Why Be A Christian?

So often you hear the questions, “What is a Christian?” or “How do I become a Christian?”, but you never really hear people say, “Why should I become a Christian?”. Why should I be a Christian and not a Jew or Muslim? Would it be any different if I was to become a Jew or Muslim? Would I not be Saved? Would I burn in Hell because I didn’t choose to become a Christian? People are often told how to become a Christian but not really why they should become a Christian.

So, why should a person be a Christian and not something else? What are the reasons for being a Christian?

You know, I’ve quite frequently read around the Internet of people saying, “Becoming a Christian was the greatest thing to happen to me!” or “I highly recommend being a Christian- it’s great!” I don’t really like these phrases. They make the life of a Christian out to be one of mere personal gain, and in a way, it is like they are in an advertisement, like their “Christianity” is some sort of new household cleaning product to be bought and tried.

Now, I do understand that a person can see their decision to be a Christian as genuinely life-changing, but could that decision not have the same effect for someone who chose to become a Buddhist?

Buddha was born about 624 B.C. (Though the figure can be earlier than that, with some holding that he was born in about 563 B.C.). The similarities between Buddhism and Christianity are quite strong, with both central figures (Buddha and Jesus) sharing a lot of characteristics. For example, Buddha is seen as faultless and perfect, just as Jesus was regarded;

“Stainless, you illuminate all the worlds.”

Sn 2.14 Dhammika Sutta

“And in him is no sin.”

1 John 3 v 5

However, saying that, it is hard to pin-point exactly if Christianity and Buddhism are carbon copies of each other. It could be that the two are just coincidental in their philosophies. The origins of some Buddhist texts are uncertain, with some (Like the Mahayana Sutras) not having came into existence until after 100 B.C., and even then, it wasn’t until much later on in time that most of the texts reached their final forms. So, Buddhism could have influenced early Christianity, or early Christianity could have influenced Buddhism…

There is one quite major difference between the two, though, which is very important…

Jesus’ death was on a Cross- the sacrifice for Humanity. He had to endure hours of pain while asphyxiating (Suffocating), bleeding from having been stabbed/pierced by a spear and having to endure mockery and jeering from the people watching- public humiliation. Buddha, on the other hand, died after eating a poisonous mushroom (Or pork, depending on the translation).

Regardless of whether it was pork or a mushroom, it wasn’t exactly the self-sacrifice that Jesus showed. In a lot of ways, Buddha’s death, compared to Jesus’, seems a bit anti-climatic and a bit underwhelming- not very hard-hitting.

Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against Buddhists and I admire their courage and determination for justice- such as the monks in Tibet who are rebelling against the Chinese government for its mistreatment of the Tibetan people, who want independence, peace and freedom in the region.

I’m not trying to be biased by downplaying Buddhism and in the process, glorifying Christianity, but when you look at the two central figures of each movement, it’s easy to see why the majority of people hold Jesus in higher regard than Buddha, simply because of His love for others and the self-sacrifice He showed;

“Greater love has no-one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

John 15 v 13 (TNIV)

or

“Greater love has no-one than this: that He laid down His life for His friends.” (NIV)

I think it’s interesting to note that Jesus calls His Disciples “friends”. They aren’t just merely servants, and Jesus isn’t just some sadistic dictator who doesn’t care about others, but the fact that He calls them “friends” speaks volumes of His own humbleness, just like when He Himself washed His own Disciples’ feet. Surely it should have been the other way round? Should it not have been the Disciples’ washing Jesus’ feet…?

“I no longer call you servants…Instead, I have called you friends…”

John 15 v 15

“After that, [Jesus] poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.”

John 13 v 5

Here is Jesus’ love for His Disciples being shown. It may not be much- He’s only washing their feet, but despite that, He brought Himself down to the level of a servant;

“In your relationships with one another, have the same attitude of mind Christ Jesus had:

Rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.

And being found in appearance as a human being, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death- even death on a cross!”

Philippians 2 v 5, 7-8

The Death and Resurrection of Jesus are central to the ideologies of Christianity. I’ll not say that without them, Christianity and Jesus mean nothing, but they do play a large role in what Christians believe. Justification for the belief in Christ’s death and resurrection can be explained in the words of Paul to the Corinthians;

“If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.”

