What is a Christian?

September 18, 2024

My wife and I had the opportunity about ten years ago to tour some of the northeast. We’d never been to the Cape Cod area, so we spent a day driving out on the peninsula (actually a physical island). While there, we walked through neighborhoods, toured a lighthouse location and even took our shoes off and walked out on the beach, which was easily accessible.

If you ever have a chance to visit the area, you should do it. The scenery is beautiful and much of the area is what you might expect when you think of northeastern villages. Homes in the area have what I consider the Cape Cod look. Now, for me, when I say the Cape Cod look, I mean homes that are fairly small and simple. I think as homes have been updated and constructed in more recent years, they are bigger and more ornate. So, while not all the homes fit my view of the Cape Cod look, there were quite a few.

This week’s photo is an example of a house that I consider a Cape Cod-style house. I took this photo while walking through a neighborhood. It also fits how one company, Mouldings One, a division of the Hardwood Lumber Company, describes Cape Cod architecture.

“Common elements of Cape Cod style:

• Symmetrical, rectangular floor plan with a central main entry
• Steep roofs with minimal overhang
• Large central chimney
• Windows flanking the main entry, with additional windows around the rest of the home
• Relatively flat, broad design, with one and a half stories
• Narrow stairways with steep risers and short treads
• Simple exterior without a porch or roofline”[1]

That’s a pretty standard description to the question, “What is a Cape Cod house?”

What is a Christian? #hope #joy #writingcommunity Share on X

There are also pretty standard answers to the question, “What is a Christian?”

Some believe you can be born a Christian, or that your families’ beliefs become your beliefs through some sort of inherited faith. Some believe attending worship services or becoming a church member entitles you to be called Christian. And there are those who believe acting “like a Christian” makes you a Christian.

Let me share words from a few reliable sources, with whom I agree.

This from the Billy Graham Evangelical Association, “To be a Christian, you must make a conscious choice to turn from your sins–that’s repentance–and by faith believe that Jesus is the Son of God, who loved us, paid the price of our sins on Calvary’s cross, shed His blood and died, was buried, and was raised to life on the third day.”[2]

And from another source I use regularly, “Followers of Jesus Christ were first called ‘Christians’ in Antioch (Acts 11:26) because their behavior, activity, and speech were like Christ. The word ‘Christian’ literally means, ‘belonging to the party of Christ’, or a ‘follower of Christ.’”[3]

And this, from the Bible,

“By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever follows His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: the one who says that he remains in Him ought, himself also, walk just as He walked.” (1 John 2:3-6, NASB)

My prayer for you is that you can call yourself Christian. That you’ve made a conscious choice to turn from self to Christ. That you are a follower of Christ and walk just as He walked.

I also pray that your life and mine match the answer to the question, “What is a Christian?”

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[1] https://www.mouldingsone.com/architectural-styles/cape-cod/

[2] https://billygraham.org/story/what-is-a-christian/

[3] https://www.gotquestions.org/what-is-a-Christian.html