What do you absolutely HAVE to believe to be a Christian?

[Retrobyter]

On 5/25/2024 at 4:07 AM, Charlie1988 said:

According to Acts 16:31 there is only one absolutely mandatory thing one needs to believe, in order to be called a Christian. 

31 So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

This may sound simplistic, but that's what the bible says. There's nothing complicated about following the Lord Jesus Christ, all we need to do is believe in Him and we shall be saved.

Shalom, Charlie.

But, people have a problem with "believing" and "faith" in general. They will frequently be looking for "what do I have to do?" and not understanding that it is what God through His Messiah has ALREADY DONE! 

See, the problem is that they think "faith" is something they must have and believing is something they must do. But, the focus is in WHOM we have our faith! It's in WHOM we believe or trust!

The Messiah or "Christ" was made our Sacrifice for sin, and GOD the Father was the One who Sacrificed His Son. All we need do is accept God's Sacrifice of His Messiah as OUR OWN Sacrifice for sin, and God applies that Sacrifice to our lives! We TRUST Him to honor His own promise and trust Him to do for us what we can't do for ourselves!

When His Sacrifice is applied to us, then He is free to justify us, and we are named "His Righteousness in Christ," just as Christ was named "our sin!" It is THIS transfer - THIS exchange that completes God's requirement for sin, and we are "born again."

So, it's a bit more complicated than that on God's part. (Which is a HUGE UNDERSTATEMENT.)

There are three passages of Scripture that I will use in leading someone to the LORD:

Isaiah 53:10-11 (KJV)

10 Yet it pleased the LORD (GOD the Father) to bruise him (the Messiah); he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his (the Messiah's) soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. 11 He (God the Father) shall see of the travail of his (the Messiah's) soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.

Recognizing that "be ye reconciled to" (Greek: καταλλάγητε or katallageete) means "(you) exchange places with,"

2 Corinthians 5:20-21 (KJV)

20 Now then we are ambassadors for Christ (the Messiah), as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God (exchange places with God). 21 For he (God) hath made him (the Messiah) to be "sin" for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made "the righteousness of God" in him.

And, Yeeshuwa`s ("Jesus'") own words,

Luke 18:9-14 (KJV)

9 And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 

10 "Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee (a "Separatist" who kept all the Law), and the other a publican (a despised tax-collector for Rome). 11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself,

"'God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. 12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.'

13 "And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying,

"'God be merciful to me a sinner.'

14 "I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted."

THIS makes one a Christian.

[IgnatioDeLoyola]

On 5/21/2024 at 2:56 PM, Indentured Servant said:

#2 is not necessary be a Christian; but, in my experience, it's necessary to accepted in church, or with online forums and chatrooms.

Scripture may seem to, (for the lack of a better term), "allude" to a triunity of God, but never dictates that we think of God as "three separate persons." Maybe we can adjust that to say, "three inseparable..."

If I changed it to "3 seperate parts / manifestations" would that be okay? I think, for example, if you don't believe in any manifestation of God other than God the Father, you couldn't be a Christian. That is, that Jesus wasn't really God but was, say, of the same "substance" as God or in another way "divine", you couldn't be Christian.

[IgnatioDeLoyola]

On 5/21/2024 at 3:25 PM, warrior12 said:

A Christian is one who believes that Jesus Christ is the redeemer of his soul. He, Jesus paid with his life blood, through the cross for our sins.  He only has to believe in his heart and confess with his tongue that Jesus Christ is Lord. 

Hey @warrior12 - isn't this a (simpler) restatement of my points 3 - 5?

[IgnatioDeLoyola]

On 5/22/2024 at 7:33 AM, kwikphilly said:

So you'd think first you must believe there is more to life than what we see and it doesn't end when we die,one must believe we are not worthy of what is beyond this life,you must believe you need a Savior,you must believe He Can Save you and you can be Forgiven- you must believe thst only God Can do all these things and that Jesus is Who He Says He Is- GOD

Hi @kwikphilly,

Fantastic reply. The only thing I would disagree with here is "one must believe we are not worthy of what is beyond this life". 

I'm not sure you would have to believe in your moral unworthiness for heaven (although clearly, you absolutely must believe that you have sinned, and therefore are in need of salvation). 

