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[Announcer] (0:00 - 0:18) Think about the Bible like you never have before. You're listening to Christian Questions. Access more audio, videos, and Bible study resources at ChristianQuestions.com.

Our topic is: "I Am A Christian, So Who Am I?" Here's Rick, Jonathan, and Julie.

[Rick] (0:19 - 0:29) Welcome everyone, I'm Rick. I'm joined by Jonathan, my co-host for over twenty-five years. Julie, a longtime contributor, is also with us. Jonathan, what's our theme scripture for this episode?

[Jonathan] (0:30 - 0:39) 2 Corinthians 5:17: "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come."

[Rick] (0:40 - 1:27) We've all experienced or heard the conversational question that sometimes gets asked when one person is getting to know another; "Are you religious?"

The response can be a myriad of different replies, one of which is, "Yeah, I'm a Christian." That answer usually puts the respondent into the broad and vague category of Christianity in the 21st century. The real question is, what does it mean to be a true Christian according to the original biblical meaning?

If we put aside all of the tradition, all of the preconceived notions and all of the countless denominations, what does the Bible say it means to be a genuine and sincere disciple of Christ? This sounds like a really weird subject.

[Julie] (1:27 - 1:28) It does.

[Rick] (1:28 - 2:02) Let me tell you how this originated. We were in a Bible study with many of our dear, beloved brethren, and one of the brethren said at one point during the meeting, they said, "You know, I've been thinking about it, and this is who I am when it comes to the brotherhood." They just rattled off all these scriptures.

I thought, huh, this is interesting, because you don't usually think about being a Christian and have all of these different definitions and clarity. I thought this would make a great podcast so that the average person can say, wow, a Christian is all of those things. That's what we're going to do.

[Julie] (2:03 - 2:31) According to Wikipedia, Christianity is the largest and most widespread religion. There's over 2.4 billion followers. That's about 31.2% of the world's population. Now, it seems obvious: Who am I if I'm a Christian? A Christian is one who follows the teachings of Jesus Christ.

Any and all understanding of being a Christian has to begin with Jesus. We're going to read one of the more famous scriptures, John 3:16, and we'll add verse 17:

[Jonathan] (2:32 - 2:47) "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through him."

[Rick] (2:48 - 3:25) Being a Christian is reliant upon Jesus. Jesus is the one. He is the centerpiece of anything and everything.

When you say "Christian," it inevitably always comes back to Jesus. Let's expand on this, because God so loved the world that He sent Jesus. The salvation of the world through Jesus was God's plan from the beginning, as He knew sin would enter His creation through Satan first, and then be spread to all of humanity through Adam.

God knew this ahead of time. How do we know? Because He told us in the scriptures.

Let's look at 1 Peter 1:18-21:

[Jonathan] (3:26 - 4:14) "Knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ. For he was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but has appeared in these last times for the sake of you who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God." Usually if there is a ransom to be paid, it involves money--"perishable things like silver or gold"--but here it's different.

We are redeemed with "precious blood" because of the sacrifice of Jesus. He is the centerpiece.

[Rick] (4:15 - 4:47) That "precious blood" ends up being incredibly more powerful than any amount of silver or gold, and that's one of the points here. The important thing folks, here, is that this was foreknown by God before the foundation of the world. Before the world was created, in His mind, He had this in place.

Keep that in mind. That's an important foundation point here. Jesus DID come to save the world, and in the process, what he did was call some to follow him along the lines of saving the world.

Let's look at Luke 9:23:

[Jonathan] (4:47 - 4:56) "And he was saying to them all, If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow me."

[Rick] (4:57 - 5:31) Deny yourself, take up your cross daily, and "follow me." Most people are going to look at that, say, nah, I don't think so. That doesn't sound like something I'd like to do.

He's calling those who are willing to follow. Now there's much more to it than that, but we're going to start with that as a core thought. Here's the thing--

we talked about Jesus being "the lamb slain before the foundation of the world." Interestingly, God's plan also, also had a place for these "called-out ones" long before humanity existed as well. Let's look at Ephesians 1:3-6:

[Jonathan] (5:32 - 6:03) "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the beloved."

[Julie] (6:03 - 6:27) This gets profound quickly. Not only was it God's plan to rescue mankind from even before mankind existed, but now this is saying there's this class of faithful Christians that was planned "before the foundation of the world" as well! God isn't scrambling in some reactionary way to sin and suffering; this was the plan in place all along.

There was no "Plan B."

[Rick] (6:28 - 6:49) You didn't need a Plan B because God's Plan A was in place before everything started! The foreknowledge and the power of the mind of God is beyond our comprehension. You've got these things that are in place in the mind of God to be unfolded at the appropriate time, and being a Christian is one of those things. Keeping that in mind, let's Clarify the "Who Am I" of True Christian Character:

[Jonathan] (6:49 - 6:54) Do my thoughts, words, actions and beliefs reflect the depth of privilege true Christians are given to be called to play a role in the plan of God that was formulated before humanity was even created?

