When someone asks me for a one sentence description of Christianity I answer in this way:
Christianity acknowledges that God’s grace through his son Jesus Christ has forgiven the sins of all who believe in him and that he guides us toward a joyful, loving, selfless and eternal life.
I am not totally pleased with that answer and I’m certain some of you can give a better one-sentence description of Christianity. Please share your one-sentence description with all of us.
Here is a more complete summation of the Christian worldview:
- Christianity acknowledges an eternal, sovereign, rational and moral God whose character is the standard for truth.
- God created the universe out of nothing when he spoke it into existence.
- God fashioned the human race in His image for spiritual fellowship and holy service.
- Through patriarchs written about in the Old Testament and the words of Prophets (people who have a special relationship with God and to whom God has spoken) God promises blessings and a full relationship with Him.
- When Adam (the first man) failed to follow God’s commands, humans came under divine judgment.
- All have sinned–fallen short of moral and ethical behavior and put self-interest above glorifying and thanking God for the blessings he has provided.
- To enjoy a relationship with God an individual realizes and confesses that he has fallen short of God’s expectation of Holy behavior.
- God fulfilled a Holy relationship with mankind in the incarnation Jesus Christ.
- Jesus Christ provides a way for man to become forgiven for sin.
- Through the resurrection and ascension Jesus became head of redeemed and regenerate believers.
- The Holy Bible gives the truth about God’s acts in human history and the redemption of man through Jesus Christ.
- God’s ethical expectations and love for us is revealed in the Holy Scriptures and is exhibited in the incarnation of Jesus Christ.
- The Holy Spirit is one of the three persons of God, an active ever-present invisible person of God who impels us to loving, kind and generous action and convicts us of unholy thoughts and actions. Like the wind the Holy Spirit is invisible to humans, but produces visible effects.
- God mandates that the church spread the good news of Jesus Christ who came to save us from our opposition to God’s love and commandments for us.
- An evil force exists in the universe (Satan and his minions) that deceive us into living a life dedicated to selfish desires and attempts to persuades us to reject God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.
- Christians are commanded to live an ethical, moral and Holy life and to challenge the forces of evil.
- Jesus Christ redeems us from sin and will return to award believers and to punish the impenitent.
- There is an afterlife.