But because of what He did.

I read a poem this morning that a fellow Christian had written and posted on here. It gave me a lot of encouragement and I felt led to post something of my own. For those that don't know, I am in fact a Christian. I believe that Christ was born of a virgin, had twelve disciples, performed vast amounts of miracles, is 100% God and 100% man, died a horrible death on a cross to save mankind from its sins, and rose again on the third day and is seated at the right hand of God, interceding for you and me.

Am I perfect because of all this? Does being a Christian mean I'm better than those that are not?

Absolutely not. If I was perfect, I wouldn't screw up as much as I do, I wouldn't treat people badly the way I do sometimes, I wouldn't be selfish, I wouldn't be greedy, but most of all, I wouldn't have needed a Savior to save me!

If your not a believer, should you avoid talking to me? Am I going to tell you you're going to burn in hell, or hate you?

No. I am not here to judge you, or condemn you, that is not my place. We may not see eye to eye on everything, I may disagree with you, I may share some of my faith with you, what Jesus does for me and has done for me. But I will NOT shove it in your face or treat you like dirt because we disagree. I WILL pray for you, love you, and talk to you.

As a Christian, I am an imperfect being that struggles with sin every single day and issues everyone faces. I fail miserably at my attempt to be like my Savior, or to pick up my own cross and follow Him. But I do try, and God sees my attempts and blesses me for them.

Does God hate you because you may not believe, or have not figured things out?

No. God made you, loves you and waits for you. He is there every day, even if you don't feel him or know him.

Isn't being a 'Christian' just some religious nonsense? It's just another religion, right?

Being a Christian is NOT a religion, though some people make it out to be that way. It is a RELATIONSHIP. God wants to have a relationship with us, to talk to us, to listen and help us through our struggles. But He gave us FREE WILL, we are not robots, so it is up to us to make the choice to follow Him, or not.

Aren't there Christians out there who treat others badly? Aren't there 'bad' ones.

Unfortunately, there are Christians out there who don't act like Christians. They look down on others, reject others, and shun others. They scream and yell Bible verses at people and expect them to want to become a believer and take it personal when someone turns them down. There are Christians out there who have given other Christians, like myself, a bad name. We are not all like that, I can promise you.

I wont judge you, I wont hate you, I wont mistreat you. That is not who I am, that is not how Christ is and how he would want me to be. Christ loved EVERYONE! There are numerous accounts of him eating with "sinners" or associating himself with people that may not have been the 'best' in society. That is the example I try to follow. The example set by my Savior. TO LOVE OTHERS! To treat them the way I would want to be treated!

I will leave you with a Bible verse I found this morning that sums up everything I've said:

"He saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of and renewal by the Holy Spirit." Titus 3:5

I didn't deserve what He did for me, but in His perfect love, He died willingly, so that I may live today.