[Julie] (7:11 - 7:25) Consider those 2.4 billion Christians. Are all of them thinking about their Christian life with this kind of seriousness and importance? Are some perhaps just, we might say, "fans" of Jesus, rather than true followers?

[Rick] (7:26 - 8:33) The concept of being a follower of Jesus--I'm glad you brought that up--because the idea of being a follower means that where he goes, you go. What he does, you do. The way he thinks, you think.

The way he responds, you respond. It's not just, oh he went sort of that way, and I'll kind of, sort of...that's not being a follower. This is important. We have this incredible, magnificent calling that is indicated was in place for eons of time.

How seriously do I take following Christ? Let's continue. Jesus is the Savior of all humanity, and his followers were all foreshadowed early in human history, long before Jesus walked the earth.

We just established that. Let's go to some specifics now, getting into human history. Abraham's willingness to sacrifice Isaac was one of many Old Testament accounts that helps us to see how Christ and Christianity would later unfold.

Abraham's story helps to tell the story of Christ and his followers. Let's look at Genesis 22:15-18:

[Jonathan] (8:33 - 9:04) "Then the angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from heaven, and said, By Myself I have sworn, declares the LORD, because you have done this thing and have not withheld your son, your only son, indeed I will greatly bless you, and I will greatly multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of their enemies. In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice."

[Julie] (9:04 - 9:36) We call this the Abrahamic Covenant, and it gets repeated to Abraham in several places in Genesis. It's about the everlasting blessing of the entire human race, and that blessing unfolding from a specific lineage. This plan that was set up from the beginning continues to unfold, but what's the connection from these Old Testament texts to the Christian? The Apostle Paul clearly connects this Old Testament event of this Abrahamic Covenant with the New Testament call to Christian discipleship.

[Rick] (9:36 - 9:58) We have the connection. We had the proclamation from before the foundation of the earth. Now we're looking at the Old Testament and watching the connections there jump to the New Testament. First, the role of Jesus himself is drawn from the Abraham and Isaac experience, and we see that abundantly clearly in Galatians 3:16:

[Jonathan] (9:58 - 10:10) "Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, And to seeds, as referring to many, but rather to one, and to your seed, that is, Christ."

[Rick] (10:11 - 10:49) Paul is being as specific as you can possibly be. One seed, it's Christ. He's the one.

Jesus is THE "seed of Abraham" that blesses ALL the nations of the earth. That's what the Apostle Paul is saying. We have that basis, that baseline. So Abraham and Isaac showed us Jesus,

but there's more. The Apostle Paul's reasoning continues as he adds the dimension of true discipleship to that exact, precise equation. We go a little bit further in Galatians 3. We read verse 16. Let's jump down now to Galatians 3:27-29:

[Jonathan] (10:49 - 11:17) "For all of you who were baptized into Christ hath clothed yourself with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's descendants, heirs according to the promise."

To be "clothed with Christ" is to be covered by his sacrifice, and therefore to be a part of him.

[Julie] (11:17 - 11:47) When you're an heir, you inherit something. Here, the heirs inherit the promise that was made back then to Abraham, to be in that position to "bless all the families of the earth." That certainly hasn't happened yet, so we know that it's in a future time, specifically, in God's kingdom after everyone has been resurrected.

But Rick, how do we know for sure that as a Christian we've been "clothed with Christ," and if we "belong to Christ?" Is it automatic if you're claiming to be a Christian?

[Rick] (11:47 - 12:25) Right, that's a good question. Really the question is, is it based on what I say, or is it based on something else, perhaps how I am received? That really is one of the differences, and I'm going to pick up on the phraseology you used before, between being a "fan" of Jesus and a follower.

What defines the difference between the two? There's something very specific, and we're going to get to it in one minute. Just hang on.

We've got this foundation of the earth proclamation, and we've got the Old Testament verifying Christianity and being a true follower of Christ. Again, let's Clarify The "Who Am I" of True Christian Character:

[Jonathan] (12:25 - 12:39) Do my thoughts, words, actions, and beliefs reflect the power of the prophetic Old Testament events that reveal the absolute connection to Jesus that true Christians have?

[Julie] (12:40 - 12:53) This is just one reason why Christians study both the Old Testament and the New Testament. We ask ourselves, do I work at appreciating how the Old Testament pointed to and described this call that I've been privileged to answer?

[Rick] (12:53 - 13:22) These are important questions, because I'm a follower of Christ. Who am I? Who am I?

Am I doing these things? Am I following through? Because this is how being a follower of Christ is actually described in the Bible.

We want to put aside denominations, we want to put aside traditions, we want to put aside feelings. Let's go just to Scripture. We're just getting started and already understanding what being a Christian means has entered the category of being a mind-blowing revelation!

