My Religious Affiliation

So the other night a girl asked me what religion I was. I thought for a few moments and couldn't rightly respond. The only church I've ever been to with a denominational title was the Mennonite church that I attended as a child. The next church was essentially non-denominational and for a while was pretty much without members as well. My current church, while still non-denominational, is nothing like the previous one. So naturally, I had a hard time explaining to the girl, a Catholic, what "religion" I was.
I'm a self-proclaimed Christian but that word seems too ambiguous. Dictionary.com defines it as "of, pertaining to, believing in, or belonging to the religion based on the teachings of Jesus Christ: Spain is a Christian country." That covers what I believe but is still very general. A Roman Catholic is considered a Christian by that definition and I definitely do not believe what Roman Catholics do. So what do I believe?
I Believe:

• in a triune God with three persons, distinct in their function but equal in essence and nature.
  
• that God is righteous and just.
  
• that "all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God"
• that therefore I am a sinner and a righteous and just God would not accept a sinner into heaven.
• that Jesus became man, lived a perfect life, died as the sacrificial lamb for my sins and rose again to show not even death can stop God.
  
• that accepting Jesus Christ as your savior is the only way to the Father and Heaven.
• that nothing I can ever do, except accepting Jesus as savior, can ever contribute to my salvation because Jesus paid it all on the cross. In other words, I am never anymore justified to be in Heaven then when I first accept Christ as my savior.
  
• in unconditional election, or that God chooses to save only by His grace and mercy, and not because of merit or worth.
• in limited atonement, or that Jesus' substitutionary death was enough for everyone's salvation but was not meant for everyone but rather only for God's "elect"
  
• that God does everything in a manner that give God the most glory.
• that when God purposes to save someone, his Holy Spirit will not be defeated so God can save anyone but chooses to endure "vessels of wrath" because it gives Himself the most glory.
• that He who began a good work in us is faithful to complete it so if you have accepted Jesus into your heart you have, a sort of, "eternal security"
  
• that the gifts of the Holy Spirit (speaking in tongues, prophecy etc.) are present in the church today.
• that the Bible is the breathed out word of God and is completely infallible and completely true.
  

So what does that make me? It makes me a man desperately in need of a savior who God has chosen to save out of his love, and who is called to live a life as a suitable representation of the God he serves but fails. Amazing grace how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me.

So why Blog?

If anyone is wondering why I am now blogging, I take a page from C.J. Maheney's playbook and point to what other people have said on the subject. Bob Kauflin in an article on Boundless writes,

"blogs have enabled us to communicate what's in our hearts and minds to anyone in the world who wants to listen. And you can do all of this sitting at home in front of your computer.

If you're reading this, there's a good possibility that you read blogs, comment on blogs, or write one of your own. If you never go near blogs, I wouldn't be too concerned. But for the rest of us, here are some things to keep in mind as we inhabit the blogosphere.

Christians might blog on a variety of topics and for a number of reasons, but they share one common goal:
"So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." (1 Cor. 10:31)"

That being said, this is for God's glory. It is not for my fame or a chance to show off how wise I am, but rather to bring a not-so-new perspective on the issues of our world and especially our faith.

Tim Challies also has some thoughts on blogging which I happen to share:

If you write frequently, you’ll soon exhaust all that you know. After all, you have a limited number of stories to tell, a limited store of knowledge to share. So if you want to blog, make sure you are continually challenging yourself in the area you write about. As a Christian, this means that I dedicate myself to the Christian disciplines to ensure that I am continually growing in my knowledge of God as revealed in His Word. It also means that I constantly read good books (and some not-so-good books). These two disciplines provide me with the food for thought that keeps me writing and, most of the time, provides me with topics to write about. I’ve said it often, but I’ll say it again: if I stopped reading the Bible and stopped reading good books, I’d have nothing to say. I’d have to pack it up and move on.

Also:

First, there is good reason that writing and journaling have long been considered important spiritual disciplines. I have found often that I do not really know what I believe about something until I have written about it. Only in writing down my thoughts am I able to press to the furthest extent to learn what I really believe. Writing has become a critical discipline for me and one that tells me much about myself and the state of my heart (Emphasis mine).

Lastly, this blog will be characterized by a love for the lost but not for the world they live in. To quote Justin Taylor, "Jesus said they will know us by our fruit and by our love, and a lot of blogs are failing in that."