Would you call me a true Christian or not?

Question

Here is a simple statement of my beliefs:

I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
the Creator of heaven and earth,
and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord:
Who was conceived of the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into hell. [See Calvin]
The third day He arose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven
and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty,
whence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy *catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and life everlasting.
Amen.
_________________________________________

Now.. I also believe that the Genesis story is basically an allegory. I believe that the theories put fourth by modern science describe God's handiwork.
I'm pro-Life. Pro-Gay Marriage. Anti-Death Penalty.

Would you call me a Christian?

I should make it clear that I believe that Christ's resurrection was a corporeal and physical one. I also take literally all the accounts in the Bible of miracles performed by Jesus.

Maria -- you ask "why not"? There are some folks who think you must believe everything as it is taught by certain sects within Christianity. I think there are some who would answer my question with a simple 'NO'.

But I do think it is important to discuss there issues and have dialog between people who see things differently.

I suppose I should also mention that I am not certain of what happens when we die. I believe that Heaven and Hell are potential fates for all human beings. But I don't know who will go to either place.

I am also not certain what happens to the souls of non-Christians and non-believers when they die. I am not convinced that they would be sent to Hell by a loving God.

In the end, there could be many so-called Christians in Hell. And many people of other faiths meeting Jesus and spending eternity in Heaven. Only God can judge us.

Answer 1

A Christian is a follower of Christ. You don't have to believe in the fundamentals of ALL the bible to follow Christ's message to love and to do as God commands.

EDIT: Thumbsed down for telling this person that if he follows Christ, he's a Christian?

Certainly a wonderful way to show your Christian Love.

Answer 2

At first I thought you to be a good Roman Catholic, but then you are Pro-Gay marriage so that blew that. Your intro statement is a Creed of the Catholic Church however, so I am not sure what to call you but I would not call you a Christian since Christians oppose all sin and Homosexuality is defined in the Bible as a sin. Even the Roman Catholics define Homosexuality as a sin. So you are neither a good Christian nor a good Roman Catholic. Your belief about Jesus rules out being Muslim, Buddhist or Wiccan. So you seem to defy all classifications. Seems you need to do a bit more study in the religion of your choice,

Answer 3

Yep, I think you're a Christian if you ascribe to the Apostle's Creed without a hitch.

But, of course, only God knows our hearts for sure; and He only can convince you of whether you are or not. 3 qualifying items to answer in the positive should be on anyone's check list in order to verify one's status before God; and these items are of a much more personal nature regarding their implementation and life practice, than only one's intellectual assent to them.

1) Do you believe that the reason why you believe in the entire Apostle's Creed is because these tenets are found in God's inspired and written Word, the Bible (1 John 5:13)?

2) Do you practice (albeit not perfectly) keeping all of the commandments of God, which really boils down to living as Jesus did (1 John 2:3-6)?

3) Does God indeed give you an understanding, a profoundly deep impression much of the time (despite your doubts) that really goes beyond words, that you are now one of His adopted sons (Romans 8:15)?

Well, if you answer "yes" for all three. You're in! If not, and you answered "no" to even one of these, this does not disqualify you necessarily. But, then you actually should be carrying around at least some doubt that you are, if so. My suggestion would be to ask God to get you in line with these three qualifying items. So, I'll leave that up to you and Him!

But, even if you are, you appear to be experiencing some conflict with what God tells you, with some issues that the world purports. This is possibly one of the reasons why you are having some doubts about your status before God. This apparent conflict that you are presently experiencing is undoubtedly due to some ambivalence you are having regarding what God has told us in His written Word. I can certainly understand why you would not recognize homosexuality as an aberration from God's will and plan for humanity, especially given where our western culture is going with this issue, if you can't accept on faith the Genesis account. Remember that Jesus had no problems with it (Matthew 19:4-6). The popular evolutionary view of many scientists today (although more and more scientists, including non-Christians, are completely rejecting this theory) cannot really be integrated with our Christian faith, since it fundamentally is at odds with the Bible's view of not only the origin and nature of the universe; but also of humanity, the pinnacle of His creation.

Answer 4

But do you have a like faith to the Apostle?

Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:

From what you write it would seem not.

We are to listen to the Apostles not the world - They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them.
We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.

True faith is not a mental assent but revelation from God. That cannot be contradictory.

That should also result in a renewed mind Rom 12/2, Eph 4/23, and being of one mind, Rom 15/6, 1 Cor 1/10, Phil 2/2, in agreement with the Apostles and their doctrine.

Christ affirmed that the Scriptures cannot be broken John 10/35 and every word of Scripture is true - Psa 119:160 Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever - and Christ's own genealogy goes right back to Adam. How can you say you believe God for one thing but not for another when both the words come from the same, out of His mouth?

You can hardly hold a faith that contains contradictory elements. Either the faith is not true or your thinking is wrong.

There is more, much more that could be said, but this is enough to start.

You decide.

Answer 5

If we evolved from a common ancestor with monkeys, then why did Jesus have to die?

If there was no original sin, why did Jesus have to die on the cross?

Exactly. The Bible is a whole. If you reject Genesis, then the rest of the Bible makes no sense.

Instead of rattling off creeds, why not pick up a Bible (New International Version) and read for yourself. Start with Hebrews. You'll see why.

Answer 6

Yes, if you believe in your heart, what you have written here, you are a 'believer' (Christian). There are some things we differ on, but God will sort them out for us. No one knows all the answers - that's why it's called a Mystery. Keep studying, keep cultivating your relationship with Jesus, and keep the communication lines open to the Father. God bless you in your search.

Answer 7

Not! Your "creed", although a real and authentic one, is obviously just in your mind, not your heart. If you really believe in God the Father Almighty CREATOR OF HEAVEN AND EARTH, then you won't believe the Genesis story is an allegory! And, to believe in God is to embrace His standards, to submit to His teachings and to Him as Lord of your life. To believe in Jesus as the Son of God is to believe in what He did for you - died for your sins, to redeem you from the sinful life that separated you from God. That, for me, is a true Christian. A creed is easy to memorize and claim.

Answer 8

You sounded good until you got to the pro-gay marriage. Your twisted in your beliefs, and confused. Homosexuality is an abomination, how can you claim to believe in Genesis where God created Eve for Adam, then think Adam and Steve can get married?. These people are fooling themselves if they think they are going to make it to heaven living in this filthy lifestyle. And those that condone it will be judged also.

Answer 9

You wrote: "I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
the Creator of heaven and earth,
and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord" ....

Stop right there. By my definition, that makes you a christian.

Many people seem to use the term to identify what they define as a good person (I guess the religious affiliation is implied).

I don't believe that's the proper use of the word. It may be, by some peoples beliefs "Christ-like" but not necessarily Christian.

Answer 10

Yes, I would. I also believe Genesis is symbolic. The only thing I see that goes against Christianity is the pro-gay marriage and that is only an opinion and not a basic tenant of Christianity. I think if you believe those things in the creed, then you are a Christian.