[Jonathan] (13:23 - 13:30) Now that we have the inspiring and historical foundation for the call to Christianity in place, where do we go from here?

[Rick] (13:31 - 14:00) Our next major point in identifying who we are as Christians has to do with the things that set all true disciples apart from the rest of the world. Turns out there are many things that make the separation real. However, the most significant aspect of the defining differences has nothing to do with us, and everything to do with God's grace.

[Julie] (14:01 - 14:09) Let's get back to my question. How do we know if we've been "clothed with Christ," as the Scripture said, and it said "belong to Christ?"

[Rick] (14:10 - 14:35) How do we know? Let's focus in on the how do we know. Now we focus on the role that God's spirit plays in establishing who we are as Christians.

How do you do that? Well, as usual, you have to start at the beginning. You have to start where Christianity starts.

It always begins with Jesus. Let's look at Jesus and God's spirit in Matthew 3:16-17.

[Jonathan] (14:35 - 15:08) "After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on him, and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." The holy spirit is God's invisible power and influence.

Jesus was the first to be given God's spirit, as described here at the beginning of his ministry. He was outwardly identified as having God's spirit.

[Julie] (15:09 - 15:36) Yes, but we also know that in the Old Testament times, the holy spirit was given, but before Jesus' baptism that you just read, Jonathan, its function was really more "mechanical." It was given for specific tasks, it inspired certain craftsmen working on the Tabernacle, it supernaturally guided and directed the prophets and other people to write or speak words that they generally didn't understand. So it operated, but it wasn't the same.

This is something new here with Jesus.

[Rick] (15:37 - 16:27) Yeah, very new. Something completely unique that had never happened in the human realm before. The begettal of God's spirit within the man Christ Jesus, that sets a whole new way that God's power and influence would be put to work to further His plan.

It is different. It is different than the spirit in the Old Testament. Same power and influence of God, but manifested and operating in a different way.

Before Jesus was crucified, he told his followers that God's spirit would come to them. Remember in John 14 and 15 and 16, he's talking about what's going to happen in the "comforter" and all of those things. Well, the magnitude of this explanation of the spirit coming was expressed very, very well in the book of Ephesians.

Let's look at Ephesians 1:13-14.

[Jonathan] (16:28 - 16:57) This is from the Weymouth Translation: "And in him (Jesus) you Gentiles also, after listening to the message of the truth, the good news of your salvation--having believed in him (Jesus)--were sealed with the promised holy spirit; that spirit being a pledge and foretaste of our inheritance, in anticipation of its full redemption--the inheritance which he has purchased to be specially his for the extolling of his glory."

[Julie] (16:58 - 17:14) Okay, so the point here, you're saying, is that Christians are sealed with this holy spirit. In other words, that's the identifying mark. That's like a stamp that authenticates the promise of a future heavenly inheritance.

It sounds like a little bit like an engagement ring promises a future wedding.

[Jonathan] (17:15 - 17:23) The gift of the holy spirit is God's assurance to every true Christian that they were called to be a remarkable new life.

[Rick] (17:24 - 18:09) This is important, because to be "sealed with the promise of the spirit" is not what happened in the Old Testament. They were given the power of the spirit to do things, like you mentioned before. But you're sealed WITH the spirit.

This is a new life, and in many ways this new life is literal. It's literally a new life. Again, what's the difference between being a fan of Jesus and a true follower?

Let's hone in on that here. The Apostle Paul, in 2 Corinthians, is going to explain part of his own journey toward Christ, and then he's going to build our journey into his teaching and talking about himself. In the next few verses, he's talking about himself, and then he says, essentially, "therefore."

When you hear "therefore," listen up, because now he's talking about everyone. This is 2 Corinthians 5:16-17:

[Jonathan] (18:09 - 18:12) "Therefore from now on we recognize no one according to the flesh; even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know him in this way no longer. Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come."

[Julie] (18:31 - 19:05) This is an interesting term, this "new creature." This is unprecedented. This is an original formation.

"Never-before-seen" is what that word means. Paul knew of Jesus, but now he knows him in a different way. With Jesus at his baptism, something new happened with him because of this holy spirit (God's power and influence) that he was given.

After Pentecost, amazingly, his followers receive a part of that holy spirit too. It's in a lesser degree than what Jesus was given, but this holy spirit becomes helpful to us.

[Rick] (19:05 - 19:59) It not only becomes helpful, it becomes an indwelling driver for the life of a true Christian, having established the complete change. This is a complete change that the indwelling of God's spirit brings. The Apostle Paul next shows us what we're supposed to be doing as a result of this.

It's not like, okay, I've got this incredible gift, I just feel good, I'm just in great shape... No, no, no, no, no! You're given the gift for the purpose.

What's the purpose? Walking in Jesus' footsteps. What did Jesus start to do?

