What does a true Christian look like?

I think before we can answer that, we need to understand just what it means to be a Christian…how did being a Christian even become possible?  And for any of this to make sense, we need to believe that there is a Creator and this is where my thoughts will start from, because I believe there is a Creator of this crazy and miraculous world; and I believe that Creator to be God.  We can talk about that another time if you’d like.

It all starts with our complete imperfectness.  We just can’t be completely perfect, doing the right thing, loving, forgiving and attaining a state of holiness.  Oh we can try and the majority of us do our best, but it’s just not enough; not enough when at the end of our time here on earth we must stand before a most Holy and Perfect God.  A God whose light shines so brightly and perfectly that we are unable to stand in His presence.

He knew this.  He created us.  He loves us.  And because of this love, He made a way for us to stand in His presence.  He sent His Son Jesus to die for us on a cross. 

Think about this….who does that?  Who sacrifices their only child for a person who curses, cheats & steals?  Who hurts others and thinks only of themselves?  Who watches these terrible things that are happening here on earth and thinks “They will never be perfect enough to join me in Heaven, so I will make a way for them to join me…because I love them so much and want them with me forever.”

It’s a documented fact that Jesus existed and that He died on a cross a completely innocent man.  That cannot be denied.

Just thinking about it…sends chills through my bones and I sit in awe of the Man who could allow that to happen to himself.  Who, while hanging there on a cross (and if you haven’t read up on what a crucifixion is actually like, you really need to), offered love and forgiveness to a man hanging next to him.    Could I offer myself like that?  I could for my children, but for someone I didn’t even know….who didn’t even exist yet?  Um, let’s be honest, none of us would.

And this man, Jesus, simply asked that, in return, we believe, repent and follow Him.

That is how we become a Christian and how our journey with Him begins.  And it is a journey.  We start with our messy selves, then He comes along side us and encourages us, changes us and we begin to see the world in a different way.  Our hearts change.  This change can take a while sometimes, because we still live in this crazy world and it affects us.  But little by little, we begin to see others the way God sees us.  As His beloved creation, needing love, patience, lots of grace and forgiveness, sometimes a little discipline to get us back on the right track (because, seriously….we make mistakes don’t we?), and a whole lot of mercy.

It doesn’t make us happy to see others in pain, it makes us happy to help others who are in need.  We become so thankful once we understand what Jesus did for us, that we want to make HIM proud and live in a way that is pleasing to HIM…not ourselves or anyone else.  We die a bit, our selfishness becomes less and we begin to think about others, not caring about our own needs but more about others.  Those words in red in our bibles become life to us, a way to live, a way to give and serve others.

It’s not about rules and making sure that everyone around you lives by these rules. Because that would make us SELF-righteous and that’s what the Pharisees in Jesus’ time were all about…rules and “look how good we are and how bad you are.” 

So, to me, a Christian looks like someone who loves others even when they are unlovable.  A Christian understands that they themselves are not perfect and would never judge another when they screw up.  Their trust in God goes beyond human understanding and they feel safe in that trust.  Safe enough to go and hold out a hand to those less fortunate, safe enough to seek out the good in the worst of people and encourage them to be better, but love them even when they fail.  A Christian forgives over and over again, because they understand how much they’ve been forgiven.  A Christian cries when they see an injustice done because it hurts their heart to see someone else hurting.  And sometimes, a Christian has to stand up to what God says is wrong and speak the truth, no matter what the consequences are, but that’s never done in malice or with condemnation.  Because with truth, a way to repentance must always be offered in love and grace.

Others may not believe the way I do, but I believe that to be their choice and I will love them no matter what.  Because Jesus loved me enough to die for me when I was not so nice a person, how could I do any less.