1 Corinthians 15 v 13-14

Even if Jesus did not rise from the dead and “ascend” into Heaven, the mark He left on the world while alive- what He said and did, would have been more than enough reason to follow His example.

It’s not very common, but sometimes people ask themselves, “What Religion should I choose/follow?”

Christianity is very frequently labelled as just another “Religion”. In fact, Religion is seen as one of those things that doesn’t really matter, and I suppose to a lot of extent, that is true. I’ve said this before, but there’s a difference between being Religious and being a Christian. Religion is all about rituals, traditions, superstitions and even deception.

True Christianity, on the other hand, is about acting out kindness, love and selflessness, and it is this philosophy that is at the heart and soul of “Christianity”. It’s not about “Church attendance”, because followers of Christ are the Church (Remember: the Church are the people). It’s not even about Communion, Mass or the Sunday service. All the Church buildings in the world, including the likes of Saint Paul’s Cathedral in London, could be flattened to the ground, crushed to smithereens, and there would still be a Church.

Don’t get me wrong, I hope Saint Paul’s wont get flattened any time soon as it’s an extraordinary piece of architecture and design, but if you love the buildings more than the teachings of who you follow, then you have the wrong priorities.

It frankly doesn’t matter if you haven’t “been to Church” in the past three weeks/months/years. The early Christians never “went to Church”. Yes, they met up with fellow believers and they had fellowship together, but they didn’t limit themselves to their own tiny little groups- they reached out to other non-Christians, living their lives as Christ would have them live, and I think it is this attitude that Christ encouraged. Jesus wanted the Disciples to be doctors, workers and counsellors; helping people regardless of who they were;

“Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and illness.”

Matthew 10 v 1

Agnes Gonxhe Bojaxhiu, more commonly known as “Mother Teresa” (Who took her name from Saint Thérèse de Lisieux) was a famous Roman Catholic nun who looked after the ill, the poor and the orphaned. Florence Nightingale, a Christian Universalist, is also famous for tending to wounded soldiers during the Crimean War, being dubbed “The Lady with the Lamp”, because of the lamp she carried while walking through hospital corridors. These two women, no doubt influenced by their Christian convictions, acted out in love to help others. They didn’t throw Theology at their patients and they didn’t threaten them with “Fire and Brimstone” when they lay on their deathbeds. This, to me, is what Christianity is all about. Maybe, I could call it “True Christianity”?

If there’s a “True” Christianity, is there a “False” Christianity?

Well, sadly there is. There are some people who call themselves “Christians” and who minister to others, but their actions and their words do not reflect those of Christ’s. They deceive and manipulate others for their own personal gain, and they sometimes do genuinely believe that what they are doing is real and appropriate. In a way, they form their own little “cult”, and are quite oblivious to their actions. For example, the Westboro Baptist Church in America have shouted numerous derogatory slogans; inciting Racist hatred, anti-Semitism, as well as anti-Islamic and anti-Catholicism. Peter Popoff, a Pentecostal Christian “faith healer”, supposedly had supernatural powers to “cure” people just by touching them. He was exposed by the writer James Randi and mentalist/magician Steven Shaw (Or “Banachek”) in 1987. It turned out that Peter Popoff didn’t have any supernatural powers (Obviously) and that his “healings” were all “fixed” or prearranged in order to fool people into giving him money.

It’s sad that there are people like that who claim to have supernatural powers in order to gain fame and popularity. Though, what’s even more sad are that people actually fall for the lies and deceit of others. Jesus Himself warns about the hypocrites- false teachers who claim to be what they’re not;

“Jesus answered: ‘Watch out that no-one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many.”

Matthew 24 v 4-5

“At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you ahead of time.”

“Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.”

Matthew 24 v 23-25, 28

I sometimes wish I could do an “FAQ” (Frequently Asked Questions) of Christianity. It might go something like this…

Q. What if I don’t become a Christian? Will I go to Hell because of it?

A. It’s hard to know. Jesus said, “But unless you repent, you too will perish.” (Luke 13 v 3) However, He also said, “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.” (Luke 19 v 10). “Repent” could be used in the context of forgiveness for doing something against someone else, not necessarily against Christ. Jesus could be saying that unless arguments are settled, friendships will be destroyed and will “perish”.