He gave himself as a ransom sacrifice for the whole world. What are we supposed to do? Because we can't do that.

What are we supposed to do? The spirit helps us to know and do what's important, and here's one of the big pieces of that. Let's look at 2 Corinthians, back to chapter 5.

Now we're going to go to 2 Corinthians 5:18-19:

[Jonathan] (20:00 - 20:19) "Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation."

[Rick] (20:20 - 21:02) The work is to bring the world to God through Christ, and he's committed to us, true followers of Christ, the "word of reconciliation." What's the "word of reconciliation?" It's the gospel.

He's given us the gospel because it is the reconciling process that will bring the world back to God through Christ in the Day of Judgment. The "word of reconciliation," being the gospel, means that this "new creation" has been reconciled, and the world needs to be reconciled. Here's where we follow Jesus. In my Christianity,

do I understand? Do I see that? Am I walking in those footsteps for that purpose? Let's continue in 2 Corinthians 5:20-21:

[Jonathan] (21:02 - 21:07) "Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He made him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him."

[Julie] (21:26 - 21:43) We're supposed to be ambassadors for Christ. An ambassador, we know, doesn't get personally involved in the political wranglings of the host country they're visiting because that's not their job. They're supposed to be respectful of the basic laws of the land, but they act in a way that shows their citizenship as elsewhere.

[Jonathan] (21:44 - 22:09) To be an ambassador for Christ, one must first be "in" Christ. This involves being a "new creature." An "ambassador for Christ" is a faithful follower of Jesus who has been reconciled to God and is now tasked with representing God and Christ to the world, carrying the message and "ministry of reconciliation" and living as a representative of their heavenly citizenship.

[Julie] (22:09 - 22:14) A quick question; we can't expect to reconcile the entire world now?

[Rick] (22:14 - 24:04) Right, and that's why Jesus says that there will come a time--remember, the Day of Judgment-- he said where every man will hear the voice of the Son of Man and come from their graves (this is John 5:20-29), "some to a resurrection of life" (those are the ones who have been following Christ) and some to "a resurrection of judgment." That's where the reconciliation takes place. That's where all those Old Testament prophecies like Isaiah 35--walking on the "highway of holiness" and coming and every man knowing the Lord and all of those things--that's where it all comes into play. The key is the development of the ministers of reconciliation here and now, so that they are prepared to reconcile later.

Being a follower of Christ doesn't mean you are magically endowed with power and wisdom that's beyond you. It requires us to develop into true Christians, develop into maturity and spirituality in Christ. That's what it's all about.

If I say, you know, Okay, I'm a Christian, so who am I? Am I walking that walk to develop in those ways? The spiritual status of every true Christian that's been given to them, it requires each of us to walk, talk, think, act, and live in a manner that reflects footsteps of Jesus.

This is a new life. If I am living my old life and claiming to be a Christian, I am "clapping for Jesus." I'm a fan and I love Jesus and that's good--but I'm not following him.

We need to understand that very clearly. Now all of this is put in place and the Apostle Peter tells us that the true results of such a life are not yet revealed. Julie, this also attaches to your question of like, well, it's not all now.

Our final conclusion is not even revealed here in this life. Let's look at 1 Peter 1:3-5:

[Jonathan] (24:04 - 24:36) This is from the Young's Literal Translation. "Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who, according to the abundance of His kindness did beget us again to a living hope, through the rising again of Jesus Christ out of the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and unfading, reserved in the heavens for you, who, in the power of God are being guarded, through faith, unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time."

[Julie] (24:36 - 24:45) The word "inheritance" jumps out at me --there's that special inheritance again-incorruptible, "ready to be revealed in the last time." What does that mean?

[Rick] (24:45 - 25:15) That means that we're not looking to see the glories and the riches and the treasures of earth here and now today. The glory and the riches and the treasure, it says, are heavenly and to be revealed in the last time. It's not what you get now, it's what you pour your heart and soul into by following Jesus to be blessed with, to work with him later.

That's where we're going. Again, let's Clarify The "Who am I" of True Christian Character:

[Jonathan] (25:15 - 25:23) Do my thoughts, actions, and beliefs reflect a newly created life in Christ through the power of God's spirit?

[Julie] (25:23 - 25:36) Here's another question: Do I clearly reflect a developing Christlike image of God's justice, wisdom, power, and love as I live this new life every day in my own human interactions?

[Jonathan] (25:37 - 25:44) Let's really take an honest look at our mind and heart as we go through the priorities of each day.

[Rick] (25:44 - 26:06) Yeah, and that's such an important point. Being a true Christian-- the "Who Am I"--is what are my priorities each and every day of my life? The loftiness of this newly created life within each true Christian sometimes can be hard to grasp.

All we can do is live according to the grace that we've been given.

