The Basics of Being ChristianSample

What is being a Christian all about?

The answer to that question is in the name. Being a Christian is all about Jesus Christ. What you may not know, is that Christ isn’t actually Jesus’s last name—It’s His title. Christ is the Greek way of saying, Messiah, which means the chosen one of God.

You see, the entire Bible is a story that leads to Jesus. It’s a story that begins on page one with a loving Creator and His creation of the universe and everything in it. The highlight of God’s creative work was humanity—people created in His own image. We are creatures with the capacity to think, act, create, and choose. That last function is really important.

The Biblical story took a dark turn when human beings, tempted by the enemy who took the form of a serpent, chose to reject God as their King and tried to take His place as the ones who decide what’s good and bad. This act of rebellion is called the Fall. It’s through this event that all the good and wonder of the cosmos is thrown into chaos. Sin, death, suffering, and evil enter the picture and what was once beautiful is now broken.

But that’s not the way the story ends. In fact, just a few verses after the Fall, God promises that there will come a day when a serpent-crushing savior comes to put this broken world back together. As the story of God’s chosen people, the nation of Israel, continues to unfold, we learn more and more about the identity and role of the saving one. We are told that He will be the Christ, the King who would undo the damage of the Fall by rescuing humanity from the crippling disease of sin and begin the process of restoring creation.

Eventually, this King shows up as a man named Jesus. But He is no ordinary guy. He is the Son of the Living God. But He’s not just the Son of God, He is one with God and He is God. How does that work? Well, that’s a part of the mystery we call the Trinity. God is three-and-one. He is one being made up of three persons: Father, Son, and Spirit. Jesus, the perfect union of God and man, shows up in history inviting everyone and anyone to be forgiven of their sins and to be made right with God. This is the Good News we call the Gospel. The announcement that through a relationship with Jesus we can be forgiven of our sins, reunited with God, and invited to play a part in His mission to rescue others and restore creation.

What is being a Christian all about? It’s all about Jesus, the Messiah, our serpent-crushing savior king: who He is, what He’s done, and the part He’s invited us to play.

Our relationship with Jesus is unlike any other kind of relationship. The Bible tells us that putting our faith in Jesus unites us to Jesus. We aren’t just connected to Him, we become one with Him.

The New Testament talks about being united to Christ over two hundred times. This image, oneness with Jesus, is the most frequent picture the Bible gives to describe what a relationship with Jesus is like.

In other words, being a Christian means being in Christ.

Okay, but what does that mean? That’s the question we are going to answer in tomorrow’s reading. For now, take a few minutes to reflect on the questions below.

Consider: What about the reading today was new to you? What parts are challenging you? Is there anything you feel like God is trying to show you about your understanding of what Christianity is really about?