I usually write blog posts about movies I’ve seen that bring to mind some Christian message or moral. But I’m a reader, too, and I’ve been thinking a lot about a book I just finished. I want to recommend this book to you if you are a Christian because too often we overlook one of the most important things about what it means to be a Christian.
Before I mention the book, let me make a few quick points.
Point 1: Not all Christians believe the same things.
That shouldn’t come as a surprise. There are important differences between Catholic believers and Protestant believers, and large and small differences between the many Protestant denominations. Probably the most important differences involve how we define salvation and how we think we obtain it. Is it earned in some way, received through faith, bestowed only on the chosen, or being made available to everyone as God redeems the world we live in?
There are also people who call themselves Christians without thinking about salvation at all. For them, Christianity is a way of life or a political position. They might define Christianity as being pro-life, pro-family, and anti- lots of other things. If you ask them what Christians believe, they are more likely to refer to a news show or a favorite podcaster instead of looking in the Bible.
Point 2: Not all Christians live out their beliefs the same way.
Even people who are very sincere about learning what the Bible says have different ideas about how we should live in this world. In his book, Christ and Culture, H. Richard Niebuhr described different ways Christians behave depending on what they believe about the culture they live in and the role Christ calls them to play in that culture.
Some Christians withdraw from the world as much as they can while others get out and engage their culture. Some Christians focus on telling individuals about a new life in Jesus while others have their sights set on changing the world.
I go into these differences in more detail in my book Finding Your Part in God’s Master Story: An Exploration of Christian Worldviews. But, for now, I want to move on to …
Point 3: But true Christians are called to be Christ-like.
We can debate all day about the best way to live as Christians in this world, but the one thing we should all agree on is this: To be a Christian is to be like Christ, to be someone who follows Jesus’ commands.
The two most important commandments, according to Jesus, are to love God with all our hearts, souls, and minds, and to love others as much as we love ourselves. And Jesus made it clear that the “others” we are to love are not just our friends and family and people like us, but also the people who are very different from us, who might even hate us, but who need us to show them God’s love.
This is the main point of Catherine McNiel’s book, Fearing Bravely: Risking Love for our Neighbors, Strangers & Enemies.
Catherine’s book reminds us of the many ways Jesus encouraged—even commanded—us to love others. She challenges us to put aside our fear of losing what we have, to take risks, and to see other people as Jesus sees them—as neighbors instead of enemies. It’s something every Christian needs to be reminded of, especially now as we see our communities fracturing more and more into camps of “us” against “them.”
If we really want to live as Christians, we need to be known for our love for others—all the “others.” So, order Catherine’s book now on Amazon and take up the challenge to really live like Jesus.
To learn more about living like a Christian, take my Christian Worldview Quiz and request a free Worldview Quick View guide.