[Jonathan] (26:07 - 26:17) We have seen the profound prophetic background behind Christianity and the newness of life that comes with it. How do these things translate in a practical way?

[Rick] (26:17 - 26:43) As dramatic and overwhelming as these things are, our everyday application of them is where we see the proving ground of what being a true Christian means beginning to unfold. We have reviewed what we are now given, and now we need to clarify what we are to give and to be as a result of those gifts, as a result of what we have been given.

[Julie] (26:43 - 27:02) We're just touching lightly on these concepts, many of which we've gone into in great scriptural detail in other episodes. We're going to add those in this week's CQ Rewind Show Notes, where we list every scripture quoted here today and much of our commentary. You can always write us at [email protected] with your own questions.

[Rick] (27:03 - 27:19) Let's go further on who am I? If I say I'm a Christian, who am I? Let's begin with something that everybody knows about, but few of us have mastered.

What would that be? Selfless love. Tough one.

John 15:12-14:

[Jonathan] (27:19 - 27:32) "This is my commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you."

[Rick] (27:33 - 28:08) The power of that one statement: "Greater love has no man than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you." He is basically saying, watch what I do so you can learn to live as I live, and appreciate the incredible value of laying down your life for the brotherhood. True disciples of Christ will always be seeking to fulfill this "new commandment," and it's not easy.

As a matter of fact, it's very difficult. As a matter of fact, it takes a lifetime to get there! This is something we have to work at.

[Julie] (28:09 - 28:15) Sure, and when we think "love," we might first think about 1 Corinthians 13. It's known as the "love chapter" because it's often read at weddings.

[Jonathan] (28:16 - 29:00) Why don't we start with the last verse, verse 13, and then go back to the beginning of the chapter. 1 Corinthians 13:13: "But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love." Now 1 Corinthians 13:1-3:

"If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing."

[Julie] (29:00 - 29:14) Good example was the Pharisees. They were great at putting on a show, like this says, "a noisy gong or clanging cymbal," but they didn't actually have that selfless benevolent love for those that they were supposed to be teaching.

[Jonathan] (29:14 - 29:25) You're right, Julie. They were supposed to love their neighbor as themselves. This selfless benevolent love is not attention-getting; it's attentiveness in giving.

[Rick] (29:25 - 29:59) That's a big point. It's not about gaining attention. It's not about "look at me." It's about pouring yourself out. Look at how Jesus lived.

We got this concept of selfless love, and Jesus essentially leading the way, saying, this is your commandment, "love one another as I have loved you." Am I just "clapping" for Jesus, saying, yay, good thinking, you make me feel so good, or am I learning how to do that? Let's Clarify The "Who Am I" of True Christian Character:

[Julie] (30:00 - 30:14) Do my thoughts, actions, and beliefs provide those around me with clear evidence of this self-sacrificing love? Can I look at what I do, say and think and see evidence of this selflessness taking root and finding space to grow in my heart?

[Rick] (30:15 - 30:49) Do I do that? What have I uprooted inside of my heart so to make space to plant the seeds of this selfless love? Because you know what?

In a normal, natural human heart, there's not enough room for everything else in that. You have to make space. That's who I am as a true Christian.

Let's continue. It just keeps growing. Who am I as a Christian?

It grows and grows. The "Who Am I" of Christianity is broadly described--and I mean broadly described--in these next verses, by the Apostle Peter. Let's look at 1 Peter 2:9-10:

[Jonathan] (30:50 - 31:14) "But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God's OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; for you once were NOT A PEOPLE, but now you are THE PEOPLE OF GOD; you had NOT RECEIVED MERCY, but now you have RECEIVED MERCY."

[Rick] (31:14 - 31:58) Oh, there's so much in these verses. There is so much. We are defined by all of these privileged descriptions to help us grasp our responsibility, and that's really what Peter is talking about.

He's essentially saying, you can look at this in two ways. You can look at it and say, oh, these are great. Oh, it's cool to be a chosen race, a royal priesthood.

Whoo-hoo! I'm a holy nation. Yay!

Or you can say, this is what God requires of me through Christ. These are responsibilities. These are not accolades.

They're responsibilities. This is what we need to be drawing ourselves to. Let's touch on these points very quickly.

"A chosen race," or "a holy nation," means being the spiritual seed of Abraham. That's a serious responsibility.

[Jonathan] (31:59 - 32:06) "A royal priesthood," meaning we serve others as representatives of God Himself. This is what we're called to do.

[Julie] (32:06 - 32:25) When it calls us "a people for God's own possession," that means we're His children, His family. I especially like how the King James Version calls this a "peculiar people," indicating you're different. You're weird.

But that's displaying Christianity in its purest form. It's different from everybody else.

[Rick] (32:25 - 33:05) When we read verses like this, and we see these titles, if you will, we need to look at them as saying, these are what I am called up to learning about, to becoming. Not something that you can just put on your shoulder and say, hey, look at me. We already talked about the "clanging symbol" and all that.

