polytheist, the agnostic, and the atheist. We all must try to determine why there is something rather than nothing. Once one gives an answer, they need to answer one more question: is my conclusion the most reasonable answer. Atheist philosopher Bertrand Russell who said that “The universe is just there, and that's all." In other words, it just exists. It always had. It’s a brute fact. Is this reasonable? As Christians we would say “God” is the answer. But is that the most reasonable answer. Some would say, it doesn’t matter. It’s a matter of faith. But I ask you, is such a blind faith badge of honor for us as Christians? The
Read more

How do we know Jesus' resurrection is legit?

-
Image
First, let me apologize for my tardiness! I recently was on a missions trip for two weeks and starting my final undergrad class. But I am glad to be blogging again! Today, I want to keep it brief. It is the Easter season. This is the time we remember the triumphant work of Jesus Christ. Christ took on Himself the sin of humanity. The sinless lamb was slain. But that is not where it ends. After three days in the grave He rose and exited the tomb. That is what I want to address today.  How do we know Jesus' resurrection is legit? An important starting point is that scholars, both Christian and non-Christian agree that Jesus was buried in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea. "When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him . And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in
Read more

5 Reminders from Untimely Death

-
Image
“Crazy if it’s true.” That’s what I saw on my phone after my son’s basketball game. “What’s crazy if true?” I thought. I knew I had missed something. There were over 10 missed texts. So, what was “true?” The apparent death of Kobe Bryant. It would seem like Sunday would be day that many people won’t forget. Whenever a young, well respected, and famous person dies, the world reacts. And they should Death is a painful shock to our souls. But why do we react with such fervency? Because it's a reminder. In fact, I believe there are 5 reminders that come from untimely death. Death is inevitable. It doesn’t matter who are you, what you do, where you live, or when you live, we will all die. We may get face lifts to look younger. We can workout to tighten up bodies. We can eat vegan or as much meat as the world offers, we are all going to die. Period. We are powerless over death. This is what James reminds us of in James 1:9-11: “ Let the lowly brother boast in his exal
Read more