What are the qualifications for being Christian?
I created this debate Thinking of the questions: What percentage of the teachings attributed to Christ must one accept to be a Christian? Can someone be somewhat Christian or is it an all or nothing deal?
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Here is what I consider a Christian: --------------------------------------- -Believe in the Judeo-Christian God -Believe that Jesus is the son of God -Believe that the only path to heaven is 'accepting' Jesus ...In my opinion, everything else is doctrinal differences. Side: violent
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In a way I suppose one could call themselves a Christian without believing in God or all of what Jesus states, kind of like being a Darwinian, we can't accept all of what Darwin stated because at the time he wasn't in possession of the knowledge we now have. It is probably "devout" Christians' that would have a problem with an Agnostic for example calling themselves a Christian because they believe the teachings of Jesus to be something they want to live by, as they view them as a good moral code. Side: violent
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Based upon the scriptures there are no qualifications for being a Christian but rather a profession of faith. You must confess that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, confess and repent from your sins and live Christ-like the best you can. "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved". No one expects you to be perfect, if we were perfect we wouldn't need Christ. Side: Faith
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First of all everything we know about Christ is from the scriptures. There are secular sources that talk of him and that verify his existence....but the information that tells us about who he is and what he is all about come from the Bible. If you are a Christian then...you must believe that the Bible is the inerhent Word of God, the Truth. Otherwise you could base your faith on nothing but your own idea of what its all about. If you deny the scriptures then you deny the God of Abraham. The Bible tells us things about Christ. So to be a Christian you have to believe them. If you read 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 it pretty much sums it up. 1 Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. 3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance[a]: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, Jesus came for the lost that no one should perish. But he was clear what you had to do to be saved...Christ said, I am the Way the Truth and the Life...no one comes to the Father but through Me. So there are not many roads to heaven......only one. Jesus is that road the bridge to the Father. Unless you accept Him, what He did...and unless you repent and ask Him to come into your heart....you die in your sins. God loved us so much that Jesus was the sacrifice to make this all happen. He paid the penalty for our sin. Side: violent
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