It's not about drawing attention. It's about drawing ourselves to the will of God through Christ, and learning how to mature into these roles. When we think about being a "Christian," these are the things.

These are the things that the Bible describes Christianity operates upon. Again, let's, one more time here, Clarify The "Who Am I" of True Christian Character:

[Julie] (33:06 - 33:27) You notice we keep saying the words "thoughts, actions, and beliefs." When you're asking yourself these questions, do my thoughts, actions, and beliefs reveal the deep and profound connection I am to have with accomplishing God's purposes in every aspect of life? Do I reflect the spiritual call and serve others by representing God's truths as his child?

[Jonathan] (33:28 - 33:44) Am I developing as a "work in progress?" Maybe I just love Jesus, and it's enough for me to appreciate him from a distance. Living a good life is nice, but the call of true Christianity is deeper, more profound, and costly.

[Rick] (33:44 - 34:38) You're right, and it's difficult. Folks, as you're listening, maybe you're looking at this saying, wait a minute, this isn't quite what I understood before. That's okay.

It's okay. If you are truly a follower of Christ, you take the scriptures and say, let me learn from them. Let me grow into the scriptures again.

That's why we need to put aside the denominational thoughts, the emotional stuff, and say, what am I supposed to be? Who am I supposed to be? What am I supposed to do?

How am I supposed to do it? It's all written for us in scripture. We've got all of these responsibilities that Peter had mentioned.

Let's go further. Let's go on to another description of what a true Christian looks like. The Apostle Paul, again, revealed yet another, "who am I" description of true Christianity.

Here he's going to talk to us about being the bride of Christ. Let's look at Ephesians 5:22-27:

[Jonathan] (34:38 - 35:21) "Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, he himself being the savior of the body.

But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave himself up for her, so that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that he might present to himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless."

[Julie] (35:22 - 35:42) Church, church, church. I think you said church four times. What is this "church?"

It is the people. It's not the physical building with the steeple or even a certain denomination. In Greek here, it is the community, the congregation made up of these dedicated individual Christians.

It's an individual calling.

[Rick] (35:43 - 36:20) Who am I? Am I really working at becoming part of this bride of Christ? Let's expand that even further.

We've got that description by the Apostle Paul about presenting herself as holy and blameless. In Revelation...Revelation helps to see that we are now tasked with preparing ourselves for our future spiritual union with Jesus. A big part of being a Christian is the preparation for what's to come.

If I'm just being happy, am I focused on the preparation? Those are the questions we need to ask ourselves. Let's look at Revelation 19:7-8:

[Jonathan] (36:20 - 36:38) "Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the lamb has come and his bride has made herself ready. It was given to her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints."

[Julie] (36:38 - 37:17) Remember when we read in Galatians 3:27 how we're supposed to be "clothed with Christ." He's our covering. That's the initial transformation.

Here we have the bride of Christ is clothed in "fine linen." It says it represents the righteous conduct, the good deeds of these faithful Christians, preparing them for their union with Christ (as this picture of a bride) in their future role of blessing all the families of the earth. There's a progression of faith shown here.

You're first "clothed with Christ" as the foundation. Then the victory, you're clothed in the "fine linen." It represents that fulfillment of all this preparation, the fulfillment of a faithful life.

[Rick] (37:18 - 37:32) The life of a Christian is a life of progression, a life of worth, a life of focus, a life of sacrifice. Let's again Clarify the "Who Am I" of Real True Christian Character:

[Jonathan] (37:32 - 37:56) Do my thoughts, actions, and beliefs reveal a humble and yet excited anticipation of being a small part of those chosen to be united with Jesus in heaven? Does my everyday life reflect a growing godly righteousness drawn from God's word that stands above the daily frustrations of all my experiences?

[Julie] (37:57 - 38:18) These are really serious "mirror" questions that are being asked. Again it's to say, am I a "fan" or am I a "follower?" Will I be clothed with linen as part of the bride of Christ? Matthew 22:14 assures us that "many are called but few are chosen."

We don't think that all 2.4 billion Christians are going to receive this heavenly reward.

[Rick] (38:19 - 38:47) We want to make sure that if we are really truly desirous of following Christ, that we're one of them. That's really all you can worry about is, what am I going to do with my life, my days, my thoughts, my heart, my emotions, my focus? What am I going to do with me?

Being part of "a chosen race," a holy priesthood, "a holy nation," God's family, and the spiritual bride of Christ--there is so much privilege and so little time!

[Jonathan] (38:47 - 38:55) So far, what we have seen makes being a true Christian a lot of work. What else is there and what kind of blessing should we expect?

[Rick] (38:56 - 39:30) Look, there's always, always more. Once we briefly examine who the "saints" really are and what it means to be God's temple, we're going to wrap up with what being part of the body of Christ actually means. The blessings we receive, what about them?

