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Who has ever told you you're a pretender? I've never seen that on this board.
Who has ever used that exact word (i.e. "pretender")? Nobody that I can think of. But quite a number of people have told me that I'm not a "real Christian," even though I claim to be. If I claim to be something I'm not, then I'm a pretender. But then I'm sure I'm never heard you say I wasn't a Christian, have I, Vizio?
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But do you have scripture references to support the idea that one can simply claim to be a Christian and they are?
No, now that you mention it, I can't come up with a single verse that explicitly states that. Do you have any scripture references to support the idea that you, Vizio, are better qualified to say whether someone is a Christian than that person himself?
Who has ever used that exact word (i.e. "pretender")? Nobody that I can think of. But quite a number of people have told me that I'm not a "real Christian," even though I claim to be. If I claim to be something I'm not, then I'm a pretender. But then I'm sure I'm never heard you say I wasn't a Christian, have I, Vizio?
No, now that you mention it, I can't come up with a single verse that explicitly states that. Do you have any scripture references to support the idea that you, Vizio, are better qualified to say whether someone is a Christian than that person himself?
People have asked why I posted this or what is making me ask this question here: I'm having something of a spiritual crisis and am trying to figure out who I am and where I stand. I know that this is ultimately between God and I but life is a journey and there are people here further along who may have some wisdom to share so that's why I came here.
My suggestion is to turn to God with your life. He knows you better than you know you. He knows what you desire, but He also will want to be like Him. He may give to you some things that you want... He may want some things from you as well. He wants the best for you. You will come out better in the end.
Is accepting Jesus as your saviour, admitting to being a flawed being and asking him for help and accepting that he died for my sins being a Christian?
The bare minimum is the thief on the cross. He did almost nothing and Jesus said, "Today, you will be with me in paradise."
The bare minimum is the thief on the cross. He did almost nothing and Jesus said, "Today, you will be with me in paradise."
True, but if he could have come down off that cross and been able to live a long life, would it have mattered what happened on the cross if he'd gone back to being a thief? Somewhere along the line, true repentance has to come in.
Our part is supplying the faith in the gospel of Christ. However, no one is a Christian until God validates one's faith by sending them the Holy Spirit.
Your part is not to supply faith. Faith is of God and comes from God. You can testify about Christ, but you cannot impart faith to anyone. People either have faith in Christ or they do not. God is sovereign over all.
'Christian', to me, is a label of a person who believes, professes and
follows the Nicene Creed. That is how it was set by Constantine, period.
What about how it was set by Jesus, and what about His followers who lived before Constantine and before the Nicene Creed was written? What was their creed and how could one recognize a Christian during the first three centuries after Christ's death?
True, but if he could have come down off that cross and been able to live a long life, would it have mattered what happened on the cross if he'd gone back to being a thief? Somewhere along the line, true repentance has to come in.
To me, it would not have mattered. True repentance does not prevent future trespasses.
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