What must I do to become a Christian?
by Pastor Robert Griffith
It’s a simple question which we think should have a simple answer. However, I have heard and read a wide variety of answers to this question over the years and many of them are less than helpful. Some are just downright rubbish! Why is that the case? Well, there are a number of reasons, but first and foremost, the problem lies within the question itself. We need to look closely at four of these eight words: ‘I do’… ‘become’ … ‘Christian.’
Let’s start with the subject of the question: ‘Christian.’ What is a Christian? In the simplest terms, a Christian is a follower of Christ. But to become a Christian – a genuine follower of Jesus Christ, something supernatural has to happen within us first. When a religious leader named Nicodemus came to see Jesus one night, he wanted to know how someone might embrace the gospel which Jesus was teaching and he didn’t expect the answer Jesus gave him:
John 3:3-8 “ … Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”“How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!” Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
Nicodemus was a Pharisee who had spent his life telling people what they must ‘do’ to live a life that was acceptable to God. Now he is face-to-face with God in the flesh Who tells him that we cannot ‘do’ anything to please God or ‘become’ a follower of Jesus. It is God Who must do something remarkable in us first. We must be ‘born again’ in spiritual terms.
Just as we had no part in us being born as a human into this earthly kingdom, so too we have no part in being ‘born again’ as a child of God into the eternal Kingdom of God. Unless our human spirit has been regenerated by the Spirit of God, we will never understand, embrace or even desire the things of God.
Christianity is not a religion, it so much more! In a religion, you are told very clearly what the ‘rules’ are and what ‘boxes’ you need to tick in order to be accepted by the ‘god’ whom that religion claims to follow or worship. That’s why Christianity is most definitely not a religion – it is a relationship we embrace with God our creator, through Christ our saviour, made possible by God the Holy Spirit, Who is our counsellor and guide.
Many years after that conversation between Nicodemus and Jesus, the great Apostle Paul was asked by his jailer in Philippi, “… what must I do to be saved?” Paul replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.” (Acts 16:30-31).
No box-ticking religion there at all. Paul simply told him to believe in Jesus – not just in His existence – but to believe in His mission and His finished work through His sinless life, sacrificial death and glorious resurrection.
In other words, embrace the free gift of salvation which Jesus offers to us all by believing and receiving. Believe that Jesus is Who He said He is; believe that He has paid the price for your sin and rebellion against God and His ways; believe that He has already purchased your ticket to heaven and eternity in God’s presence … and then receive all the blessings and promises of God, every day of your life as you grow in your faith and relationship with Him, led by His Spirit each day.
So what must you ‘do’ to becoming a Christian? Nothing! It is not what you do which makes you a Christian, it is what God has done in and through Jesus Christ which makes you a Christian! You simply need to believe that every day, and never forget that it is by grace alone you are saved and in Christ alone that you live as His follower.
This is the Gospel. This is the good news! If you want a fuller explanation of this wonderful Gospel then I encourage you to read my article entitled, ‘What is the Gospel’ – and not just once – but often, in the days ahead, so you never have any doubt about the essence of your faith.
Of course, there will lots of good fruit forming once you have been born again into God’s kingdom. You will have a hunger for His Word and the Bible will become your favourite book. You will be drawn into a good Church fellowship where you can engage with other believers who will encourage you in your faith journey.
You will receive the wonderful gift of repentance from God as you consciously turn away from sin each day and turn towards God. You may even be convicted to go through the waters of baptism to publicly confess your faith in a powerful way.
All of this and more is what will follow when you simply believe and receive!