Is it easy to be a Christian?

[Menotu]

It seems rather easy to be a Christian:
1) Choose the lifestyle that best fits your needs
2) Read the bible
3) Accept Jesus/God
4) Live as best you can based on Jesus/God
5) Ask forgiveness when you fail (if your belief system isn't the 'once saved always saved' type)
6) Repeat as necessary

Or is it more difficult?
If so, how?

[Elijah John]

It seems rather easy to be a Christian:
1) Choose the lifestyle that best fits your needs
2) Read the bible
3) Accept Jesus/God
4) Live as best you can based on Jesus/God
5) Ask forgiveness when you fail (if your belief system isn't the 'once saved always saved' type)
6) Repeat as necessary

Or is it more difficult?
If so, how?

You forgot:

7) spend time in prayer, and acknowledge God all in all your ways, all though the day. And to embrace the Golden Rule from the heart, though that may be covered in your #4.

8) And carry your cross, (whatever that actually means) and renounce (hate?) all you have, including your parents and your own life. That is, if Jesus was speaking literally and not using hyperbole.

It's hard to see how #8 squares with Jesus claim that his yoke is easy.

[otseng]

Easy to be a Christian? Not according to Jesus.

[Mar 8:34 KJV] And when he had called the people [unto him] with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it.

What Jesus asks of us is not a life of happiness and ease. What he asks is for us to die to ourselves. What makes it hard is our own pride. Because of our prideful nature, we are not willing to lay down our lives for others, love our enemies, give our money and time away, and put others first.

[Yahwehismywitness]

[Mar 8:34 KJV] And when he had called the people [unto him] with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it.

What Jesus asks of us is not a life of happiness and ease. What he asks is for us to die to ourselves. What makes it hard is our own pride. Because of our prideful nature, we are not willing to lay down our lives for others, love our enemies, give our money and time away, and put others first.

No it is not easy will agree we all have gifts some way of helping: knowledge, write a lot set up website, help people and animals freely with herbal healing and nature care and have cooked at homeless shelters and rescue animals to safety for example.

Jesus says whoever asks don't think he expects one person to do everything but if we each did something it woud be better world.

[Zzyzx]

.

No it is not easy will agree we all have gifts some way of helping: knowledge, write a lot set up website, help people and animals freely with herbal healing and nature care and have cooked at homeless shelters and rescue animals to safety for example.

Jesus says whoever asks don't think he expects one person to do everything but if we each did something it woud be better world.

For this Non-Theist it is EASY and natural to help those in need so I do a lot.

Could it be that helping is easy because I do so by my own volition and my own nature rather than following instructions from external sources?

[SallyF]

In a rare turn of events

We have EVIDENCE

Monsignor Wojciech Giertych used evidence from the confessional
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/articl ... tican.html


Without paddling our porridge into a puddle over what we mean by a "true Scotsman/Christian"

We may understand that if one is in a confessional box, one is a Christian.

But is seems that certain Christians DON'T find it easy being Christian.

They believe:

The seven deadly sins were drawn up by the early Christian church to instruct followers.

The Roman Catholic Church teaches that such mortal sins, which carry the threat of eternal damnation, can only be forgiven by confession and penance. ibid

Even under the "threat of eternal damnation", they REPEATEDLY indulge themselves in




We may understand that if they WEREN'T under the arduous restraints of their faith

They would be wantonly wallowing in these vices day and night.

Which is why - I've heard Christians say - we lustful, sloths of Atheists toss our Bibles in the bin in the first place !

[Zzyzx]

.
[Replying to post 5 by SallyF]

Very interesting

I observe that on both lists the 'sin' most difficult to conceal is gluttony (when worn around one's middle). A cross section of people leaving church service provides strong suggestion that prohibition against the 'Seven Deadly Sins' are not taken seriously.

