Friday 30 October 2009

What Is A 'Good Christian?'

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A couple of days ago in one of his comments Ally Simpson asked "What is a "good Christian.'"

I've been thinking about it since, and decided to give a short answer, hopefully without taking away from what Ally meant by it. For the record i actually think there are only two categories of people; Christian & non Christian but because of the usage of the term 'good Christian' here we go:

A 'good Christian' is someone who is characterized by the work and presence of
the Spirit of Christ.



What does that look like?
This can't really be described as it may differ from one person to the next. The Spirit of Christ's gifting, working and fruitfulness in our lives will vary.

Examples of 'good Christians'
Again i would hesitate to point to any example. The moment we point to 'such-&-such' as a good Christian we are in danger of putting down categories & criteria, and basing Christianity on works rather than on Jesus.

*Christians Will...
undoubtedly, among other things, spend a lot of time in the Bible, prayer, fasting, evangelism, and with other Christians. However these in themselves do not make someone a *Christian. Rather they are the outworkings of the work and presence of the Spirit of Christ in someones life.

What would you say a 'Good Christian' is?



*I decided at this point to drop the term 'good' from before Christian because i think it can bend us towards a wrong understanding of 'Christian'. It's not about being a 'good' Christian, but about Jesus working in us. Rather the term 'Christian' is used as a label for those who's lives Christ is at work in.

Arguably 'Christian' is a broad label in our day and definitions are needed, however 'good' is not really a good definition at all.
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About Boaly
Gary has been involved in printing the Scriptures for 20 years, enjoys photography and rambling online

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