WHO IS A CHRISTIAN

 

WHO IS A CHRISTIAN?

Following is condensed from three blogs originally posted August 2010 on Brazil Times website. Years of observation led me to create my own ‘Types of Christian’. It must be noted that to the best of my knowledge this is original to me and presented as ‘open source’ for any other. My list is not known to be a teaching of any church or denomination; and I am not prepared or willing to defend it on any Biblical or theological basis. It’s simply the observation of one old man.

Level One: Politically Christian

There is an interesting phenomenon in our culture which allows anyone to be what I would term a “Political Christian”. That is, one can be a Christian because they are nothing else.

It is commonplace, and certainly a legal right, to be a “Christian” simply by being nothing else: Do not have an Islamic sounding name, must not be Muslim. Do not look like parents were from Asia, so not Buddhist or Hindu. No apparent Israel heritage, can’t be a Jew. Born and bred in America and doing right as seeing right to be in own eyes, so must be Christian.

In this opinion being “Politically Christian” requires no special knowledge of the Bible, no well defined belief system, cost nothing – not even membership in any particular church. It does allow, even demands, religious tolerance for anything and everything passing under the banner of faith. The “Politically Christian” blithely says, “You have your religion and I have mine.”

Level Two: Philosophically Christian

It is my observation it is possible to be what I would term “Philosophically Christian” – that is, because I somehow identify with a certain church that is what I am. My stepfather Bill Maddox put it this way, “I’m a trunk Baptist. Joined the Baptist Church when I was a kid and got a membership certificate. Put the darn thing in a trunk and have been a Baptist ever since.”

People identify with one church or another for a lot of reasons: They love the liturgy (every church has one, know it or not); or it’s where they grew up; or there’s a really nice preacher. All good reasons I suppose. To be a Christian because of with whom you identify is certainly an American right.

Any American church can embrace any teachings or traditions it wishes, which makes for a very interesting diversity. As long as you say, “these are our traditions, the way we choose to ‘do’ church”, you can get away with a lot of intriguing dichotomies. Only things that cannot be done in the name of Christ’s Church is what clearly contravenes civil law or the rights of another.

Level Three: Theologically Christian

To be “Theologically Christian” one must be willing to go beyond “this is what our church teaches”. Now you must enter into the sum total of the revelations of God, His history in dealing with mankind, and what direction He has given to scholarship for these 2,000 years. Now begins a search for something to die for; and, more the difficult, something to live by. This particular search is best thought a journey, not a destination.

The Guideposts on this journey are questions, rarely accompanied with easy answers.

• Where is God in all this mess, anyway?

• What think you of about Jesus of Nazareth, called The Christ? Who is He?

• Is the Bible – as it has come down to us through Judaeo-Christian history – what it claims? Is it what others claim for it?

• The overwhelming weight of statistical evidence indicates all that lives dies. What then?

• Most important of all, if we seek to be Theologically Christian, how shall we then live?

I am somewhere on this search to be a Theological Christian, not sure where. Worry about those certain of where they are in the journey. Worry more about them than about my own uncertainty in this regard. Where are you?

^“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (the Apostle Paul, Philippians 3.11-14, NIV)