Nominal vs. Actual Christian

Nominal vs. Actual Christian            

Are you a Christian? Are you a nominal or an actual Christian?

If you’ve been around Christendom for very long you likely have heard the term, nominal Christian. The Google definition of nominal is “existing or being something in name only … may vary from the actual.” Synonyms are minimal and token. *

On the other hand, actual is defined as “existing in fact or reality, … not false.” Synonyms are authentic and genuine. **

The Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization (LCWE), founded by Billy Graham, defines a nominal Christian as "a person who has not responded in repentance and faith to Jesus Christ as his personal Savior and Lord." The LCWE notes that such a person "may be a practicing or non-practicing church member …  He may give intellectual assent to basic Christian doctrines and claim to be a Christian.” *** 

Photo by Josh Felise from Unsplash

I propose that a nominal Christian is a Christian in name only and thus not a Christian at all, according to the whole truth of Scripture. Ultimately, it is God who defines Christian—not any man. He is the final judge—not any man.

But if a person is not quite sure, especially if they don’t know exactly what the Bible really says about being a true follower of Jesus Christ, then it is of upmost importance to find out. Since one’s eternal destination depends on it, it’s the most important thing about anyone’s life, because none of us know when we’ll breathe our last breath. 

The gospel writer, Matthew warns that in that day some will proclaim, “Lord, Lord,” but will be turned away from God’s Eternal Kingdom and hear God say, “I never knew you; depart from me.”

God knows the thoughts and intents of every man’s heart. He knows thoroughly every sin and motive. The final reckoning will be done by the God of Creation. Only He knows, with certainty, what each one has done with His Son, Jesus, who came to earth to redeem whoever would believe and receive Him.

With God as the judge, there will be no explaining, no rationalizing, and no arguing. There will be no opportunity for a change of heart or a change of mind. 

“And it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgement” (Hebrews 9:27 NKJV).

A few years ago, when my grandson was about fourteen years old, we were discussing the recent death of a family member. I mentioned that at least that person was a Christian so we could be confident they were with Jesus and we would see them again. 

My grandson said, “Well if someone is not a Christian when they die, they can decide to be one then, can’t they?” 

I was surprised at his words, because here was a young fellow who had gone to church regularly all of his life. I was grateful to have to opportunity to get him straightened out on this primary Christian doctrine. And he seemed grateful to have accurate information. This is a Bible truth of upmost importance!

Granted, he was young. But he was a church kid—one who professes Christianity. 

When discussing questions like, “Are you ready to meet your maker?” and “Are you going to Heaven when you die?” I have heard people say things like, “Well, I sure hope so.” 

Another frequent answer is, “Well, I’m a good person.” 

What would be your answer? Or, how have you heard others respond?

The above answers suggest a lack of understanding of what it means to be a Christian—a true follower of Christ Jesus. Hoping so indicates a lack of assurance. An actual Christian would know what the Bible says well enough to know where they stand. 

Here are suggestions of what to do if you are not completely sure, beyond a doubt, that you are a born-again Christian—if you don’t have assurance that you’ll go to Heaven when you die—I suggest you do these things:

1- Pray right now and ask God to lead you to the way of salvation.

2- Say “Yes” to Jesus. “Yes, Jesus, I believe You are who the Bible says You are. I believe in You and want You to live in me. Please help me live according to Your ways. In Jesus name, amen.

3- Read the Bible, especially the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Learn Jesus. Get to know Him. He’s your Savior. 

4- Get involved in a Bible believing church. Don’t just attend on Sundays. Faithfully attend a Sunday School class or Bible study. Become a part of what God is doing in your community through His church.

5- Talk with an authentic Christian and tell that person of your decision to follow Jesus. Beware, there are lots of preachers and spiritual leaders who are themselves not actual Christians. The blind leading the blind is not what you need. It is God’s desire that none parish in Hell for eternity. (2 Peter 3:9) 

God gives us free will and we each choose for ourselves what we will do with Jesus. Therefore, the eternal destination for each of us is our own choice. 

  

“What a heartbreak it would be to live an almost Christian life, then almost get into Heaven.” -Author unknown

 

Jesus said, “These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me” (Matthew 15:8).  

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6 NKJV).

Timothy proclaims that in the last days it will be common for people to commit many and various sins yet “having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!” (2 Timothy 3:1-7)

The Apostle John said, “He who says, ‘I know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (1 John 2:4 JKJV). 

Do you call yourself a Christian?  

Are you a nominal Christian or an authentic Christian?

When you pass through death’s portal and come face to face with the Living God, He will not ask that or any other questions because He will know. You will have already decided. Your decision to believe in and follow Jesus or not, prior to that moment, is all that matters. 

