The Ultimate Question

I have two questions for you this morning. The first one is easy. Are you a Christian? That's one of those 'yes' or 'no' answer questions. You either are or you aren't, right? The second question is a bit harder.

Why?

The people who are not Christians usually have answers ready to give. The Christians, however, always seem to struggle with the 'why' question.

"Well, I, uh, I've ALWAYS been a Christian. I never really thought about it."

"Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have." - 1 Peter 3:15

I like to answer the why question with another question: How do you define "Christian?" Depending upon who you ask, you will likely get a wide variety of answers. Until the "What is a Christian" question gets answered, it's hard to know if you are one or not.

So, what IS a Christian? This is from GotQuestions.org

The word "Christian" literally means, "belonging to the party of Christ" or a "follower of Christ." Unfortunately, over time, the word "Christian" has lost a great deal of its significance and is often used of someone who is religious or has high moral values but who may or may not be a true follower of Jesus Christ.

That would be a good answer to the "Are you a Christian?" question.

"I am a follower of Jesus Christ."

On second thought, that's still not specific enough. Mormons follow a "Jesus Christ" and he is WAY different from the God of The Bible.

Perhaps we should answer the "are you a Christian" question like this:

"I am a follower of Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God, He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords. The first and the last, beginning and the end, the Alpha and the Omega, All things were made through Him and for Him. He never changes and always loves. He is The Way, The Truth and The Life. Whoever believes in Him shall have eternal life.

That's not a 'yes' or 'no' answer but it is an accurate answer. Is that the Jesus you believe in?

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." - John 1:1-5