I haven’t tried this, but I wonder how many different answers I would get if I were to ask, oh let’s say, 100 people this question. Many of the responses would be the same or very much the same, but yet there would be many categories of responses to this inquiry. I wonder too, how many would be correct. Among those who are not Christians, I dare say none would be correct. Among Christians, yes Christians, I wonder how many actually know why they are a Christian.

If the question were asked, the answers may be different in one part of the country than in another. The geographical locations could make a difference, but I don’t think they would be too far off in like responses.

One response I am noticing in these last days is that Christians are “right-wing, non-compromising, hate-filled, people with no compassion for others.” They are, “ignorant, old-fashioned, hypocritical snobs living in the dark ages of reasoning.”

On the lighter side, many think Christians are those who “belong” to a church or at least attend a church setting occasionally, live by the golden rule, try to follow the ten commandments, don’t steal, don’t murder, don’t “fool-around,” don’t smoke or drink alcohol, don’t dance, don’t have tattoos, don’t use make-up, do dress conservatively, and a thousand other examples.

The question remains, “What does it mean to be a Christian?” First of all, one must ask, “How does one become a Christian, to be a Christian?” There has to be a starting point somewhere. So, in this instance, these two questions are actually one in the same, and usually result in the same responses.

Are you a Christian? Assuming your answer is “yes,” do you know why you are a Christian? If your answer is within any of the examples listed above or among a thousand others of like kind, you really need to re-examine your stance with Jesus Christ. You may not be a Christian. On the other hand, you may be a Christian, but have the wrong concept of what it means to be “Christian.”

The most important question any individual could ever ask, especially concerning spiritual matters of this importance, is, “What does the Bible say?” You see, it doesn’t matter what you think, or what I say, the only thing that matters is “what does God say?” There are thousands of reasons people think they are “okay” with God, but there is only one that counts, and it comes from God Himself. He provides everything we need to know in His Book. We call it the Bible. By the way, our term “Bible” is derived from the Greek “biblos” meaning a “small book, a scroll, or a written document.” The word “Bible” is not in the Bible. So, it being a small book, God has not told us everything He knows, obviously, but He has told us everything we need to know.

I live in an area of the United States called the “south.” I can attest that there are numerous people in my area who think they are saved (a Christian) because they “belong” to a certain church or church group, or they “walked the aisle,” or they were baptized, etc. To these misguided folks, it’s all about “what I have done.” Isn’t that actually true of those in other parts of our country as well? All of these false responses come down to one thing, “I have done thus-and-so.” It’s called works, human works. Here is what God says,

“Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again [emphasis mine], he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3)

“Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again [emphasis mine].” (John 3:7)

“Being born again [emphasis mine], not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.” (1 Peter 1:23)

God says we must be born again. Just as we were born physically, we must be born spiritually (born again) to become a Christian. How do we become born again?

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)

Once we are born again, we are Christian and we realize,

“3For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. 4But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” (Titus 3:3-7 ESV)

Now that is what it means to be a Christian. There is absolutely nothing we can brag about in our becoming a Christian and being a Christian. The sooner we get that engrained in our minds, the better off we will be.

Christians come in all flavors; some likable some not, some pretty some not, some intelligent some not, some rich some not. But all are “Christian” for the same reason; i.e. the grace of God, not human works. Paul said it best.

“But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.” (1 Corinthians 15:10)

What did Paul mean by “I am what I am?” He meant simply that he was a saved sinner, saved by the grace of God. He said he “labored more abundantly than they all.” Did he labor to obtain his salvation and to keep it? NO! Twice he said it was by the GRACE of God. He labored to serve his Lord because he loved Him. That is the only place our works are justified. He was a Christian because he believed in the only begotten Son of God, and he served Him because he loved Him.

Grant Phillips

One of the most exciting Scripture passages in the Bible is written by the Apostle Paul and found in 1 Corinthians 15:35-58. For your convenience, I will include this passage below in the New Living Translation (NLT).

The Resurrection Body

35 But someone may ask, “How will the dead be raised? What kind of bodies will they have?” 36 What a foolish question! When you put a seed into the ground, it doesn’t grow into a plant unless it dies first.37 And what you put in the ground is not the plant that will grow, but only a bare seed of wheat or whatever you are planting. 38 Then God gives it the new body he wants it to have. A different plant grows from each kind of seed. 39 Similarly there are different kinds of flesh—one kind for humans, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish.

40 There are also bodies in the heavens and bodies on the earth. The glory of the heavenly bodies is different from the glory of the earthly bodies. 41 The sun has one kind of glory, while the moon and stars each have another kind. And even the stars differ from each other in their glory.

