“So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
John 13:34-35
In a 2016 survey on religion in America, 73% of Americans identified as Christian. Even though many do not consider themselves religious, attend church, pray, own a Bible, or understand the Gospel, a great majority of American citizens still consider themselves Christians. Welcome to American Christianity—where people believe they are born into it, and therefore inherited the label and secured a ticket to heaven. Where happiness, wealth, and comfort are the main goals in life, and where true Christians are all labeled as judgmental bigots who live boring lives and can’t possibly be any fun to be around.
Perhaps the survey should have asked, “Do you follow Jesus?” Because the life of a Jesus-follower doesn’t look like the life of a typical American Christian. The proof of our love for Jesus must be our obedience to Him and our love for each other. Most of us happily follow Him as long as He’s taking us where we want to go. But when things get uncomfortable, when we are asked to sacrifice or suffer or deny ourselves, or when we are tossed around by life’s many storms, we turn and run. We all live out a form of American Christianity, living our lives our way according to our own plans. We may call ourselves Jesus-followers, but we essentially ask Jesus to follow us! We want Him to bless the life we have planned and invite Him along for our benefit. But that is nothing like the lives of Jesus’ disciples. They proved to the world that they were His followers by their love, by their commitment, and by their sacrifice. We are commanded to do the same. Not by a survey, but by our love!
If some of the people in your life don’t know that you are a Christian, you’re doing something wrong. If your heart, your words, your actions, and your life look just like most other “American Christians”, perhaps you are living American Christianity, rather than following Jesus. True followers of Christ don’t seek their own way; they seek Jesus. They don’t just check a box; they commit their lives to His plans and His purposes. The path He will lead you down may not always be easy, but it will be the most beautiful adventure of your lifetime! Take His hand! You are loved!