Please be sure you have the right answer. Eternity is a long, long time.

©Copyright 2019 Connie Wohlford

* https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nominal

** https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/actual

*** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nominal_Christian

Is my faith real? Is my relationship with God genuine? <> PART 3 of 3

Is my faith real? Is my relationship with God genuine? PART 3 of 3

Why do we do what we do? Is it for self-promotion—to please another person—self-satisfaction—obligation? We need to keep our motives under the examination of the Holy Spirit—NOT so He can hammer us but so our spiritual walk can grow and remain wholesome.

[Continued from March 11 and 16, 2017 Blog Posts]

7 Questions to ask yourself to help you know how genuine your faith and relationship with God really is:

6. Do I desire to give myself to God’s Word and prayer?

Not long ago I heard a preacher say that a person who claims to be a Christian but does not read and study the Bible and does not spend quality time is prayer needs to do some soul-searching and determine if they’re truly born-again.

I believe this is true for many people. The gospel writer says, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 7:21a).

Folks in this group may attend church regularly; may watch their favorite TV preacher religiously; and may have even walked down an isle and professed faith in Christ at one time. But in reality they may not have believed and received Jesus into their hearts. 

When a person genuinely accepts Jesus as Savior and Lord they sincerely invite Him and receive Him as their Savior and their Lord. That person is born-again, which means they’ve experienced a new birth. The old person has died and the new person, in Christ, has emerged into new life. That’s not to say that person never again sins or has an evil thought.

But that person is changed from the inside out and should desire the things of God. What better way is there to know what the things of God are and be spiritually strengthened to do those things than to learn what God Himself says in His Word?

Sadly, there are many people who are dismally shocked when their last breath is released and they find themselves in the abyss of outer darkness. That’s the moment of no return, with no hope of reconciliation to their Creator.

One’s eternal destiny is way too important to not be certain of and the good news is that we can be certain of it. Having a desire to know God and Jesus better through the reading and study of God’s Word is a good indicator that a person’s faith is real and that their relationship with God is genuine.

The same is true of one who claims to be a follower of Jesus yet does not pray or only calls on God when they have a need or when a life crisis has arisen. A person who really knows God and enjoys a genuine relationship with Him should desire to commune with Him, to praise Him with a grateful heart, and to seek Him for direction. 

Ask yourself these 2 questions: “What draws or compels me to pray?” AND “What draws or compels me to read/study the Bible?”

I recently took a non-scientific survey on Facebook asking these two questions and got some interesting, thoughtful responses.

Linda said, “I’m drawn to prayer many times throughout the day—to give thanks and when I’m weary. I read my Bible to keep myself in His Word.”

Cherilynn said, “Life in general compels me to pray. I’m compelled to worship God and want to know God better so I read the Word.”

Heather said, “Because I love God and want to have a better relationship. I want to learn more about Him and His Word. Because He and His Word give life! Because His word is amazing and because I need Him.”

Charlie said, “I know I need God.”

Judy said, “1. Fear, gratitude, healing, and direction. 2. To draw closer to Him.”

Katy said, “1. I want to see what God can do in a situation, not me or others in our own ability. I pray because I love Him. 2. I want to know God better and grow in my relationship with Him. He gives me direction through Scripture. And I want to learn more so that I can share the truth with others.” 

Laura said, “1. I am compelled to pray many times throughout the day—to praise God for the beauty of the creation when flowers bloom, when the sun peeks over the horizon at dawn, or when the moon lights up the night. When a friend or family needs a healing touch, or a hurt needs to be healed. When I see a lost soul in need of redemption. 2. My heart longs for my daily bread every morning, I seek God through the Word. He is my life and heart’s desire.”

My response: “I’m drawn and compelled to pray because I know God loves me beyond anything I can imagine even though I’m undeserving. Also I’m confident that He hears my prayers and cares about my needs. I’m drawn to and compelled to read and study His Word because I love Him and am grateful for His love and all He does for me and others. I want to get to know Him better and understand His ways as much as possible. This is best accomplished by time in prayer and Bible study.”

I’m certainly not the judge of another person—thank God. But if you’re a person who claims to be a Christian and you have no desire to or do not take time to pray and read/study your Bible I suggest you do some soul-searching and ask God to show you the truth about your spiritual condition. You may find that you need to get real with God and profess faith in Jesus Christ, receiving Him as your eternal Savior and as the Lord of your life. 

Perhaps you are a born-again believer in Jesus, but are immature or simply lazy. If so, it’s time to grow up and to get serious about what you believe. These days in which we live are not for the weak. Our Heavenly Father wants all His children to be over-comers.

Maybe you need to get to know God better by getting to know Jesus better. A good way to do this is to read through the Gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, as well as the Book of Acts. I’m not suggesting you limit yourself to these books but it’s a great place to start.

