So, if you believe in God....?

Question

You must be a Christian?

I just saw this comment, and it made me shake my head...

"A christian is someone who believes in God. It's not a religion."

This was presumably in response to a comment from me that you can believe in God (or Gods, etc.) and not be a Christian.

Was wondering what others think of this?

I mean, is it just my imagination, or have I seen a whole lot of people here that believe in a deity and are not Christian?

Nothing against Christians... in fact, I've never heard of a Christian defining Christianity in this way before... I certainly never did.

Answer 1

lol, yeah, i saw that comment too. people say the weirdest things, don't they?

i also saw today a christian defend his right to condemn homosexuality, yet at the same time have the right to watch lesbian porn. He made this statement: " Woman on woman sex is a normal part of heterosexuality. Man on man sex is not."

so, yeah, people say the weirdest things.

Answer 2

Christianity

n 1: a monotheistic system of beliefs and practices based on the Old Testament and the teachings of Jesus as embodied in the New Testament and emphasizing the role of Jesus as savior [syn: Christianity, Christian religion] 2: the collective body of Christians throughout the world and history (found predominantly in Europe and the Americas and Australia); "for a thousand years the Roman Catholic Church was the principal church of Christendom" [syn: Christendom, Christianity]




that's Christianity, and being a Christian means believing in the God of Abraham, God of Isaac and so forth. what makes the difference is when you say "if a certain person believes in God" they are Chrsitian which is wrong, but sayin "if a person is Christian, they believe in God", that is correct. its kind of like saying a square is a rectangle but a rectangle isnt a square.

hope this loosened up some of the confusion for ya.

Answer 3

A Christian is someone who professes a belief in Jesus as Christ. Christianity is a religion but you do not have to attend church every week to profess a belief in Christ. The quoted portion of your question is correct. A christian in itself is not a religion. Christianity is the religion. The Christian can participate in Christianity, but again, just because they are not active in the religion does not mean that they are not Christian. The Bible itself says the way to Heaven is through Christ (not a church). Jesus himself was baptized in the river and not in a church. Some churches may be corrupt or incorrect. (I don't think all are, I'm just suggesting the possibility.) Jesus knows your heart and the way to see him again is by accepting him as your savior. In accordance with the teachings of the Bible it is not necessary for someone to participate in a church to be Christian. At the same time there are lots of people who regularly attend church because their parents want them to or they're still searching, so just because you participate doesn't mean you're a Christian. So you can stop shaking your head now.
If you truly want an honest answer to this question and you're not just trying to spark debate then why not pray about it? Your Heavenly Father can answer you himself.

Answer 4

Christianity IS a religion. Those who are christians are a part of Christianity. If you believe in the Christian God, then you are part of the Christain faith/religion. Whoever made that comment doesn't truly know what they're talking about I think.

Answer 5

A Christain believes that Jesus was the Son of God. Jews believe in God and they're not Christain. Christianity IS a religion. Believing in God doesn't automatically make you a Christian.

Answer 6

I think it's all semantics I guess. It sounds like bait for a conversation in circular logic.

There are so many meanings to what a Christian is. It probably means something different to me than it does somene else, so then....who'd be right? I'd have to say the oe that spreads the Good News and follows, and believes in, and worships Jesus.

So, what would be the point of the question this person asked? Is there a point to it? What kind of meaningful information would be gleaned by such a distinction?

I guess I'd have to say that if one considers themselves a Christian, they'd believe in God, but like I said, I've seen various 'definitions' of that. Many I disagree with. To then make the distinction between that title and whether it's a religion......ummm....what's the point.

Ok, my redundancies are done now......lol.

Answer 7

There are many other gods besides the Christian God and for someone to be religious, they adhere to a belief in God, As Christians, we believe Jesus Christ is the True God and we are called to follow His Word and His teachings but that does not mean that other religious people who have their own God cannot practice their own religion and be religious.

Answer 8

Not necessarily, The Jews believe in God and their not Christian, except for converted Jews. Their called Jewish Christians. You must also know the Son, Jesus Christ to be a Christian.

Answer 9

I can tell you that Jewish people believe in GOD
Muslims Call God "Allah"
Christians believe in God
Most of all three religions believe they are the same God. It is the way we worship that is our religion. And how we approach God is our faith in action. Christians believe that through the Sacrifice of Jesus we have been given a covenant with God that whosoever repents sin and asks God for forgiveness will receive it.

Good Luck and God Bless!!

Answer 10

A "Christian" is a follower of Christ; someone who believes the words of Jesus Christ and lives according the the principles He enunciated. Generally, that means that all Christians believe in God.

However, all who believe in God are not Christians. Mathematically speaking, Christians are a subset of believers in God.

Answer 11

LOL at the above gay comment, somebody needs a nap lol

Anyway, that was a silly way to define Christianity. I think they were trying to point out that there are religions within the Christian world, but you can be a Methodist, a Catholic, a Baptist, or a Lutheran and still be Christian.

but the comment WAS sort of dumb lol