[Adstar]

It seems rather easy to be a Christian:
1) Choose the lifestyle that best fits your needs
2) Read the bible
3) Accept Jesus/God
4) Live as best you can based on Jesus/God
5) Ask forgiveness when you fail (if your belief system isn't the 'once saved always saved' type)
6) Repeat as necessary

Or is it more difficult?
If so, how?

Salvation is easy to have.. Because it is a gift from God lovingly offered to us for free..

Living up to the standards of God is very hard..

Facing persecution mockery and denigration from unbelievers makes things uncomfortable in this life.. For some Christians in this world this persecution extends to violence and execution..

If one believes Jesus and trusts in the Atonement Jesus secured on the cross to atone for their transgressions against the will of God then they will be saved.. There is no need to continuously ask for forgiveness for each sin you will commit.. The teaching that you MUST ask for forgiveness for each and every transgression is a WORKS salvation doctrine.. The belief that a person needs to do the work of 100% successfully asking for forgiveness for each sin makes ones salvation dependent on your own efforts in asking for forgiveness.. PS: I do not believe in the Once saved always saved Calvinist doctrine..

[Divine Insight]

Is it easy to be a Christian?

My Vantage Point #1

Since Christianity is both ill-defined and self-defined by individual believers, it can be either easy or difficult depending on how they choose to create the Christ of their vision of Christianity.

When I was a Christian it was extremely easy to be a Christian because I saw Jesus as someone who loved me, and as someone who would protect me from evil, and someone who promised that truth would set me free.

So yes, for me being a Christian was extremely easy and freeing.

Probably the scripture that best described my view of Christianity was the following:

Psalms 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

So for me being a Christian was extremely easy. After all I had a loving benevolent God who loves me and protects me from all evil. How in the world can that be difficult?

Christians who find it difficult to be a Christian have created a Jesus, who for them, has become their nemesis. Fear of failing Jesus or offending him in some way totally rules their life.

So whether it's easy or difficult to be a Christian depends entirely on how they have created their own Jesus.

[Divine Insight]

Is it easy to be a Christian?

My Vantage Point #2

Jesus never taught us that it was our responsibility to change other other people behave. To the contrary he actually told us to do precisely the opposite. He told us not to argue with those who don't want to listen, and that we should walk away from them and kick the dust from our shoes.

It's not our responsibility to save the souls of others, contrary to what Christian Evangelists have mistakenly thought they had been commanded to do. Only God can save the souls of other individuals. That's not even our job at all.

He did instruct us to teach "His Word", which I was actually quite happy to do at one point in my life until I discovered that Jesus was just another human with opinions no different from Gandhi and many others. Moreover, I also quickly discovered that many of the teachings attributed to Jesus in the New Testament Gospel rumors most likely never came from Jesus in the first place. I seriously doubt that Jesus told anyone to abandon their families and follow him for example. That would be totally out of character for bulk of what Jesus is said to have taught.

However, even though I now know that Jesus was nothing more than a human just like the rest of us, I still agree with many of the principles he held. I too encourage people to love each other and forgive those who trespass against them.

Ironically even though I'm no longer a Christian and I am 100% convinced that Jesus was not the son of Yahweh, I still live my life in harmony with the teaching of Jesus because for me being myself is the easiest thing to do.

So being a Christian was easy for me, and to continue to stand up for love and decency continues to be easy for me to do to this very day.

I feel deeply sorry for anyone who thinks that being a Christian is difficult.

By the way, I'm an American. I can assure everyone that I did NOT vote for Donald Trump in 2016. Nor will I vote for him in 2020. As far as I'm concerning voting for Donald Trump is the most anti-Christ thing a person can do.

Strangely in 2020 we now have Berni Sanders running for president in the USA. And man who is committed to the very same principles that Jesus taught. It really doesn't even matter whether Berni is a Christian or not. He's clearly promising to do the same things that Jesus stood for.

From my perspective I don't see how any Christian could possibly vote for, or support, Donald Trump. A man who could hardly be more anti-Christ-Like if he tried.

If you want to vote for Jesus in 2020 vote for Berni Sanders. Jesus will be very happy if you do.