A Christian is a person who will faithfully confess Jesus Christ as both Lord and Savior, even to the point of death if necessary.
Welcome again to our series, “Bringing Clarity to the Term Christian”. We are drawing yet closer to the end of this study and I hope, for those of you who have been reading along, it has been of help to you. Amid all the noise surrounding us with a myriad of definitions of the word Christian, I hope this blog series has given you proof positive that “The Book” in which the original Christian faith is revealed to us does a pretty awesome job of defining what a Christian is. The Bible, the God breathed Word, can filter out all of the noise our modern culture engages in, to cloak, mask, and deconstruct what being a Christian actually means. My prayer is that anyone who has been reading this blog series in its entirety, will understand the truth of what a “true” Christian is, and be clear on their decision to be a Christ follower, and for those who are not Christ followers, to truly become one.
In this blog, I would like to discuss a trait of the true Christian that is rarely discussed, especially in the western world in which I live. This trait is rarely considered in my culture, because it is rarely, if at all challenged here in the west. However, I believe that given our current degrading social, political, and religious climate, this trait, or actually, spiritual value, will be tested with more frequency. This value I am referring to is faithfulness or complete loyalty to Christ.
For the Christian, I believe this next Statement we are about to discuss is one of the more serious and convicting statements of this series. I hope as we work through it, you will see why.
Statement 13 says…
A Christian is a person who will faithfully confess Jesus Christ as both Lord and Savior, even to the point of death if necessary.
If there is any one thing that will really bring clarity to who is actually a Christian or who is just a Christian in name only, it will be the degree of loyalty the one has to Christ and how he responds to the consequences of that loyalty. When one becomes a Christian, he also becomes an enemy of the godless, sinful world that he was formally a part of. It will quickly become apparent to the new Christian, that the sinful world will want no part of this newfound righteousness and longing for holiness that he has. In fact, those in this worldly system will become hostile to him because they are enemies of God, cut off from Him by their own sin. For the Christian, the enemies of God are his enemies as well, as long as his loyalty to Christ is sincere.
In the Book of John, Jesus tells his followers, in no uncertain terms, that a genuine commitment to Him means that the relationship between them and the world will not be a good one.
Jesus says:
“If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you.
John 15:18-19 New American Standard Version (NASB)
What Jesus says here is particularly significant. He points out that the world will hate his followers not because of them, but because they hate Him. Many people of his day, especially the religious leaders, knew that Jesus was a righteous man who performed miraculous signs, but hated him for what he claimed to be; the Son of God. We also know, even in our time, that the world does not hate us because of us specifically. We know this because if at any time a so called” Christian decides to deny Christ or go back to his old ways, the world will embrace him as an understanding, more enlightened, tolerant and empathetic friend. As Jesus put it, “if you were of the world, the world would love you as its own”. However, if you hold fast to your commitment to Christ, the One whom the world hates, you will, at some point, be met with serious dissent and often, aggression.
So, in terms of loyalty, what is required of the Christian? Better put, what has Christ required of the Christian? Well, in the book of Luke, Jesus does not hold back on intense words to emphatically describe what his expectations are of a Christian.
Jesus says in Luke 14….
“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.
Luke 14:26-27 New American Standard Version (NASB)
When reading this passage, Jesus uses strong language in making a distinction between loyalty to Him and loyalty to everything else. When Jesus uses the term “hate”, He seems to want to emphasize His thought in such a way as to make his listeners understand the seriousness of what he is conveying. Now we know that Scripture tells us in other passages to honor our father and mother, to love our wives, ironically, as Christ loves the church, as well as to love, care for, and train our children. So why does Jesus tell us that we must hate them in Luke 14:26? Well, Christ uses this word “hate” to amplify the fact that the loyalty of the Christian to Him must take priority over all other relationships and all other things.
What is particularly thought provoking and convicting about this passage is the ultimatum that He also gives. Jesus says that if you don’t hate father, mother, wife, children, and even your own life, you cannot be His disciple. Now it is very easy to rush by these words and not pay attention to what is actually being said here. What Jesus means here is incredibly critical. What he means is this; you cannot be a Christian if you are not willing to forsake everything and everyone for Christ. This is a hard saying, especially for those who haven’t faced a real dilemma like this, but it is no less true. As Christ followers, the name of Jesus Christ is sacred, worthy of our total allegiance, even to the point of death.
The Apostle Peter was no stranger to this level of commitment. In fact, he was imprisoned and ultimately executed via crucifixion for his loyalty to Christ and the Gospel. In the Book of Acts, Peter and the apostles set the example for loyalty that we all should imitate.
In Acts Chapter 5 starting with verse 17, we find Peter thrown in prison for the second time along with the other apostles for preaching the Gospel and performing healings and miracles among the people, in disregard to the demands placed on them by the religious leaders to not do so. However, in the middle of the night an angle of God comes and releases them from prison and tells them to go to the temple and continue preaching. When the religious leaders find them at the temple preaching again, being obedient and loyal to Christ, they reprimand them, reminding the apostles of their worldly mandate to not speak in the name of Jesus.
Now listen to Peter and the apostles’ response in verses 29-32:
But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. 30 The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you put to death by hanging Him on a cross. He is the one whom God exalted to His right hand as a Prince and a Savior, to grant repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses of these things; and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey Him.”
Acts 5:29-32 New American Standard Version (NASB)
What an incredible declaration of allegiance to Christ! Peter says “we must obey God rather than men”. God and His honor and glory is of first importance. For the Christian, the object of his loyalty is unambiguous. Peter says that we “must” obey God. Obedience to God is not optional, nor should it ever be.
Peter then goes on to explain why we must obey God. In the next passage, he essentially tells them this: (paraphrasing) “We must obey God because He is the one who sent Jesus to be your savior, so that He (meaning God the Father) could grant you repentance, forgiveness of your sins and give the Holy Spirit, for those of you who believe. “
Peter understood the magnitude of God’s redemptive plan and the role he played in it. He as well as the other apostles understood that the Gospel message he preached to these leaders and the Jewish people was for their own salvation. Also, since they were already believers in Christ. with the hope of eternal life provided to them, their own safety and death was of no consequence in comparison to God’s plan in calling all of God’s chosen people to himself.
Acts 5 then also records the consequences of their loyalty:
………and after calling the apostles in, they flogged them and ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and then released them. So, they went on their way from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name. And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not stop teaching and preaching the good news of Jesus as the Christ.
Acts 5:40(b)-42 New American Standard Version (NASB)
Look at this example of true Christian commitment. The apostles were beaten for preaching, and we they released them from prison with yet another warning, the apostles rejoiced that that they were even considered worthy to suffer for Christ. And then, they kept on preaching. They kept obeying God rather than men. They counted persecution as a privilege of being a follower of Christ.
All who claim to be Christian must have this level of loyalty. Despite the opposition, persecution, or trials, our allegiance is first and foremost to Christ.
Thanks again for coming back to Powerful God – Practical Faith, as we will shortly be bringing this series, “Bringing Clarity to the Term Christian” to a close. I appreciate your attention to this series and I pray that our Lord will use it to your benefit and for His glory.
God Bless.
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