What is Christianity?

A Christian believes on the Lord Jesus Christ, accepting Him as their saviour, which is the only method of preventing from going to hell. There is no other way of being saved – only by faith in Jesus Christ the Son God is one saved. If you want to know why this is so, read the book of John in the Holy Bible.

There is no middle ground – purgatory is a figment of one's imagination – at death your soul either is thrown into hell or you go to paradise. Every person deserves punishment by God as no one has ever kept all His commandments, nor have they been holy as God is holy. All have failed – you too – for God knows your very thoughts. Don't believe me? Try this – have you ever lied? Yes – then you have broken one of the 10 commandments. Also, have you ever stolen? Yes – therefore you have broken another of the 10 commandments. Have you ever hated, lusted, and wanted something you did not have? In fact I can guarantee that you have broken every one of these Ten Commandments. Noting that Jesus explained that one does not need to kill – just hate to break the law "thou shalt not kill".

God's justice must be done; for anyone who has done wrong needs to pay for that wrong – in the case of sinning against God, the most grievous being the rejection of Jesus Christ as your saviour, you will be cast into outer darkness (that is hell), unless you have been saved from God's wrath. Note carefully; on death you are not annihilated because your spirit lives for ever. You will be sent to hell, unless you have accepted the payment Jesus Christ has made for your sin. You do this by believing on the Lord Jesus Christ which saves you, through faith, unto everlasting life. Note that you are not born a Christian – Christianity is faith in Jesus Christ, who has paid your debt from sin in full. This means that God will have no need to punish you – Jesus has paid the price in full, in place of you. Also you are not born saved – all have a choice – of either accepting Jesus Christ or rejecting him. Those rejecting him (not believing on him) will be sent to hell.

If you are a rationalist you will believe there is no life after death – you believe you don't have a soul, that is, a spirit, hence you are no different from a tree or a frog. The problem you have is this: if I am right, you have lost everything and will be eternally punished because you are a sinner destined for hell. If you are right, I have lost nothing. Being a Christian costs me nothing, but gains me everything! Furthermore, unlike any other religion, I know I am saved and am assured of it – I am going to heaven because I have a guarantee from God himself – the Holy Spirit dwells within every believer and is that guarantee. No other religion can say this.

In a nutshell, Christianity can be thought of as a way of life; those who are Christian see it not so much as a religion but life through and through, although religions are clearly defined by relationships. In this case the relationship between the Lord God Most High, the Creator of the Universe and individuals. Indeed, the first Christians were called "The Way" (Acts 9:2).

Christianity is literally a following – a following of Jesus Christ. The reason we do this is because as humans we are born lost. There is a great separation between God and man because humans sin. This means you and I by nature disobey God. The consequence of this, whilst on earth may seem unapparent to you, although a cursory glance at any newspaper or internet will reveal how evil the world really is. In reality it means that on death you will be punished – because there is no way you have lived a perfect life. There is no escaping this unless you accept God and his way of salvation. Christians call this being lost or unsaved – that is, on death you will be lost to the eternal punishment by God. Your soul is unsaved.

Christians know God personally, and are assured of salvation – that is, on death of their mortal bodies, their soul will be saved from hell. They have achieved this, not with anything they have said, done or will do, but by believing that Jesus Christ's died in payment for their evil and wayward lives (called sin in the Bible). Because they know that before a holy and righteous God they are doomed to die – indeed every man, woman and child, without believing that Jesus Christ died for them, is doomed to death, which results in their souls being cast into "outer darkness" called hell. The soul is what makes you "you" – it is God given – and differentiates you from a frog. It makes you god–conscious and from it you feel the guilt of sin.

Christians know there is one God – He is the Lord God Most High, and calls himself "I AM". He created all things both innate and living. The Bible gives him many names which in reality are descriptions of his character, such as Jehovah meaning the 'Lord Saves'. The Lord God Most High has a son - his earthly name is Jesus.

Any reasonable person can see that it is impossible for there to be more than one god – the creator of the universe and sustainer of all things could not possibly fit into the universe with any other god. Notwithstanding, many humans, and perhaps you, think you are a god. If so, you are clearly are in conflict with the Lord God Most High

The lie given to the world today is that you are merely a bag of chemicals, no different from a frog of a leaf. They say you came into the world by chance and will die by chance. You, as you, are thought of as merely a maze of chemical reactions - any feeling you have while reading this is said to only exist as a chemical reaction - certain neurones in your brain interacting with other. This of course is a lie. You are a unique creation of God, implanted with a soul – all humans have a body that encases a mind, that encases a soul – else why bother with anything – trees don't for they are just a bag of chemicals, however beautifully arranged you might think of them.

For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord

The Holy Bible – Romans Chapter 6 verse 23

'For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life

The Holy Bible – John Chapter 3 verse 16

Belonging to a church does not make you a Christian because Christianity concerns your relationship with God, not an organisation. It does not matter whether you are a member of the Catholic church or some Pentecostal organisation, unless you have repented of your sin to God, you are lost: doing so to a man such as a "Father", "Minister" or "Pope" makes absolutely no difference to your state of salvation and acceptance by Jesus Christ as your saviour. Christians certainly want to gather together and worship God together, but this has nothing to do with organisations that call themselves churches. The Church are the individuals – Christians are church, and the Lord Jesus Christ is the head of the church.

