I grew up believing that I was a Christian simply because I went to church and prayed sometimes. I knew about Jesus but I didn’t really know Jesus. I wasn’t actually a Christian. I felt distant from God and didn’t understand his great love for me.
I’m not alone.
According to the 2023-2024 Pew Research study on religion in the United States, 62% of adults describe themselves as Christian. However, a majority of people who claim to be Christians reject core tenants of the faith. The State of Theology survey claims that 56% of “Christians” believe that God accepts the worship of all religions and 43% believe that Jesus was a great teacher, but he isn’t God in the flesh. What’s more, a study by Arizona Christian University states that the majority of Americans, including those claiming to be Christians, reject the Trinity.
These statistics stand in stark contrast to what the Bible actually teaches. So, what does it mean to be a Christian? Can someone be a Christian whose beliefs conflict with the Bible? Do you still think you are Christian? If you’re confident that you are a true follower of Christ, do you know how to encourage someone who calls themself a Christian, but may not actually be one?
Believing that Jesus is the Only Way to God
The Bible makes the point quite clear that Jesus is the only way to God. He said to Thomas, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6 ESV) Paul also pointed to Jesus as the only way to God when he said in 1 Corinthians 8:6, “Yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.” (ESV)
Believing that Jesus was more than just a great teacher, but also God in the flesh, is key to true Christianity. If Jesus wasn’t God, then how can he save us from our sins? A mere teacher could not have such power! The New Testament is rich with proof that Jesus was deity. Not only did Jesus claim that he was God, but his disciples believed it, taught it, worshipped him, and died for their faith in him.
Knowing that Repentance is a Vital Aspect of a Relationship with God
Believing that Jesus is God and that he died for your sins is the first step toward becoming a Christian, but this is not enough. James says, “You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!” (James 2:19 NKJV) As the famous saying goes, “Just because you’re in a garage, doesn’t make you a car.” The point being, just because you say you believe in Jesus, and maybe even step into a church on occasion, doesn’t make you a Christian. A true Christian is one who is transformed from the inside out, sanctified in Christ.
After repentance, or agreeing with God about your sin, the process of sanctification starts. Peter tells us in Acts 3:19, “Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out.” (ESV) Admitting our sins is only a start. Notice that the verse says to “turn back.” That means that you allow God to transform your life, putting off the old man and putting on the new, as Paul describes sanctification in Ephesians 4:22-24.
According to James, “But someone will say, ‘You have faith and I have works.’ Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” (James 2:18 ESV) This is not to say that we are saved by works, but that the way we live our life will be the evidence that we have allowed God to change us from the inside out. The good works become a natural part of our lifestyle.
The evidence of Christ’s transformation on our life comes to us supernaturally because Christians have God’s Holy Spirit living in them. We can’t experience this transformation of sanctification in our life without the Holy Spirit.
Experiencing the Holy Spirit as a Living and Active in Your Life
I remember the exact moment when I became a Christian. I felt a physical warmth rush over me. A few years later when I learned about the baptism of the Holy Spirit I realized the rush of warmth I felt had to have been the Holy Spirit. I felt different. Something inside of me changed and I suddenly had a hunger for God’s Word and a great desire to learn what being a Christian actually meant. This inward change is true whether or not you physically feel the Holy Spirit or not.
Being born again doesn’t mean your whole life changes overnight, but that God takes hold of your heart by the power of his Holy Spirit. You become conformed to be more like Jesus over time. Some changes will be evident immediately, while others take root over the course of the rest of your life as you learn and grow in your relationship with the Father.
When Jesus prepared his disciples for his death and resurrection, he said to them, “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever.” (John 14:16 ESV) After Jesus’s resurrection, Acts 2 describes how he ascended into Heaven and the Holy Spirit came to believers.
Believing in the Holy Spirit is just as important as believing in God the Father and believing in God the Son. Before his ascension, Jesus told his disciples, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (Matthew 28:19 ESV) While the Holy Spirit as a part of a triune God is apparent throughout Scripture, this verse demonstrates this truth the best. Why would Jesus command them to baptize in the Holy Spirit as well as the Son, if they weren’t both equal with God the Father? This passage also demonstrates the power of the Trinity (God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit) in our lives as believers.
You may not have had a moment like I did where you literally felt the presence of the Holy Spirit. However, if you have ever truly surrendered your life to Christ, repented of your sins, and opened yourself up to God’s sanctification of your life, then you have experienced that great desire to learn about Jesus and allow him to work in your life.
Has this article confirmed your faith? Or has it made you re-evaluate your faith? Whichever the case, I encourage you to share the article with a friend and use it to start a conversation–one that I don’t believe we are having enough of in today’s world.
Bethany Marinelli is an author and speaker out of Orlando, Florida. She also supports her husband, Andrew, in his auto repair business and homeschools her son, Arthur.
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