Christian or Christ follower???

I have been hearing lately about a "new" kind of Christian, they do not call themselves Christians. They do not want to be associated with the image of a Bible thumper. They are laid back, Jesus was a cool dude kind of thing. I googled Christian VS Christ follower and got some interesting results. Christians are now being portrayed as uptight bigoted people. While Christ followers are relaxed and easy going.

I see it a bit differently. Christians are Christ followers. They are one and the same. You can not be a Christian with out first following Christ. Christ Himself says that if you follow Him life will not be easy. There will be of course some form of persecution by unbelievers. However, there is also the fact that a Christian has rules to follow. Christ set up His church, not a new religion, but a Faith based band of believers. All who claim His gift of grace and salvation, are in this church. He gives us rules for this church. He tells us how to see if the people or person we are with really truly get it. (Gal 5).

What He does not list out in scripture is the name of the religion these followers will profess. Now I grew up in the church of Christ. Some in that religion are very uptight. When I was a kid I heard over and over the claim that is the one true church because it is named in the Bible. However so are the church of God. (Acts 20, 1 Corinthians 1 and 11) there is also listed churches of the gentiles (Romans 16). What most often is said in the new testament is THE church. The church trusts in Christ for its salvation. The church strives to follow what He taught. The church understands that while nothing we do can get us into heaven, that does not mean there is nothing to do..If you are a true Christian, follower of Christ then the fruits of the spirit will be abundant, and obvious in your life. Just a refresher those are: love, joy, peace, long suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Sisters, let this verse apply aptly to our lives. Galatians 5:25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. ²⁶ Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.


In the end my thought is this. If one is a true Christian (not just a religious person) they will also be a follower of Christ. They will study and follow what Christ says. You can not be one with out the other. A Christian does all they can to respect Christ, not dumb Him down or make excuses for bad behavior. Sin will be labeled as sin, good fruit will be marked as good fruit. No you do not have to dress a certain way, Jesus said it is not the outward but the inward parts that matter. Naturally what your inward parts are will be manifested by your outward parts. Christianity is not about clothes, or peace love and hippy beads. It is about doing what Christ told the church to do.