20 Things That Don't Make You A Christian

(Photo from Tiramisustudio - FreeDigitalPhotos.net)

The last 2 posts were about things that don't make you a Christian.

But to be honest, as I've been thinking about it, that list could go on and on.
I mean - being a baker doesn't make you a Christian.
Going to France doesn't make you a Christian.
Being a Yankees fan doesn't make you a Christian (but you are getting closer at least).

Anyhow, let me - instead of putting together 10,000 more posts - summarize the idea with a list of some of the common things people think make them Christians.

It's important to note here that there is a difference between causality and correlation.  There are many things that are correlated to being a Christian i.e. there are many things that Christians do, say, or live out...but those things don't MAKE a person a Christian, they are just associated with being a Christian.

When it comes to causality, it is by grace through faith, period.  Paul makes that clear in Ephesians 2:8-9 (click the reference to read that passage).

But here's a list 20 things that many people think equals being a Christian:

1. Going to church
2. Giving to church
3. Reading your Bible
4. Praying
5. Being involved in youth group
6. Serving or caring for the poor
7. Liking Christian movies, preachers, t.v, or other media sources
8. Pointing your finger at the sky after a touchdown
9. Saying you are a Christian
10. Raising your hand at a conference, retreat, rally, or event
11. Praying the "Sinner's Prayer"
12. Being involved in church leadership
13. Going on a mission trip
14. Not swearing and/or drinking and/or/ sleeping around
15. Singing on a musical worship team
16. Serving in church
17. Saving grace before meals
18. Living in the south
19. Working for a church
20. Being a pastor

What's the point?  Being a Christian isn't caused by anything on this list.  Being a Christian isn't the same as doing any or all of the things on this list.

In our next post we will look at what makes a person a Christian and the fruit we can measure to test if someone is a Christian.

- tC

Going To Church - Even Every Week - Doesn't Make You A Christian

(Photo by Ikpro - FreeDigitalPhotos.net)

"Ok, now this is getting crazy.  Tim - come on.  I would get it if you said, 'Just going to church once in a while doesn't make you a Christian.  But if someone goes every week to church - really - you really think that person might not be a Christian?"

Yup.

Simple analogy.  People say, "Standing in the garage doesn't make you a car."  Have you heard that one?  Well, think about carrying out the analogy a bit more.  Does standing in the garage for a long time make you car?  Does duration really impact your assessment?  To be honest, if a person stood for a year in the garage saying he was a car, you would likely think even less that he was a car, and you'd probably be more convinced than ever that he was not well.

Church attendance does not make you a Christian.
It might show you are a Christian, but it doesn't have a 1:1 correlation.

Here's some proof from the Bible to back this up.

1. Again - Matthew 7 (see the last post).  Many will say to Jesus, "Lord, look at all we did in Your name" and Jesus will reply "I never knew you."  It fair to say that if miracles (Matthew 7:21-23) were not proof of being a true believer, then certainly going to a gathering at the local church building doesn't make a person a Christian.

2. 1 John 2:19 say this - "They went out from us, but they did not belong to us.  For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us."  The Apostle John shows here that there are people who are actively 'with' true Christians but these people who hang around Christians are not actually Christians.   At least with these people (those who John says left the fold), they showed their true colors and probably knew they were not believers since they eventually left.  How horrendous to stay around believers, think you are a believer, and yet not be.

3. True Christians are people indwelt by the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38) and this changes one's behavior so that this person will bear the Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5;22-24).  The reality is that a person can attend a church service every week and yet still not be known by anyone.  Come on - let's be honest.  Who has been in the car on the way to church and then all of a sudden a fight breaks out.  It's not pretty but oh yes - when we pull up to the church building and get out..."Praise the Lord it's a great day.  How you doing Deacon Bob?"  

Why bother talking about this?

You know, I asked myself the same thing.  But here's what I see.
I see people who are actively involved in the church and yet they have no desire for righteousness or, even more so, no desire for Christ.

Now I'm not talking about people in process - we are all in process, I know.

But I'm talking about people who have checked off a little box in their brain that says, "Hey, I'm in church - what more does God want from me?"  This kind of attitude shows a fundamental theological fallacy which is the notion that going to church is 'doing something' for God.  Acts 17:24-25 tells us that we cannot place God into our debt.  As Paul says in that passage, "As though He needed anything."  It also betrays a works-based salvation concept i.e. if I do the right things, God will be pleased with me and let me into Heaven when I die.  This is not from the Bible or from Jesus - this is a man-made concept.  John  3:16 (and many other passages as well) makes it clear that our salvation is a gift given by God's grace alone.

And so I land here.  Going to a church service on Sunday or Wednesday, or Sunday and Wednesday, or Sunday and Wednesday and a special revival on Saturday - none of these make you a Christian.  You can be as pagan as they come and still sit in a pew.

There must be more to truly being a Christian. And there is.

- tC