Let me give you an example. Imagine I believed that sin was a metaphysical entity - like a stain on white clothing that I cannot see but am wearing. Imagine I further believed that God, being sinless by His very definition, and this stain of sin cannot possibly mix or be present together, and indeed that anything with this stain cannot possible survive in God's presence.

The question of getting rid of sin then becomes a practical issue, not a moral one. It is not that I am not morally worthy of Heaven (though clearly I am less good than God!), it is that I cannot possibly survive in God's presence and home with the stain of sin still on me.

Someone who believed this, and therefore committed their life to the care and love of Jesus in order to solve the problem of sin, would surely still be a Christian.

[IgnatioDeLoyola]

Dear @Retrobyter,

You have made some very good and deep posts, but, let me be honest, I'm not sure what to make of them.

There is much about trinitarian theology (but I've got to say, I can't see most people understanding the nuances or needing to believe these in order to be Christian).

There is also discussion on the New Covenant, and whether this was made with the whole world of purely Israel (the House of Jacob). Again, I'm unsure as to the relevance of this - or whether the distinction is significant. The New Covenant effectively allowed people to be "grafted on" to Israel - it liberalised the root of Jesse beyond the boundaries of matrilineal descent. But again, I don't see how anyone would have to believe in such a detailed version of Jesus' work to be saved?

Thank you for your reply though, I did read it with interest!

[kwikphilly]

12 minutes ago, IgnatioDeLoyola said:

Hi @kwikphilly,

Fantastic reply. The only thing I would disagree with here is "one must believe we are not worthy of what is beyond this life". 

I'm not sure you would have to believe in your moral unworthiness for heaven (although clearly, you absolutely must believe that you have sinned, and therefore are in need of salvation). 

Let me give you an example. Imagine I believed that sin was a metaphysical entity - like a stain on white clothing that I cannot see but am wearing. Imagine I further believed that God, being sinless by His very definition, and this stain of sin cannot possibly mix or be present together, and indeed that anything with this stain cannot possible survive in God's presence.

The question of getting rid of sin then becomes a practical issue, not a moral one. It is not that I am not morally worthy of Heaven (though clearly I am less good than God!), it is that I cannot possibly survive in God's presence and home with the stain of sin still on me.

Someone who believed this, and therefore committed their life to the care and love of Jesus in order to solve the problem of sin, would surely still be a Christian.

You quoted only " part" of my statement which takes it out of context- that was only part of a sentence that emphasized what is vitally important- our NEED for a Savior

 

[IgnatioDeLoyola]

On 5/25/2024 at 9:07 AM, Charlie1988 said:

“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

Dear @Charlie1988,

I think the question is, what does that actually mean? After all, Satan believes in the Lord Jesus Christ. He knows who Jesus is, has met him, talked to him, is fully aware of his mission to save souls from hell, believes in all the miracles he worked in the Bible, etc etc.

But Satan cannot be called a Christian.

Best

N

[Charlie1988]

1 hour ago, IgnatioDeLoyola said:

Dear @Charlie1988,

I think the question is, what does that actually mean? After all, Satan believes in the Lord Jesus Christ. He knows who Jesus is, has met him, talked to him, is fully aware of his mission to save souls from hell, believes in all the miracles he worked in the Bible, etc etc.

But Satan cannot be called a Christian.

Best

N

Satan and His Angels do know who Jesus is and what He has done to save His people from bondage to sin and Satan. But their type of belief is not the kind that leads to salvation.

They just believe what they have witnessed, so they can't deny that Jesus is God. But that just serves to further condemn them because, they have not put their trust in the Lord to save them. They are unable to come to a place of repentance and God never purposed to save any of the Angels who rebelled against Him in heaven.

Nobody could ever come to repentance, unless God grants them repentance in the first place. We are all born hating God, dead in sin and trespasses. As such it is impossible for us to change our nature and make a decision to love God instead of our sin.     

Edited June 13, 2024 by Charlie1988

[other one]

5 hours ago, Charlie1988 said:

But their type of belief is not the kind that leads to salvation.

They simply do not qualify for salvation for any reason no matter what or how they believe.