Who is a Christian? – Grace of Jesus

In its simplest terms, a Christian is a follower of Jesus Christ, the son of the living God. So how do we demonstrate that we are His followers?

Christians?

Accept Christ as being one with the Father (John 10:30)
Understand that salvation and eternal life are gifts from God and are ours through Christ, not through a way of our own choosing (Proverbs 16:25, Romans 6:23)
Accept that we have sinned, but know that His sacrifice provides for the forgiveness of those sins (Ephesians 1:7)
Know Him as our shepherd, and are known by Him as His sheep (John 10:14)
Place dedication to the principles of Christ above our own desires. (Matthew 16:24)
Give Him more than just lip service (Matthew 7:21)
Love one another as He has loved us (John 13:34)

Why become a Christian?

Christ died for us, even though we were sinners (Romans 5:8)
Christ alone is the way to God, the Father (John 14:6)
Christ is the one true mediator between God and man (1 Timothy 2:5)
God has sent Christ to be our savior (1 John 4:14)
There is eternal life in Christ (Romans 6:23)

How do I become a Christian?

Believe the gospel – the “good news” – of Christ, for it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes. (Romans 1:16)
Turn away – repent – from sin, so they may be forgiven (Acts 3:19; Acts 17:30)
Confess that Christ is Lord (Romans 10:9).
Share in his death and resurrection through baptism (Mark 16:16; Acts 22:16; Romans 6:3-4)

Why baptism?

What is baptism?

A rite that was ordered for believers. (Acts 10:48)
An act done in the name of Jesus. (Acts 8:36-38; Acts 10:48)
Described in the scriptures as a burial. (Romans 6:3,4)
Defined by Bible dictionaries as “plunging, dipping, immersing, submerging.”
An action that always involved going to a place where there was enough water, not bringing a small amount of water to the candidate; archeology shows early baptisteries as pools of water.

Who is to be baptized?

Those who believe the word, (Mark 16:16; Acts 18:8)
who obey the word, (Mark 16:15-16; Acts 2:41)
and who repent of their sins. (Acts 2:38)

Why should I be baptized?

To become a disciple (Matthew 28:19-20)
To be saved (Mark 16:16)
To have your sins forgiven, washed away (Acts 2:38; Acts 22:16)
To receive the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38)
To get into Christ; to be in his body – the church (Galatians 3:27; 1 Corinthians 12:13)
To unite in Christ’s death and life (Romans 6:3,4)

What then? After I become a Christian, what?

Upon your baptism, you are added to Christ’s church — the total of all people who have obeyed Him (Acts 2:37-47). Christ and His church are inseparable. He gave Himself for the church (Acts 20:28) and is the head and Savior of His church (Ephesians 1:22-23; Colossians 1:18). Christ is Lord of everything, including daily work responsibilities and relationships (Ephesians 5:21-6:9).

The church, the body of believers, shares the Lord’s supper (communion) as a memorial to Christ’s death on the first day of each week (Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 11:17-32), sings hymns of praise (Ephesians 5:18-20), prays (Acts 2:42; 1 Thessalonians 5:17), receives God’s word in teaching (Acts 2:42), and encourages each other (1 Thessalonians 5:11).

Christ’s followers show the presence of Christ in their lives by both their words and their deeds (Colossians 3:17).

Verses Cited
John 10:29,30	My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.
Proverbs 16:25	There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end, it leads to death.
Romans 6:23	For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Ephesians 1:7	In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.
John 10:14	I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me.
Matthew 16:24	Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”
Matthew 7:21	Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
John 13:34	A new command I have given you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so must you love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.
Romans 5:8	But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
John 14:6	I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
1 Timothy 2:5	For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.
I John 4:14	And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.
Romans 6:23	For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 1:16	I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.