7. Do I tell others about Jesus?

For many of us this is where the rubber meets the road.

I have had some tough encounters with God over this subject. Regarding certain people I have even said (to God): “So-and-So does not want to know about Jesus. They’re not one bit interested!” This may be true but every person, whether they know it or not, needs the Lord.

And here’s one of my responses to God that probably made Him frown or shake His head: “But God, I think So-and-So wants to go to Hell!” Yes, I’ve said that to Him. 

What an ignorant thing for me to say! Nobody wants to go to Hell! Even if a person actually says they do, in reality no one wants to spend forever and ever in the hellacious misery of damnation, separated from God and other people, as well as anything good or pleasant, moreover suffer the fire and brimstone with no hope of ever getting a miniscule iota of relief. No one really wants to go to Hell. 

But millions of people end up in Hell. And it’s not because God is mean but it’s because they never believed and received Jesus as their Savior and Lord. The Bible even says that more people will end up in Hell than in Heaven. That’s so sad and does not have to be the case. See the words of Jesus: “Enter by the narrow ate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult (restricted, limited) is the way which leads to life and there are few who find it” (Matthew 7:13-14). –Italics mine.

A few years ago my granddaughter, Grace (11 yrs. old at the time), and I were taking a trip together. The interior of car is a great place to chat. (Thankfully she did not yet have a cell phone.) We were having a conversation about things going on in her life. She began complaining about being mad at her parents for not allowing her to go to a certain movie with her friends. I tried to explain that her parents were strict about such things because they love her so much and ... –you know the routine. 

Grace had recently accepted Jesus as her Savior and Lord so the conversation naturally leant itself to a spiritual learning opportunity. I told her that Christian parents are ultimately concerned about the eternal destination of their children—that is whether they will go to Heaven or Hell when they die. They also desire that their children live lives in accordance with biblical values, knowing they will therefore have the most abundant life possible. She agreed that it made sense this would be true.

I went on to tell her that most people in the world—even nice people—will end up going to Hell when they die because they never received Jesus. I told her there’s a Scripture verse that states that fact. We ended our discussion and after a few minutes of silence I resumed the Scripture CD where we had left off earlier.  

My heart leapt when the voice on the CD spoke that very passage from the Book of Matthew. I didn’t plan it nor did I even remember where, in the Bible, the passage was located. But God knew and in His wisdom we heard the appropriate verse, spoken with authority, right from the Gospel.

At the end of Chapter 7 I stopped the CD and asked Grace if she heard the verse to which I had made reference. She said, yes she has heard it.

In my spirit I praised God and rejoiced in how He never ceases to amaze and delight me. 

I know that was a bit of a lengthy story but it’s a true story and helps bring home the point that people need Jesus and He’s the only way a person can get to Heaven. He said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John14:6). 

We must ask ourselves if we’re genuinely concerned about the eternal destiny of others, especially our loved-ones. If there’s no concern there, then we need to consider whether or not we believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ is truth.

If we don’t really think its truth then we’re not really a Christian. If we do believe its truth, then we need to be willing to inconvenience ourselves and even humble ourselves, if need be, to tell others about Jesus.

The Lord got my attention a few years ago when I was studying the Book of Ezekiel. God told Ezekiel to go and tell His people certain things. Ezekiel was hesitant, knowing the people wouldn’t like what he had to say. God told him to go and tell them anyway and that he was not to be dismayed or afraid by the things they would say or even by the looks on their faces (Ezekiel 2:1-7).

As I read that passage back in 2011, the Lord clearly spoke into my spirit that He wanted me to be his witness and not concern myself with people’s reactions. He even gave me the names of some individuals He wanted me to speak to and to pray for.

Not only that, He put an exclamation point on the end with this vision: I saw people walking, one by one, to the door of Hell. As each one reached the door they stopped, turned and looked me in the eye and said, “Why didn’t you tell me?” Then each one stepped through door, right into Hell.

Needless to say, I was shaken to the core. I wept and repented and asked God to help me boldly proclaim His Good News to people who are on their way to Hell. In case you’re wondering, I did not recognize any of the faces of the people in the vision. But they were nonetheless people whose eternal destiny might have been different if I had witnessed to them.

So question number 7 is, “Do you tell others about Jesus?” If your answer is, “No,” ask God to help you understand the reasons why and to help you be more mindful and bold and in tune to His leading in this area.

There we have the 7 Questions to ask ourselves to help us know how genuine our relationship with God really is.  

Thanks so much for tuning in. If you’d like to participate in the conversation, your comments are welcome. God bless you as you grow in Christ and let’s be real.

©Copyright 2017 Connie Wohlford