What does it mean to be a "Good Christian"?

What does it mean to be a "Good Christian"?

In Adult Discussion, we are going to be looking at that in the context of our perspectives of The Bible.

Since it would be interesting to see what effect these discussions have on our answers to this question, we will kick off Adult Discussion on September 13 with a pre-discussion survey in which each of us will be asked to present our personal views on the following questions. (Whenever we conclude our discussion of “What Does It Mean To Be A Good Christian?” we will conduct the survey again to determine if our personal views have changed.)

For purposes of this discussion, there are no “correct” or “orthodox” perspectives – the “Correct” answers are those you truly believe, while “Incorrect” answers are those you do not believe but merely pay lip-service to so you will not be thought of by others as “Not a Good Christian.” (Tsk! Tsk! )

And these are just the preliminary questions. If Pastor Chad continues to publish his sermons so that I can continue to plagiarize them, there will be more questions for discussion. And if any of you want to have additional questions considered, please e-mail them to me before September 13. I don’t want to “blind-side” anyone with these questions, and I would appreciate it if you think about them and be prepared to discuss your responses on September 13.

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1. What is your perspective on The Bible?
There’s the “inerrant” view of the bible – that it has NO mistakes.
There’s the “written by God” perspective – In the Orthodox Jewish perspective there is a belief that the Torah, the first 5 books of the bible (“The Law”), was written by God through Moses, and every word is in the place God intended it to be.
Or… is the bible “inspired”? – written by people, through the lens of a culture different from ours, yet we’re still able to hear the words of God to us even today.
Or… is the info in the bible just guidelines, there to help us live as best we can?
Or… is the bible just one of many sacred texts from the various traditions, any of which is helpful to us?

2. If your perspective is something other than that The Bible is inerrant, can you still be a “Good Christian,” or are you automatically relegated to being a “second-class” (or worse) Christian?
What about other Christians whose answer to Question 1 differs from yours?
Are they eligible for “salvation” anyway?
And just what does “salvation” mean to you?

3. If you choose not to accept everything in The Bible as The Inerrant Word of God, how do you “pick and choose” which parts you accept, and which parts you reject?
Isn’t this “Cafeteria Christianity” approach to The Bible dangerous?

4. If The Bible was actually dictated by God to King James, what did Christians use for guidance before there was a King James?
Just when was the Canon of Scripture – The Bible as we know it - officially accepted anyway, and by whom? King James?
Prior to the acceptance of the Canon, what legitimate perspectives of Christianity existed among devout Christians?
What were the requirements for acceptance of “scripture” into the Canon?
What are the relationships between The Canon of Scripture and The Creeds?

5. Is Christianity about The Bible?

6.Who invented Christianity as we know it today?
What was the path from Christ to Christianity as a religion?

7. What is your perspective on communion?
The liturgical tradition teaches, generally speaking, that the bread and wine ARE the body and blood of Christ.
Then there is the tradition that teaches that they are SYMBOLIC of the body and blood.
Then there is the tradition that teaches that communion is just a MEMORIAL, something that brings us back to the upper room about 2 thousand years ago, a remembering of that event.
Thing is, which is “right”? All these perspectives are “biblical”… based on the bible. What’s a “good Christian” to do?