The Uncommon Christian

"Once saved, always saved." "You can't lose salvation." "Will you go to Heaven when you die?" "I know I'm saved. Are you?" Living in the Bible Belt, you hear these statements quite frequently. Before becoming a Christian, I never thought twice about it. I assumed that the Bible told you who was saved and who wasn't. After reading the Bible, I now know that it's much more complicated than that. I also think that, as Christians, we hold ourselves back and do more damage than good by thinking in such a way. By believing that salvation is permanent and has nothing to do with you, you stop trying. I understand that the Bible says that all you need is faith in Christ in order to be saved, but it also tells us what faith is. We're supposed to live by faith. As Christians, we're so focused on the part about how salvation isn't based on our works that we forget that when you have faith in Christ your works reflect th...

What does it take to be saved? According to Christ, we must show faith in Christ as our personal savior. That is the one requirement that is echoed again and again throughout the New Testament. For by grace you have been saved through faith. - Ephesians 2:8 Because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. - Romans 10:9 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under Heaven given among men by which we must be saved. - Acts 4:12 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. - John 3:17 If all it takes is faith in Christ to be saved, why then is there so much conflict among Christians? We have hundreds of denominations based on different unspoken req...

We don’t truly know what the first sin was, but the first sin spoken of in the Bible was the decision made by Eve to eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. From this point on, the Bible is filled with countless stories of sin against God. As humans, our depravity grows stronger and more twisted than we could possibly imagine. Multiple times it becomes so bad that God destroys entire cities. Discrimination is not new. It has become popular in modern times because we can look to our recent past. Unfortunately, we don’t learn from our past. People complain about American enslavement of Africans in the late 1800s and atrocities that Africans living in the United States faced before and after the Civil Rights movement. I understand the injustice that was American history. Those people did not deserve to be put through what they were. No one deserves that. But when are we going to stop repeating history? Persecution is the systematic mistreatment of an individual, or group, by ...

Virtually all people, Christian or not, understand that a crucifix is used as a symbol of belief in Christ. It’s engraved on rings, worn around necks, and even tattooed into people’s flesh so that they can carry the symbol of Christianity wherever they go. We have come to recognize places of worship based on the religious symbol attached to the building. Islam, Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, and so on; Each religion has a unique identifier. In some cases, we will even become aggressive or outright violent, in defense of our religious symbols. Why, though? Is it right to attach these symbols to our faith and hold them above all else in our life? Is that not a form of idolatry? Exodus 20:3-6 “You are to have no other gods before me.  You are not to make for yourselves a carved image or any kind of representation of anything in heaven above, on the earth beneath or in the water below the shoreline.  You are not to bow down to them or serve them; for I,  Adon...

You may not be able to recite all 7 deadly sins, but I’m sure you’ve at least heard of them once or twice. Regardless of what denomination you consider yourself to be, Christians typically only talk about the ten commandments or the 7 deadly sins when it comes to being obedient to God. I remember a few “fire and brimstone” sermons from my childhood that discussed damnation to hell.  My father was Catholic and brought me and my siblings to church with him on occasion. Usually the mass would precede games, food, or some other celebratory event. It was rare to hear anything about hell or displeasing God, but the 7 deadly sins were almost a guarantee if the priest was trying to scare you into being obedient to God. As a young child it made perfect sense to me. If you believe in God you have to avoid doing 7 things or you will die. However, I didn’t believe in God at the time and didn’t care to learn more about Him or His commandments. 1.        Prid...

The Roman Catholic Church has around 1.285 billion members worldwide, is the largest Christian denomination, and is one of the oldest religions. Like other Christian denominations, the Roman Catholic Church believes that Christ died for our sins; however, there are a few distinct differences between Catholicism and other Christian denominations. The one I want to discuss today is the leadership of the Roman Catholic Church. Most people, Christian or not, have heard of Pope Francis. He is the 266 th Pope of the Roman Catholic Church and is easily the most well-known leader of any Christian denomination. However, how many people are aware that most Christian denominations have similar hierarchies? Evangelicals have Geoff Tunnicliffe who is responsible for leading the World Evangelical Alliance. The churches that are part of the World Evangelical Alliance have over 600 million members and was founded in the mid-1800s. The World Communion of Reformed Churches has Jerry Pillay. You may n...

With 80% of the nation considering themselves to be Christian in some form or fashion I assume that many Americans participate in Lent. My family and I have attended numerous churches, 12+ churches of varying denominations, and all have encouraged participation in Lent. Not only is participation encouraged, but advertisement of what is being sacrificed, or given up, for lent is expected. Most people taking part ask the ever popular question, “What are you giving up for lent this year?” Lent is meant to be a ritual commemorating the sacrifices made by Jesus as he wandered the desert for 40 days. He had no luxuries and fasted for those 40 days. Traditionally, lent was a 40 day long fast in which most foods were given up and additional luxuries were sacrificed. Today, most people choose one thing to refrain from for 40 days. I myself am guilty of this. The one time I participated in Lent I gave up added sugars. That’s all. There are many reasons to fast; mourning, celebration, honor...