Q. Do I have to become a Christian? What’s wrong with Islam or Judaism?

A. There’s nothing wrong with Islam or Judaism. However, the main reason why there are so many followers of Jesus Christ is because of the morals He practised and the thoughts He introduced. In a way, He could be seen as the world’s greatest Philosopher. Judaism is a very traditionalist Religion (In my opinion) with strict guidelines concerning rituals. Jesus rejected the Jews’ traditions of His time, quoting the prophet Isaiah, “These people honour me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules.” (Matthew 15 v 8-9)

Islam has gotten very bad media attention in recent times, being attributed for promoting terrorism and extremism. I know Jesus is in the Qur’an (Or Koran), but He is seen as less important than the other prophets. The Koran has gotten a lot of bad press for having offensive verses such as, “Say to the unbelievers: ‘You shall be overthrown and driven into Hell—an evil resting place!’” (3 v 12), and I do realise the Bible, to a lesser extent, has some controversies of its own.

However, a Christian is someone who follows the example set by Jesus Christ, not Moses, Noah or Abraham. I don’t believe you need to believe the whole Bible in order to be a Christian. After-all, “Christian” contains the word “Christ”, not “Noah” or “Moses”, and so a Christian is someone who strives to live their life based on the teachings of Jesus Christ. Saying that, there is nothing wrong with the likes of the Book of Proverbs, which contains a lot of moral standards and behaviours that apply to most areas of life.

Q. What’s wrong with being an Atheist? Are they any less moral or upright than a Christian?

A. No, Atheists aren’t any less moral or upright than a Christian and vice-versa. There’s nothing wrong with being an Atheist or an Agnostic, but certainly I think arrogance is more prevalent in those of Atheistic beliefs. I’m not saying that all Atheists are monsters and are uncaring, absolutely not, but I do think that it is harder to be an Atheist and to be upright and loving. I also think it’s harder for an Atheist to forgive someone for doing something wrong, whether out of bitterness towards the person, or having the feeling of them being inferior. Again, not all Atheists are like that, and I don’t like to generalise- most Atheists are kind-hearted and strive for the best of Mankind, living by a good moral code.

Q. What’s so special about Christianity? How’s it different from say, Eastern Religions? eg. Jainism

A. Eastern Religions are mainly based on worshipping idols and large statues of an animal or some other giant “god” with three heads and six arms. Though, how can anyone feel any sort of deep, emotional, connection with a materialistic object or thing that has such absurd characteristics eg. three heads, six arms? How is that Human? The answer is: it’s not. The reason for the large number of Christians in the world is because Christianity is revolved around the teachings of another Human Being.

People just can’t feel any sort of understanding or connection with something that is purely mythical, hence the low number of followers of the likes of Jainism and other Eastern Religions (Jainism has approximately 4.2 million followers, which may sound like a lot, but is actually a very small number considering the world’s population is approximately 7 billion, with Christianity having about 2.1 billion followers).

It’s like trying to feel a deep connection with a Goblin, an Elf or an Unicorn- something from The Lord Of the Rings or Narnia. They’re not real, and are based off legends and myths- stories created in the minds of others. They belong in the Fantasy realm, and don’t really fit in reality. You could say that Jesus is also based off myth and legend too, but there is quite substantial evidence to suggest that He did in fact exist, and very few scholars and historians deny Jesus’ existence.

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Speaking from my own experiences as a Christian, I can honestly say that my life has changed a lot since embracing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. No, my life isn’t perfect now, and I’m far from being the perfect person, though I think that’s where a lot people sometimes fall. They think that being a Christian will work miracles in their lives, and they use it for their own good, to help themselves become popular or to help them win friends. They may even become a Christian out of fear of “hellfire and brimstone”, and maybe that’s the same reason why others reject it…

I honestly believe that the message of True Christianity is one of redemption, forgiveness, love and hope…

“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life…’”

John 8 v 12