42 It is the same way with the resurrection of the dead. Our earthly bodies are planted in the ground when we die, but they will be raised to live forever. 43 Our bodies are buried in brokenness, but they will be raised in glory. They are buried in weakness, but they will be raised in strength. 44 They are buried as natural human bodies, but they will be raised as spiritual bodies. For just as there are natural bodies, there are also spiritual bodies.

45 The Scriptures tell us, “The first man, Adam, became a living person.” But the last Adam—that is, Christ—is a life-giving Spirit.46 What comes first is the natural body, then the spiritual body comes later. 47 Adam, the first man, was made from the dust of the earth, while Christ, the second man, came from heaven. 48 Earthly people are like the earthly man, and heavenly people are like the heavenly man. 49 Just as we are now like the earthly man, we will someday be like the heavenly man.

50 What I am saying, dear brothers and sisters, is that our physical bodies cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. These dying bodies cannot inherit what will last forever.

51 But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed! 52 It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed. 53 For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies.

54 Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled:“Death is swallowed up in victory.

55 O death, where is your victory?O death, where is your sting?”

56 For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. 57 But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.

58 So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless.

Now if that doesn’t get your heart pumping, nothing will. Every child of God can rejoice in these verses and eagerly anticipate a new perfect body like our Lord’s. Death may take our body to the grave, but death has no victory or sting over us. The Lord said through the prophet Hosea,

“I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction: repentance shall be hid from mine eyes.” (Hosea 13:14)

There is not a person among us who is not familiar with some kind of physical weakness in our earthly bodies. The hospitals and nursing homes are filled with those whose bodies are in chronic condition, perhaps dying. Sin has wreaked havoc on these mortal bodies, and will continue to do so until Jesus brings it all to an end.

Many of my loved ones, and yours, have succumbed to the disintegration of their bodies to the point of death, but that will be no more.

So far, I am a fairly healthy 65 year old. Some arthritis is starting to set in, and I tire much easier than when I was younger, but that is just a natural process of aging. In my new body there will be no aches and pains and I will not tire out. All of us will be perfectly healthy and capable of doing things that would not be possible in these earthly bodies.

Paul explains the necessity of our dying in order that our new body can be provided for us, as a seed that goes into the ground and comes up as a glorified product of its own kind. He also states, if you notice, that some will not die, but will be transformed (verse 51). He is referring to the Rapture.

Just think of any vegetable, flower, shrub or tree you choose and look at what comes from a small seed that is buried in the ground. The finished product is nothing like the seed that was buried. To the contrary, it is a totally different product of what it started out being. It is much more beautiful, much more productive in its final state. So will be our new bodies.

Why will Jesus give us new bodies? These earthly bodies cannot exist anywhere but on earth. For us to traverse the universes to our final destination in the Father’s house, we must have a body that is capable of that feat. Our earthly bodies are laden down with sin, so He gives us a new body that is without sin. We are made holy and pure not just in spirit, but also in our new heavenly bodies. A fish cannot exist on land, and humans cannot exist away from the earth in heavenly spaces, but with a heavenly body, we can.

The New Jerusalem will be our home with the Lord Jesus Christ. The new earth will be our field of service as will the entire universe. We will traverse the heavens in our glorified bodies, performing whatever work our Lord assigns us. We won’t need telescopes, spaceships and space suits to behold the glory of God’s creation. We will reign with God on high in whatever position he gives us.

Instead of a broken down body that dies with age, we will be eternal in a heavenly body that will never know the aging process. There will be no aches and pains. There will be no broken hearts. There will be no sinful thoughts and deeds. All will be perfect, because Jesus has transformed us in body, soul and spirit to be in the family of the one and only true God. We will not be gods, of course, but we will have His cloak of righteousness forever upon us. We will live in peace and harmony with all that is around us and actually walk with God, as Adam and Eve before the fall. However, unlike Adam and Eve, we will not be confined to earth or have to worry about being tempted by Satan or his forces. They will have already been put away for good.

We may enter a room without opening the door if we choose. We may eat if we choose. We will know our loved ones, and know all who live among us in the Heavenly kingdom.

It is my opinion that God will erase from our minds those we loved on earth who did not come to Him through His Son Jesus, and are not with us in Heaven.

Unbelievers call this our day-dreaming of “pie in the sky,” but the Word of God, which cannot lie, confirms this will be more real than anything we know now. Look up, for it may not be long now, until He calls us home.

Grant Phillips