“We’re not under the law anymore. Now, we’re under grace.”  I hear this a lot from practicing Christians. Even preachers have said similar things. Both while delivering sermons and while speaking with me one-on-one. We have songs dedicated to God’s grace and how we’re no longer bound by the law. I can’t say that this has always bothered me because I haven’t always known what I do now. However, having learned more about God, and Christ, that style of thinking makes less sense to me. To fully understand, I think that it’s important for Christians to know what grace is. We seem to think that grace is synonymous with love. Even online definitions of the term refer to grace as unmerited favor or the act of being favored by God. However, multiple times throughout the Bible grace is made synonymous with pity. Being favored indicates that you have approval. What is bestowed on you is a sign of support. Pity is a sign of compassion. Although our actions don’t merit God’s approval,...

Is war biblical? Perhaps. However, is it Christ like? According to a 2018 poll reported by ABC News, 83% of Americans believe in Christ and consider themselves to be Christian in some form or fashion. This number fluctuates from poll to poll because it’s based on calls to a fraction of all US homes. However, I think that it is safe to say that roughly 80% of US adults consider themselves Christians. According to Gallup polls, a total of 72% of US adults supported the Iraq war. This means that, even if all non-Christian adults supported the Iraq war you still have 52% of all US adults supporting a war while considering themselves to be Christian. So, it looks like almost all US adult Christians support war or can view it as justifiable in some cases. Although God could rightly be referred to as the god of war can we really say that Christians should support war or justify it? There are many instances in which God promoted war, but are we bound by Old Testament law? Are we not under ...

Why do so many people focus on unimportant things? There are over 7 billion people living on this planet. A  LOT of them are in desperate need of food, water, shelter, medical attention, and protection. As Christians, our top priority should be to help those in need. Yes, I am aware that we are called to worship God. However, the two commandments given by Jesus were to love God and love our neighbors. We’re told that we show our faith and worship through our actions . This would mean that by showing our neighbors love, we are showing God love and are worshiping Him by honoring His son. So, why do so many of us, Christian or otherwise, choose to not help those around us? We see a person sitting out in the cold or stranded on the side of the road and we can’t take two minutes to figure out if they need our help. Instead, we spend half a Sunday in church and call that worship so that we can feel less guilty about turning our head to the homeless man’s sign or driving by the ...

Why do so many Christians choose to justify their own sins while pointing out the sins of others? We are given detailed instructions on how to address those that sin against us. We are supposed to address them directly. If they do not repent, then we are to bring them before two or three witnesses. If they still refuse to repent, then we bring them before the entire congregation. After that, we are to remove them from the congregation. If we know that we are sinning against God, Christ, or other people, we are supposed to seek forgiveness and repent. In other words, we should acknowledge that what we are doing is wrong and change our behavior so that we are no longer sinning. In no way should we justify our sin. The mere attempt to justify our sin shows that we know what we are doing is wrong .  However, many care more about societal/worldly acceptance than God’s approval. That’s a clear indicator that you have not made God the top priority in your life and you may not b...

Why do most Christians think that it's their responsibility to convert every person to Christianity? Whether someone is Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, or even already Christian, many Christians will go out of their way to pressure others into converting. They do this by first pointing out how the other person's beliefs are flawed. Then they explain how their own beliefs are correct. After that, you're basically given an ultimatum. You must convert or forever be shunned by that person. Honestly, even as someone who has read the Bible through multiple sets of eyes, I have not been able to find any instruction from God, Christ, or the Apostles that suggests we should be attempting to convert everyone. What I mean by multiple sets of eyes is that I once read the Bible as an Atheist, then I read it as a newly practicing Christian, then again as an experienced, independently thinking believer in Christ. At no point in time did I find scripture suggesting we as Christians shoul...

Are we punished for the sins of our fathers? According to Numbers 14:18, Exodus 20:5, and Deuteronomy 5:9, our iniquities are carried to the fourth generation. This would mean that our children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, and great great grandchildren must pay for our iniquities. In case you don't know what "iniquity" means, it is immoral or unfair behavior. So, do our children and our children's children suffer as a result of our personal behavior? I ask this question because of recent events in my own life. My 1 year old son was taken to the emergency room for seizures and vomiting. After three trips to the emergency room he was admitted to the ICU due to inability to awaken after falling asleep. While in the ICU multiple specialists were called, including neurologists. The doctors believe that my son may have a GI issue, epilepsy, and, possibly, a brain tumor. We now have to give him medicine twice a day for his stomach and we have to keep a detailed log ...

What does it mean to be saved? How do you become saved? How do you know if you are saved? All common questions among those new to Christianity. In my opinion, our focus shouldn’t be on salvation. Our focus should be on emulating Christ and leading a life that is pleasing to God. When you put Christ and God first in your life then salvation is much more likely. Unfortunately, there’s no cheat sheet, aside from the Bible, on how to be saved. You won’t find an accurate, easy to follow check list of what you must do to be saved. The Bible gives the best explanation of what salvation is and how to achieve it. So, what does it mean to be saved? Many Christians that I’ve spoken with view salvation as a means to get into Heaven upon death. You will pass through judgement into eternal life with God and Christ. Salvation is more than a post-death reward, though. Salvation, to me, is a state of mind. You’ve received the Holy Spirit, you’re part of the body of Christ, and now you grow, learn, ...