What makes a Christian?

When you ask someone if they are a Christian, they almost always respond, "Yes, I'm a Christian." But what kind of Christian? If someone follows the Bible and a Catholic catechism, would they be a "Catholic" Christian? If someone follows the Bible and a Baptist manual, would they be a "Baptist" Christian? If someone followed the Bible and a Methodist discipline, would they be a "Methodist" Christian? The simple fact of the matter is, if you do not follow what the Bible says makes you a Christian, you cannot rightly be called a Christian (Acts 11:26). Man's efforts to "append" the name will not please God.

The Bible says that the steps to salvation include faith (John 1:12; Mark 16:16; Hebrews 11:6), repentance (Luke 13:3; Acts 17:30), confession of Jesus (Matthew 10:32; Romans 10:10), and baptism for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38; 22:16; 1 Peter 3:21). After someone has become a steward of the grace of God (1 Peter 4:10), they must be found faithful (1 Corinthians 4:2; Acts 20:24). If they fall back into sin and do not repent, they are lost (2 Peter 2:20-22).

If America required someone to fill out a form, pay a fee, take a test, and wait a required amount of time before they would be a legal citizen of this country, could you call them a citizen before they finished the requirements? If you did, you would be in error. All of the requirements would have to be fulfilled before they could be called an "American." Likewise, one must complete all the requirements stated in the New Testament before they can be called a "Christian."

Kyle Campbell