A Christian has faith in the Lord Jesus Christ – he or she believes the Lord Jesus Christ is the Son of God who has died for their sin. A Christian acknowledges that he or she is a sinner before God. This is called repentance. If you have only done this to a person such as a priest, you are still not saved! It is God that needs to hear you tell Him you are unfit to enter heaven, that is, you have done wrong. The punishment for any wrong, however small, is death – God's standard is perfection, anything else demands death. This is not unreasonable, because a pot that is crafted by a potter if found defective is discarded. Rationalists should take no offence at this because they, after all, believe they are only a bunch of chemicals like the pot! We know of course this is wrong for we have a soul. However, in the case of humans God could see that the entire population needed to die – his rules are unchangeable – sin means death, and all have sinned. A mere thought that is contrary to God's laws puts you into the realm of death.

However, God himself organised for his own son, Jesus Christ, to die in our place in order that the price is paid in full - something we cannot do - the debt is too large. He did this because he loved you and me more than anything. That is, instead of you dying, Christ has already died. Jesus Christ received this judgment due to you – he was strung up on a cross – with his hands and feet nailed to it, and after some time a man using a sword pieced his side.

All you need to do is accept and believe this fact – that Jesus Christ has died for your sins, and He rose again and returned to heaven.

Our lives have already been brought before God, found wanting and the judge (God) has decreed death for all. We now have two choices, accept the gift from Jesus Christ or die. This takes faith, nothing else. We cannot buy this gift, or work for it – only by faith can we be saved. It is by faith, because none of us saw Jesus die for our sins, and we need to, in faith, accept that Christ's death is sufficient to appease God – it is!

He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

The Holy Bible – John Chapter 3 verse 18.

Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved. That is, you must believe that Jesus is the Son of God and trust that he died in your place, paying (in full) the penalty for your sin – that is, all your wrong doings. Our salvation of is not of ourselves, it is the gift of God. At this point you will be saved.

Most assuredly, I [the Lord Jesus Christ] say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me [God] has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life. (The Book of John from the Bible Chapter 5 verse 24)

A saved person:

1. Has repented[1], which means they have changed their mind (the fundamental meaning of repent) and believes the Lord Jesus Christ is the Son of God. A saved person (i.e a Christian) will have changed his or her mind about God and hence Jesus Christ. Rather than opposing God, a saved person wants a relationship with God and puts his or her trust (i.e. believes in) the Lord Jesus Christ. One only needs to have faith in Jesus Christ to be saved.

2. Has accepted that before God he or she is a sinner: "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory" – that is the standard of God. Romans 3:23 (ie verse 23 of chapter 3 of the book of Romans, found in the Bible). This does not save you, but provides an understanding that you need to be saved.

3. Confesses wrong doings, that is our sin, to God the Father not a priest or pope, for these cannot forgive sin. "If we confess our sins, he [God] is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness". 1 John 1:9.

3. Turns from sin – a saved person seeks a life that is pleasing to God, which comes with His help – that is he or she obeys God. Confession without turning from sin gains nothing. This is accomplished by the help of the Holy Spirit.

4. Has received the Lord Jesus Christ into his or her life – they trust Him. He stands at the door to your life – your heart – and knocks. You need to let him in and take control of your life. Note that you cannot do this before you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Simply "asking Jesus into your life" achieves nothing.

5. Professes his or her faith – tell others about it. "If you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord", and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved". (Romans 10:9).

Law As written in Exodus chapter 20 Summary

1

I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt , out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

You shall have no other gods, which can mean money, work or sport – ie anything that prevents a full relationship with God.

2

Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

You shall not make or worship idols

 

He is a merciful God who provided the way of life, through the death of Jesus Christ

3

Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

You shall not blaspheme the name of the Lord which means more than swearing. An action that denigrates the name of God is blasphemed – for example suggesting He did not create the world.

4

But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

You shall keep the Sabbath holy.

5

Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

You shall honour your father and mother, which applies to both young children and grown up children – the latter are to support and care for their parents.

6

Thou shalt not kill.

You shall not kill – Jesus said that hating someone was equivalent to killing them.

7

Thou shalt not commit adultery.

You shall not commit adultery. Sex belongs between a man and women who are married. Jesus said that lusting for sex with a person who is not your spouse is adultery.

8

Thou shalt not steal.

You shall not steal, which includes time and money.

9

Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.

You shall not lie.

10

Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.

You wall not covet which means wanting something you cannot afford, wanting something just because someone else has it or wanting something out of greed. You need to know the difference between wanting and needing something – most westerners have no idea of this concept.

And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews. These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so (Acts 17:10)

[1] A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature 3rd Ed (BAGD) indicates that the Greek word "μετανοέω" is used to translate the English verb "repent" and means "to change the mind." (see BAGD, s.v. "μετανοέω," 640). This is a compound verb made up of the preposition μετα, "after", (BAGD pg. 636) and the verb, νοέω, "to grasp or comprehend something on the basis of careful thought, to perceive, think" (BAGD pg. 674). Thus, "to perceive afterwards," or "to change the mind."