Everyone around us have different thoughts and perspectives in what their religion means to them. Theologically a Christian is someone who has received the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour, trusts him alone for forgiveness of sins, repents from his/her own sins and being a renewed person in front of God.
I was born into a Christian family and from the day I started speaking I was involved in my Church Sunday School activities and other groups that follows the process. I’ve been taught to read my Bible, pray everyday and live my life according to the Bible. So for me, my religion meant a way of life in which you are trying to live your life like Jesus following his steps.
But as I was growing up, I was exposed to many of the worldly things, common beliefs of others and other religions then I realised being a Christian does not necessarily mean trying to be perfect or to go to Church every Sunday, sing songs and praises and reading your bible everyday. I also realised that some of my beliefs contradicted the common beliefs of other Christians.
So I started questioning myself on whether I am a good Christian or am I just going through a rebellious phase or whether I was under the influence of Satan turning away from my God. But as I turned 18 everything became clear to me.
I realised Christianity was all about love and forgiveness. I realised how much my God loved me that he sent his only son to die on the cross for my sins. I realised being a Christian means not following exactly what the Bible says but taking the guidelines from the bible to choose between the right and wrong because God has given us the choice to choose between the good and the bad. It’s about loving others selflessly as much as you love yourself. It’s about forgiving each other and learning to not hold grudges or to take revenge. Its about finding the purpose of your life and finding your role in making this world a better place filled with love. So at the age of 18, I chose to be a Christian with the Bible as my guiding light and Jesus Christ as my Saviour and protector.
So for me Christianity is all about Love. As I understood this, I also realised that the base of all the other religions was also Love. With this new found knowledge I developed a respect towards all the other religions around me because in the end being a Christian also means respecting others and accepting them for who they are without judging, just as God also accepted us for who we are even with all our sins.
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