The Legit Christian
Part 1: Who has the real soul?
January 21, 2018
Bill Stevens
Recently a family was in the news, who chained their 13 kids to their beds, made them march like soldiers and act like mind-controlled zombies, all in the name of “Christianity.” Friends, this is soooo far from Christianity it is disturbing. Jesus said not everyone who calls Him “Lord” or calls themselves “Christians” are His legitimate followers. He clearly rejects them, no matter what they say.
Jesus said to them, “Knowing the correct password—saying ‘Master, Master,’ for instance—isn’t going to get you anywhere with me. What is required is serious obedience—doing what my Father wills. 22 I can see it now—at the Final Judgment thousands strutting up to me and saying, ‘Master, we preached the Message, we bashed the demons, our God-sponsored projects had everyone talking.’ 23 And do you know what I am going to say? ‘You missed the boat. All you did was use me to make yourselves important. You don’t impress me one bit. You’re out of here.’” Matthew 7:21–23 (The Message) [Read here in these translations: The Message, ESV, NLT]
Get this! God actually tells his followers to EXAMINE & TEST themselves to see if they are really legitimate followers of Christ, legit Christians! He says some are disqualified because they fail the test!
“Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified.” 2 Corinthians 13:5 (NKJV)
I love it the way The Message translation says it:
“Test yourselves to make sure you are solid in the faith. Don’t drift along taking everything for granted. Give yourselves regular checkups. You need firsthand evidence, not mere hearsay, that Jesus Christ is in you. Test it out. If you fail the test, do something about it.” 2 Corinthians 13:5 (The Message)
So much of what we see and hear about today that uses the term “Christian” is soooooo far from legitimate Biblical Christianity, like a Prius calling itself an F1 Grand Prix race car. Laughable is one word for this. Disturbing and demonic are other words. This only confuses those who are legitimately seeking answers about Christ, Christianity, and how God can actually help them in their lives and through their troubles. So, what is legitimate Christianity?
God put a clear description of the Legit Christian in His Word, the Bible, and specifically in the book of 1 John (typically pronounced “first John”). There were fakers during the time when the Bible was being written, and there were followers of Christ who wanted to know for certain that they were legit!
The purpose statement of the book of 1 John, clearly describes the intent to clear the air on what a legitimate follower of Christ really looks like. Every book in the Bible is written with a purpose.
“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.” John 5:13 (ESV)
The little book of 1 John has five chapters, with the primary purpose of helping those who call themselves “Christians” know for certain that they really are legit followers of Christ and fully accepted by God.
There are about five tests in this little book. It will say something like, “you know you are a genuine follower of Christ if your life is like this _________” or “if your life is like ________________ then you do not have eternal life.”
So here is a simple approach to this big test.
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Simply ask God to help you know for certain if you are a legit follower of Christ as you read the little book of 1 John.
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Read online here online in NLT -New Living Translation
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Or listen to it in the Message Translation here.
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Or download the app to your phone where you can read it or listen to it on your phone/tablet (I suggest the NLT translation) . Download Bible App for phone or tablet here.
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Take a sheet of paper, make two columns. Label one column “Legit Followers…” and the other column “Fake followers…”.
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Simply read the little book, look for these kinds of statements, and write them in the appropriate column.
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Pray as you go, simply asking “Father, help me understand your Word, what is a legit follower, a fake follower, and what I am.” This is a personal exercise between you and God.
If you are a follower, it will make you stronger in your faith. If you are simply seeking answers, it will help you see specifically what a true follower is and is not.