Christ Magnified

What makes a person a Christian? This is a question which the eminent Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) takes up in a chapter of his book Revival. Before he answers the question in the positive, he details what a Christian is not:

There are so many false notions current today as to what a Christian is. Some may say that a Christian is a good man. Yes, but there are many good men who are not Christians. Others say that a Christian is a man who has had a marvelous experience. Ah yes, but there are cults that can give people experiences, and they are very wonderful. A Christian, says another, is a man whose life has been entirely changed. I know, but the psycho-therapists can do that and the cults can do that. Then again, a Christian, according to some people, is a man who has taken a decision. Yes, but you can tale many sorts of decisions to be better and to live better, and to join a church, and to do a thousand and one other things, yet clearly there are many people who have done all that and still are not Christians. Well, other maintain, a Christian is one who has had some sort of a vision, who has seen a ball of light or something like that. No, there are many people who have had that kind of experience but who clearly cannot be admitted as Christians. They do not believe the very elements of the Christian faith...So I am not prepared to accept any of these statements as being determinative of whether we are Christians or not. (pp. 239-240)

This past Sunday morning, we looked in Philippians at Paul's vision of Christ as it is displayed chapter-by-chapter. Paul moved from the Gospel of Christ (chapter 1), to the humility of Christ (2), the knowledge of Christ (3), and the Strength of Christ (4). Jesus dominated the Apostle Paul's life. So much so that he would write "it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." (1:19-20) This is what makes a Christian. To be born again is to understand the significance of who Jesus is and what He has done for you and for the world. It is to see the glory of God in the Person and Work of Christ. It is to yearn for Christ's glory to be magnified in your life. Listen to how Dr. Jones answers the question What makes a Christian?

What is it, then, that makes a man a Christian? Well, surely it is the realisation of the fact that God has given a revelation of his own glory in the face of Jesus Christ: 'God who commanded the light to shine out of the darkness, hath shined in our hearts...' - what for? - 'to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.' A Christian is a man who believers that. A Christian is a man who has experienced that in a measure, or to a certain extent. This is the thing that constitutes the Christian. Not a change of life, or habits or of behaviour. Not merely being religious, not merely attempting to worship God. No, it is the realisation that God has done this, has given this manifestation of his glory in the face of Jesus Christ. (p. 240)

 May Christ dominate our vision and may we continually have our eyes opened to see His glory!