What it means to be a christian

What does it mean to be a christian?

Some would say a christian is one who reads the bible, prays, go to church, maybe even serve in church and have a group of churchmates. I would say this is true of a christian, but it doesn’t define what a christian is.

As christians, I think it is really fundamental to know what it means to be a christian. Many a times, we call ourselves christians, but we do not often know or remember what the meaning and significance of it really means.

‘A christian is a follower of Jesus Christ.’ This is something that many of us christians who say of who we are - A follower of Jesus Christ. But do we know the implications of being a follower? We may call ourselves ‘christians’, but are we really christians or does God see us as christians? Does calling ourselves a ‘christian’ qualify us as a christian?

We could phrase it in a similar fashion: Does calling ourselves the President makes us the president? The answer is obvious. No.

A christian is a calling to follow in the footsteps of Christ (for that’s where the word christian comes from). Are we living up to that calling or are we calling ourselves instead?

When Jesus said in Matthew 16:24, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself. and take up his cross and follow me”, he was refering to a calling of a Christian.

This is what being a christian means: Self-denial. It’s for this reason that Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:31 that he “…die daily“. A christian’s life is a life of death, a death of our old self, meaning we no longer live for ourselves, to please ourselves, but we live for Christ and to please Christ. The self has to be denied, not to be suppressed, but to be death.

Galatians 2:20 - “…It’s no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me…”

Are we living our lives at the moment, or is Christ the one who is taking control of our lives?

Secondly, a christian needs to take up his cross. Many people who equate the taking up of our cross to the burdens and troubles of life. This is not exactly right. What was the cross to Jesus? It wasn’t the burdens and troubles of life. Neither was it just an event.

It was a way! The cross is a way!

And this way is a choice, a choice to suffer for Christ. This is the way of the cross, the significance, the meaning of taking up our cross.

The sufferings are not just those that come our way naturally in our daily lives, nor are they those that come from our consequences of sin, nor are they those that come because God decides to use a situation to teach us a valuable lesson. But this suffering is a deliberate suffering that we have choose.

It would be similar to the choice that Jesus made to die for us. Philippians 2:6,-8 - Although he existed in the form of God, did not regard the equality of God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

This is what it means to be like Christ, to follow in his footstep, to be a Christian! Just as Christ was obedient to the point of death, choosing to suffer and die for us, we too, who follow in his footsteps, are to be obedient to deny ourselves and choose the way of the cross, to suffer for the sake of Christ.

Christ didn’t come down to die in order to please us, for who then is God? He came down to die in order that we might be like him, that we might please him.

So, we who are christians are to be followers of Christ, to deny ourselves and walk the way of the cross.

I must needs go home
By the way of the cross,
There’s no other way but this;
I shall never get sight
Of the gates of light,
If the way of the cross I miss.

Refrain
The Way of the cross leads home,
The Way of the cross leads home,
It is sweet to know as I onward go,
The Way of the cross leads home.

I must needs go on
In the blood-sprinkloed way,
The path that the Savious trod,
If I ever climb
To the heights sublime,
Where the soul is at home with God.

Then I bid farewell
To the way of the world,
To walk in it never-more;
For my Lord says, “Come,”
And I seek my home,
Where He waits at the open door.

A Series of Unfortunate Events

Recently, I’ve been working on a school film project in a group. Very quickly, being the arts-loving person that I am, I became very passionate and enthusiatic about the project. It became so such that I was even willing to do more than I was required to, in order to make a nice film much more than to score high marks. Things were going very well and smooth until today.

My groupmate called today an “unlucky” day. Our group was having “bad luck”.

Firstly, there was confusion of the meeting time. Initially, we were supposed to meet at 10am. Later we wanted to change the meeting time to 2pm because I couldn’t turn up, but we decided again to fix it at 10am and go ahead without me. I stayed up late to transfer some files to another member as everything was with me. In the morning, she told me that she couldn’t come due to a bad headache, so I had to change the timing back to 2pm. But later she decided to go at 10am, not knowing that I had changed the timing to 2pm. So, one member was missing from the meeting.

Secondly, the program in the computer terminal I booked in school wasn’t compatible for editing the film, so we couldn’t edit anything today and had to source for a compatible editing program. We then decided to simply cut the films today.

To our horror, while cutting the film, my edited file became corrupted and crashed.

Hence, due to the series of unfortunate events, we met and did nothing today. It was simply a waste of time and a frustrating moment. It simply scary knowing that we have only less than a week to the deadline.

Reflecting through the day, though it was frustrating, I’m thankful that God just showed me that today wasn’t an ‘unlucky’ day. These events happen for a purpose and are for good.

Romans 8:28 - And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. 

I really thank God for this verse. This verse has been a great encouragement to me in times of distress and questioning.

All things to work together for good. I thank God that all these things happen for MY (definition of) good, but for HIS good. And HIS good is far far better than MY good.

What a great promise this is, as along as we love him and are called according to his purpose! I have the victory and assurance in ALL things when I am God’s and God is mine.

The Busyness of a student

It’s been a very long while since I last blogged. 40DOC in my church has ended. Many things have changed. I have entered into a new chapter of my life which is becoming a student once again.

After my long 2 1/2 of national service break, the transition of returning back to books wasn’t a smooth one initially. My very first lecture in 2  1/2 year was a shocking experience. Firstly, it was stressful to get my brains thinking academically immediately. Secondly, given the sudden independence as a university student, I was utterly lost. All the while in my life, there was regimentation and instructions given. A sudden release of freedom placed me in an awkward position.

I thank God that he has made it smooth thus far, that I have been adjusting and familiaring myself to my new environment and new acquaintances fairly well.

One problem though, is that I plagued myself with too many things to do. Somehow, I’m still clinging on to many things, despite the fact that I’m now a student again and my priority should be on my studies. For example, I still spend a unreasonable amount of time on playing basketball; worst still, I increased my number of tuition students to three and I rejoined my Voices of Praise Choir. Sometimes, I do think that I would be over-stretching myself such that I would burn out even before I begin to sit down and study.

I am absolutely certain that if this is God’s path for me, though tiring and draining, he would carry me through.

While reading a christian book, I thank God that he reminded me through this verse:

John 3:30 - “He must increase, but I must decrease.”

My focus has been drawn away to so many things lately: joining the university basketball team, earning money to support myself via tuitioning, spending time with friends and even serving in the choir.

I felt that all these things I have been wanting to do and already doing are all in the opposite direction of what God wants. It is legitimate to say all these things are permissible and there is nothing wrong doing all these things.

But these things shouldn’t be my focus. I shouldn’t be spending all my efforts, time and energy simply for the sake of doing these things. Why does it seem as if I am increasing and Christ is decreasing? It seems as if these things are drawing away my primary focus which is Christ himiself.

I thank God for this timely reminder that Christ ought to take 1st place in every single thing and that life is to be lived for him alone.

2 Cor 5:15 - and He died for all, that they who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.