What about the blessings we receive? Because we've been talking about the work all this time and talking about the effort and the transformation. What about the blessings?

They are transformational, they are spiritual, they are godly, and they are eternal. What better blessings could anyone ever possibly hope for?

[Julie] (39:31 - 40:01) Yeah, but I noticed you said spiritual blessings and not earthly blessings. We can't take those physical blessings promised to the ancient Israelites for their obedience and apply them to us. For the spiritual Israelite, this new creature in Christ, we should expect trials and troubles, but they take on a different significance for us than the rest of the world.

Here's an expression I just heard: "Prosperity was the blessing of the Old Testament, Adversity is the blessing of the New Testament."

[Rick] (40:01 - 40:04) You say that's like, okay, cool! Wait, what?!

[Julie] (40:04 - 40:07) Great! Troubles!

[Rick] (40:08 - 40:31) Understand, adversity was the blessing that Jesus went through. He was exalted to the right hand of God.

You look at that and you say, okay, this does make sense in the larger picture. The Apostle Paul in Ephesians helps us understand the "who am I" of being saints and God's temple. We're going to look at Ephesians 2:19-22:

[Jonathan] (40:31 - 41:15) As I read, listen for the words "saints" and "holy," because these are the same Greek word. "So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God's household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the spirit." "Saints" and "holy" here mean "sacred, pure, morally blameless, consecrated."

"To consecrate" is "to declare something as sacred."

[Julie] (41:16 - 41:51) A consecrated person transforms their life trying to follow the way Jesus lived his life. They resist the natural sinful tendencies. They try to obey God's will in every decision of life.

We talked about receiving that holy spirit, becoming spirit-begotten. A spirit-begotten person is going to see, think, speak, act differently than they did before, because why? Their loyalty and their allegiance as an ambassador are going to be to God and God's Son Christ first.

They're committed to this higher purpose of doing things God's way instead of our own way. That's very unnatural.

[Rick] (41:52 - 42:13) It is, and that's why this concept of the "holy temple in the Lord" is important for us to understand, because that's what being a true Christian, that's part of how it's defined. It's defining--this holy temple in the Lord--is defining us as a dwelling place for God's spirit. That's where God's spirit lives.

Think about that. 1 Corinthians 3:16-17:

[Jonathan] (42:14 - 42:28) "Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the spirit of God dwells in you? If any man destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him, for the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are."

[Julie] (42:28 - 42:48) To me this is mind-blowing, because this means that for faithful Christians, they themselves are a sacred place, because the holy spirit of God dwells within them. It seems like God always needs a place to dwell. It was the Garden of Eden, in the Old Testament it was the Tabernacle, it was the Temple, and now He dwells in us.

[Jonathan] (42:48 - 43:04) Yeah, that's a big responsibility, to make sure we're glorifying God in our bodies and minds. Romans 12:1 admonishes us: "... present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship."

[Julie] (43:05 - 43:29) In addition to these individual bodies of ours being temples, we just read in Ephesians 2:19-22, how the saints are growing into this holy building where Jesus is the cornerstone, and everybody fits together purposely. This church that you read about--this collective body of faithful followers--is the holy temple or dwelling of God in that bigger sense.

[Rick] (43:29 - 43:50) The responsibility is both individual and collective. We need to be part of the temple together. Being part of this temple, this church, obviously as you both have said, means being very different than those around us.

Let's continue by looking at the temple and how it makes us different. 2 Corinthians 6:14-16:

[Jonathan] (43:50 - 44:13) "Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness? Or what harmony has Christ with Belial,

or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever? Or what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God..."

[Rick] (44:13 - 44:33) This is a powerful, powerful responsibility and privilege at the same time. We want to understand it as both, and we want to take the responsibility part with immense seriousness as we walk forward in our daily lives. Let's go back to Clarifying The "Who Am I" of True Christian Character:

[Jonathan] (44:33 - 44:49) Do my thoughts, actions, and beliefs reveal the sacredness that I'm being transformed by? Do they exhibit an individual whose main purpose is to be a true representative of God's holiness in an unholy world?

[Julie] (44:49 - 45:02) That's really difficult because this requires us to be different from the world around us. There's no partnership between the temple of God and idols. It seems like everything's an idol these days.

[Rick] (45:03 - 45:45) You're right. Again, being the temple of God is the temple of His power and influence. That's what it is.

It's the temple of God's spirit. God dwells in us in the way that His spirit is what drives us. We need to be clear on the privilege of that.

Let's go to one more "who am I" Christian scriptural example here. This again comes from the Apostle Paul as he describes the equally important aspects of the body of Christ. We looked at being the temple of God's spirit, and now we're going to look at being the body of Christ. We're going to drop in to the scriptures in 1 Corinthians chapter 12.

