“Not that I have
already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but I press on to make
it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.”- Philippians 3:12
This weekend I had the opportunity to speak to a group of
students for a church youth event. It was a great honor and privilege to have
been given the chance to speak into the lives of these young people allowing
for God to reveal Himself to them during that time…hopefully. As I shared the
message of freedom in Christ and helping them see that God sees them where they
are, I noticed that there were many who raised their hand when asked if they
already knew Jesus. This group was not a group of students where only a few
knew of Christ and possibly made a decision, but from my observation, most had,
if not all. However, there were still many of those who raised their hand that
seemed to be seeking to understand what it meant to follow Christ.
I thought to myself, “I wonder if we have made it too
difficult?” Then I asked myself, “What does it mean to be a Christian?” This is
a perplexing thought for me, so I could imagine how hard it must be for a
teenager trying to figure out their own identity. I recognized that maybe, just
maybe, being a Christian means too much for them and possibly for most. There
are probably many ideas as to what Christianity really means and possibly many
answers, but let’s look at some questions and see what the Bible says.
Does Christianity mean perfection? Well, yes, but not now.
Does Christianity mean a change in language? Well, yes, but not right away and
not necessarily all the time. Does Christianity mean a new outfit that must be
pressed and clean for church? Well, that’s nice, but no. So, what does it mean to be a Christian?
I think there are several verses to look at, but I want to
focus on two. Micah 6:8 is one. Micah 6:8 shares “He has told you, O man, what
is good; And what does the Lord require of you But to do justice, to love
kindness, And to walk humbly with your God?” (NASB) God lays out the standard
by His prophet Micah. We must love justice or what is right in the eyes of God.
We must love kindness, or mercy in some translations, the way God shows mercy
to all of us. Finally, we must walk humbly, knowing that we are nothing without
God. It is His for His glory we walk this earth and not our own.
The second verse that supports Micah’s is found in James
1:27 where it is written “Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God
and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep
oneself unstained by the world.” (NASB) It is not about the church we go to in
this world; on the contrary, it’s if we are being the Church to the world. When
we care for the widows and orphans we are loving justice and mercy. When we keep
our self “unstained by the world” we are making sure we remain humble enough to
do the first part of the verse. The world tells us to watch out for number one
and take care of our own needs. If we are to be “unstained” then our life is
centered on Christ’s desires and the heart of God. Then, it allows us to follow
His plan for what His people look like.
We will not be perfect. We can dress nice, but God does not
care about outward appearances and neither should we. We may change our
language, but even nice words, if fake, are not glorifying to God. Let us not
make Christianity too difficult on ourselves or others. Let God’s word speak to
what it means to be a Christian. Gregory of Nyssa said “This is true
perfection: not to avoid a wicked life…nor to do good because we hope for
rewards…On the contrary…we regard falling from God’s friendship as the only
thing dreadful and we consider becoming God’s friend the only thing worthy of
honor and desire.” Love justice, love mercy, and walk humbly, then God’s friendship
we will have.
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