Becoming a Christian, Part 2

"The moment of decision or the decision of faith must be understood not simply as one decision but as a life decision. The experience of salvation is not merely one specific experience in the life of the Christian; rather, it consists in an abiding with Christ that is strengthened and deepened through life. Faith entails not simply the acceptance of Christ but daily repentance and obedience....It is not a single experience of conversion but a life of conversion that is decisive for our salvation." - Donald Bloesch

Perhaps the reason why I react negatively to the purely transactional models of "becoming a Christian" is rooted in my own experience as a child and adolescent. Numerous times I heard a preacher or speaker give the invitation to "ask Jesus into your heart," and numerous times I responded. Unfortunately, I also believed that once I asked Jesus "in" He was free to leave and head "out" whenever He wanted, most likely in response to my unfaithfulness (which was common), and without any need to give 2 weeks notice. Consequently, I prayed the "sinner's prayer" and "received Christ" repeatedly, unsure if it had worked the last time I had completed the transaction. (This is why I hate the question, "When did you become a Christian?"--I still don't have a good answer! Perhaps it's also why I'm still unsettled by Jesus' question, "Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and not do what I say?" But I'll save that for another post!)

The end result was feeling like this salvation I'd received was incomplete. If the sweet-sounding amazing grace had saved me, why did I still feel like a wretch? I've heard similar stories from enough other people that I don't think this result is uncommon. Some feel like their salvation prayer was a one-hit wonder -- that one might have worked wonders, but the rest now seem to fall flat. Others find themselves stuck in habitual patterns of sin that they can't seem to break. And regrettably, the Church seems to provide little or no real help. After all, we're the ones who've set up these unmet expectations that once you "become a Christian" the important work is done.

I've written elsewhere: "Intentionally communicated or not, the message heard by many churchgoers today is one of 'instant salvation' or 'instant Christianity,' a message that is attractive to Americans who are preconditioned to instant gratification by our rapid cultural changes, our ever-increasing technological innovations, and our furious pace of life. We have become accustomed to time-saving techniques, shortcuts, and quick fixes, and the church's message has accommodated our short attention spans."

The result is numerous people actively seeking to be 'a Christian,' at least as it has been presented to them, but they're feeling like something is missing. Even more have heard and perhaps responded to this view of becoming a Christian, and are now doing little to actively follow Christ. Leadership Journal posted results of a survey which indicated that 81% of Americans that identified themselves as "Christian" could not meet their standard of "Active Christian." (See http://www.christianitytoday.com/le/2007/004/1.19.html.) I can't help but wonder if this is because we're not helping people embrace full-life discipleship with Jesus. Are we essentially just making church-members instead of disciples? They've passed the initiation rite to join the club, but now that they're in...

This all seems to beg a question or two: What's our underlying theology of salvation? What do we believe salvation really is? We'll have to wrestle with that next.