To be or not to be?

[popsnewname]

I would love to be a Christian. I mean a true, real-life Christian. But i don't believe that i am. If i was a christian shouldn't i be witnessing. Shouldn't i stop my addictions and my language, what about my thoughts. When do they quit? Shouldn't i quit working in a casino and be a missionary. Are these false images of what christianity should be? If i am a christian what should i be doing? My question is what do you do that makes you a christian, and what separates christian living from non-christian living. How does one know they are living the Christian life?

[inHisgrip]

If you are living your life for Him, with Him guiding you, then you are doing what you need to be doing.
God will change you as you grow and learn to lean on Him more and more.
It can take years, a lifetime.
Pray, seek His guidance, and His will for your life.
In Him

[rosemaree]

This is an excellent question! I think I have wondered this a hundrend times...

And an excellent reply from inHisgrip. The part you said about 'the more we learn to lean...' it's true!

The moment I feel I'm not living a "Christian" life, is the moment I have forgotten to lean on Jesus and try to do everything by my own strength...

No matter what your calling, if you are truly giving your life to Jesus He will lead you to where you need to be, at all places, in all times. If working in a casino etc. is leading you to live in sin, He will show you the way out...but you have to take it willingingly.

Don't get caught up in the 'worldly' view of what it means to be a Christian either. There are some pretty rigid, legalistic, unbiblical standards imposed on us by some who claim to be living the "Christian" life, but it's just their own standards not God's! Join a bible study (if you can) and stay reading your Bible, you will get every answer you need out of there, no darkness can hide when it's exposed to the light.

[twistedsketch]

Have you ever asked Jesus to forgive all your sins?
Have you ever trusted in His death and resurrection to get you eternal life?
Have you ever asked for this eternal life?
Have you ever given your whole self and life over to God and asked for the Holy Spirit to inhabit you?

If you have, then you are a Christian, no matter what you feel.

[God_follower]

read 2nd peter one... theres a process to fixing those thing.

[DanMan]

This has come to mind: "Just because you walk into a garage, it doesn't make you a car...Just because you go to church doesn't make you a Christian."

Most often when people ask such questions as the one you have asked, they get the reply...read the bible, pray, go to church, be loving towards others, fellowship, so on and so forth. ALL of these things are awesome things, but none of them make you Christian at all.

Have you ever asked Jesus to forgive all your sins?
Have you ever trusted in His death and resurrection to get you eternal life?
Have you ever asked for this eternal life?
Have you ever given your whole self and life over to God and asked for the Holy Spirit to inhabit you?
^That is what makes you a Christian. But then, what does it mean to live the Christian life? Reading the bible and the other things i mentioned beforehand are all good things, but believe it or not you could do all these things and still not be living "the christian life." Jesus didn't die for us so that we could read a book called the Bible. He didn't die so we could be good people. He does want that, but he died so that he could love us like a child of God...with that personal relationship with God. So, I want to challenge you. Just hear me through. Forget about doing good things right now. Instead, just come before God tonight like never before, even if it is awkward. Always put your focus on God in everything you do. Just spend some time with God today. Say something to him if you want. If you don't know what to say, just sit there and realize that you are in conversation, maybe not verbally, but spiritually in conversation with the God of the Universe. We can never praise him enough for what he has done for us.

So I challenge you, get to know God. Put your focus on God. In everything you do, don't do it because it's "the good christian thing to do." Christianity is more than just being a goody-goody. But instead, when you do pray, when you do read your Bible, do it because you love God, and because you want to be there in his presence and learn from him. Always come before God with everything. Don't fake yourself out and just read just to read. I get caught up with this every once and a while. And when it happens, all i have to do is come back into God's presence and refocus on him and his love, and my love in return toward him. For when you focus on God, the Christian life will become natural. Because God will fill you up if you come to him.

[12volt_man]

I would love to be a Christian. I mean a true, real-life Christian. But i don't believe that i am.

What is it that you believe makes somoene a Christian? How are we saved?

If i was a christian shouldn't i be witnessing.

You already witness, whether you know it or not.

How are you defining "witnessing"?

This isn't the Watchtower organization where you're expected to knock on so many doors per month in order to get into God's good graces.

Christians don't "witness" so that we'll be good Christians.

The first is simply living our lives for Jesus. There used to be a great band called MidSouth who had a song that said, "my life might be the only Bible that some folks ever read".

The fruit of the Spirit, that is, the result of the Holy Spirit working in us, is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance

To walk in these things is the best witness you can have.





Shouldn't i stop my addictions and my language, what about my thoughts.

I don't know that you can "stop" an addiction. Have you sought help?

As for the language and the thoughts, if you subject your tongue to Christ, that will change in time. Try reading James' epistle. He talks quite a bit about this.

Shouldn't i quit working in a casino and be a missionary.

Is there something wrong with working in a casino? If you're a Christian, then you're already a missionary. The question is, what kind of missionary are you?

Are these false images of what christianity should be?

Yes. Good works do not make the Christian. For the Christian, good works flow out of a sense of worship to God.

If i am a christian what should i be doing?

Do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with thy God.

My question is what do you do that makes you a christian,

Nothing.

I am a Christian, that is, I am saved, not by anything I do or have done, but what Christ has done on my behalf.

[popsnewname]

So basically i should stop worrying about being a christian-for example whether i am doing right or wrong-because in reality i am not capable of doing right. Focus should be on God and what he has done instead of what i am doing now. I think it is very east to lose sight of this and get trapped in your own good works. I think that is where i fall. I-or maybe something else-tells me that i have done nothing for God. But what can i give God that he needs? Nothing other than all of my life. And even that is his because he gave it to me in the first place. All i can do is give back to God what he has given me. Thank you everyone for your wonderful answers.
Thanks.