We're going to start with 1 Corinthians 12:14-16:

[Jonathan] (45:45 - 46:05) "For the body is not one member, but many. If the foot says, Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body, it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. And if the ear says, Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body, it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body."

[Julie] (46:06 - 46:23) The idea here is that while there's many individuals, they collectively form one unified body in Christ. Just like our own physical body has feet and hands and ears and a spleen, the body of Christ has many integrated members with different gifts and talents and abilities and functions.

[Rick] (46:23 - 46:51) That's a privilege! It's an absolute privilege. Now let's go further with the privilege because you know sometimes with humanity, we start to wrangle about who's better and who's more important and all of these things.

This illustration that the Apostle Paul gives us helps us to see the importance of what we're called to do regardless of our abilities, regardless of the part that we are called to play. Let's look at 1 Corinthians 12. We're going to continue now with 1 Corinthians 12:17-19:

[Jonathan] (46:52 - 47:28) "If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body just as He desired.

If they were all one member, where would the body be? But now there are many members, but one body." These differences are by God's design and He places the members in the body just as He desires.

If your role is to be the little toe, just be the best little toe you can be in order to help the whole body function in a healthy way!

[Rick] (47:28 - 48:17) That's the point. There's the give and take, there's the mutual support, there is the recognition that others do other things. It's a remarkable, beautiful again, privilege as well as responsibility of what being a Christian really means.

Now the Apostle Paul continues by explaining that each member of the body is vital as the object is to be a complete, self-sustaining, mutually supportive unit all under the head which is Christ. That's where the brains are, okay? None of us has the brains, we just all comply with the head to work together.

You guys think, okay, so why is it set up this way? The answer is because this is how Jesus lived and how he taught us to live. Let's just take a quick look at 1 Corinthians 12.

Let's jump to 1 Corinthians 12:26:

[Jonathan] (48:18 - 48:25) "And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it."

[Julie] (48:26 - 48:46) This tells me we really have to be paying attention because the interconnectedness of these members that we are supposed to do here, there has to be mutual care. If one member suffers, all suffer. If one is honored, all rejoice.

We're to support and encourage one another. We can't do that unless we know one another.

[Rick] (48:47 - 49:34) Unless we love one another. Remember the clanging symbol and all of that stuff and the noise-making, the attention-getting? Body doesn't work on getting attention, it works on getting the job done.

It rejoices as a unit to get the job done. That's why the Apostle Paul in Ephesians further discusses that there is no division because there's no pecking order. Again, folks, this is an important aspect of Christianity.

We need to understand there is not a pecking order in this. All have equal value because all contribute. Do we do different things?

Yes. Are some things more public than others? Yes.

Does it matter? No! Because we're called to be a part of the whole.

Ephesians 4:11-13:

[Jonathan] (49:34 - 49:58) "And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ."

[Julie] (49:58 - 50:24) It makes me think that some have microphones, and some have folded hands, and some have both. There's all these little things that we can play because God has composed the body with this collection of diverse individuals. Each are essential, each are interconnected, they all have different talents, but they're working together in unity under Christ, who is--like you said, Rick--the head, so it's mutual dependence, it's honor, it's collective purpose.

[Rick] (50:24 - 50:42) Let me do my part, and let me support you in doing your part, and let's rejoice together that we can do our part and help others do their part. That is what being a Christian truly, truly is. Last time, Clarifying The "Who Am I" of True Christian Character:

[Jonathan] (50:42 - 51:01) Do my thoughts, actions, and beliefs exemplify a life lived in unity with other true disciples of Jesus? Am I not only contributing what I have the privilege of contributing, am I receiving contributions from others with grace and gratitude?

[Julie] (51:02 - 51:22) Studying for this has just taught me what a privilege and an opportunity we have, and I think of 1 Corinthians 2:9. I'm going to read it from the New Living Translation: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him." It's difficult, but it's all worth it.

[Rick] (51:23 - 52:38) It's probably, for many of us as we're listening to this, not what we may have expected. The question is, what am I going to do with my Christianity here and now?

Am I going to take it, delve into the scriptures and say, I will follow the examples that have been given to me so I can live up to that. Now look, if you're not up for that and you look at that and you want to love Jesus, okay, that's fine, because there's blessing for all in the kingdom. The point is, for those who are true Christians, true followers of Christ, the responsibilities here are difficult, as you said.

They are blessed in this life, not with earthly riches, but with the privilege of being part of something that will play a role in the reconciliation of the entire world later on. What could possibly be better than that? When we think about Christians and say, "Who am I?"

"I am a footstep follower of Jesus Christ, taking up my cross daily and following him!" Think about it. Folks, we love hearing from our listeners.

We welcome your feedback and questions on this episode and other episodes at ChristianQuestions.com. Coming up in our next episode: "Can I Really Love Someone I Don't Like?"

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