{"id":4663,"date":"2018-08-26T09:00:10","date_gmt":"2018-08-26T14:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.barbdahlgren.com\/?p=4663"},"modified":"2018-08-08T19:54:08","modified_gmt":"2018-08-09T00:54:08","slug":"choose-to-be-a-christian-not-a-religionist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/?p=4663","title":{"rendered":"Choose to Be a Christian, Not a Religionist"},"content":{"rendered":"

Yet Another Year of Choices<\/em><\/p>\n

By Barbara Dahlgren<\/em><\/p>\n

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Are you religious? People make a huge error thinking that Christianity is a religion. It\u2019s not so much a religion as it is a lifestyle. Religion is what you believe, but Christianity is something you practice. It\u2019s something you do.<\/p>\n

When people become followers of Christ (i.e. Christians), their lives are no longer their own. (1 Corinthians 3:23) They automatically become witnesses! (Acts 1:8) Others look carefully at the Christian lifestyle, so Christians are actually witnessing for Christ whether they want to or not. We Christians have quite a responsibility. What kind of witnesses are we?<\/p>\n

Christians are the salt of the earth. (Matthew 5:13) Are we full of zest for the life we are called to live?<\/p>\n

Christians are the light of the world. (Matthew 5:14) Do we light a candle in this world or do we curse the darkness?<\/p>\n

Christians are friends of Christ. (John 15:13-15) Do we understand the meaning of friendship in our relationships? Can we keep a confidence?<\/p>\n

Christians are not under the law but under grace. (Romans 6:14, 15) Do we know when to make an issue out of something and when to let it pass?<\/p>\n

Christians are partakers of the sufferings of Christ. (2 Corinthians 1:2-8) How do we handle trials when they come our way? Christians aren\u2019t promised a life without thorns or thistles.<\/p>\n

Christians are a letter. (2 Corinthians 2:2, 3) When people read what is written on our heart, do they know more about a loving God?<\/p>\n

Christians are a sweet aroma. (2 Corinthians 2:15, 16) Do we smell of fragrant perfume or reek of body odor? Do we need a spiritual bath?<\/p>\n

The main reason people do not<\/strong> become Christians is because they know one. By the same token, the main reason people do<\/strong> become Christians is because they know one. Maybe we should ask, \u201cHow do people feel when they are around me? What do people see when they look at me?\u201d I\u2019m not talking about perfection but reflection.<\/p>\n

When we look in a mirror, do we see wrinkles? Baggy eyes? Double chins? Scars? God doesn\u2019t see that and He wants us to see what He sees…a reflection of Himself. (2 Corinthians 2:15,16) Do we reflect the fruits the Holy Spirit or the works of the flesh? (Galatians 5:19-25) When people look at us, do they see a glimmer of the reflection of God?<\/p>\n

Do we profess to be religious? That may not be enough. For example, John said that saying you love God but not showing it to your neighbor puts you on dangerous ground. (1 John 4:20) On the other hand, doing something for others is the same as doing it for God. (Matthew 25:24-46)<\/p>\n

Consider this\u2026 You\u2019ve heard it said a million times, \u201cYou have to walk the walk, not just talk the talk.\u201d Remember, religion is something you believe, but Christianity is something you DO!<\/p>\n

One final thought\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

Religion talks the talk, but Christianity walks the walk!<\/p>\n

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Yet Another Year of Choices By Barbara Dahlgren   Are you religious? People make a huge error thinking that Christianity is a religion. It\u2019s not so much a religion as it is a lifestyle. Religion is what you believe, but … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4663"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4663"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4663\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4663"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4663"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4663"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}