"Christian" ...what?

It's a hard life. People are hurting in every direction. Kids are wanting to grow up quick and make money, parents work hard just to keep up, just to keep their head above water. Culture is a flood of perception, the media comes in quick and quite often unchecked, and we wonder where our materialistic impulses come from. I wonder why it's so easy to notice someone in new clothes but we try our best to look away when we see signs of pain or conflict? Is it just easier to complement then to get tangled in the emotions of human interaction on a real level? And when did we learn to put on a fake smile and just do what it takes to make it through the day? I understand that on some level composure is necessary but when is the right time to be real? We are christians. But what does that mean? When the whole world walks by with blinded eyes, what is our response? Is it enough to be a good person or believe that Jesus exists or is being a christian something more, something completely other? Is a christian someone who goes to church and hears the truth or is a christian someone who does truth, who lives in accordance with it? What does the Bible say a christian is? John 5:24: "I tell you the truth; whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.” The word “Christian” appears in the Bible only 3 times. A Christian is more often described as “a person in Christ” or “Christ in you.” Followers of Jesus Christ were first called “Christians” in Antioch (Acts 11:26) because their behavior, activity, and speech were like Christ. The word “Christian” literally means, “Belonging to Christ” or a “follower of Christ.” It's all about having a relationship with Christ. It's out of the overflow of that love that we should come together to confront injustice and humbly rise up against the flow of desperate living that seeps through the cracks of our culture because of our nature. We need a new nature, we need rejuvenation... we need a new heart, a new mind a new Spirit at work in our lives. This is being "in Christ" 2 Corinthians 5:17: Therefore, if anyone is in Christ,” he is a new creation;” the old has gone, the new has come!” I've been asking this question "what is a Christian?" from a small group resource we are using. A true Christian is a person who has put faith and trust in the person and work of Jesus Christ, including His death on the cross as payment for sins and His resurrection on the third day. A true Christian is indeed a child of God, a part of God’s true family, and one who has been given new life in Jesus Christ. How do you become a Chrisitian? By admitting that you have sinned, believing that Jesus Christ, who was sinless, died in your place, He did not deserve death but accepted this penalty on our behalf and committing your life to Jesus, the risen Lord, by asking Him into your heart to change your life and make you more like Him. Romans 10:9-13: That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame." For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile--the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, For, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."

I've really enjoyed the first entry in the small group book called, "My first 30 quiet times." We are going through this book with some of our middle schoolers and that question just couldn't escape my mind. What is a Christian?