Expert: Scott Talbot - 11/16/2007

Question
Hello,

I am needing help finding some verses, that I was hoping were in the bible, that you might be familiar with. I am working on an essay paper, about "What makes a Christian different from anybody else," and I was thinking that there are some verses from Paul in the New Testament, where he says things to the effect of what makes Christians "different from others", or seem different from others who aren't christian. Different as in a positive and better way.

I am also trying to remember the verses in the New Testament, about how Christians are supposed to be "Lights," or filled with light, and like lamps or lanterns to the rest of the world. I know that the book of John describes Jesus as being the "Light of the world," however I am wondering if there are some specific verses that mention christians also needing to be seen as those types of "Light?"

Thanks for your time and help!,

Mark

Answer
Hi Mark,

I'm happy to help.

The passage about Christians being "light" is Matthew 5:13-16.

What about passages that talk about Christians' being different from others? Hmm. I don't know that we are all that different from others. We should be different than others, but being a Christian doesn't guarantee that to be true.

What makes a Christian different? There are several things. 1) The Holy Spirit lives in us; 2) We have been transferred from the realm of death to the realm of life; 3) Our spiritual eyes have been opened; 4) We have the ability to conquer sin through God's help.

But you're talking about character issues, aren't you? I'm not sure if the Bible definitively says that Christians are different in character ... because we aren't necessarily different. If we choose to be different, we can be, with God's help. But not all of us consistently choose to be different.

Again, we SHOULD act differently, but there's nothing about being a Christian that guarantees that to be so.

Read I John. It talks about character traits that SHOULD characterize a Christian, generally speaking. It mentions traits such as 1) Walking in the light; 2) A repentant attitude towards sin; 3) A lifestyle of obedience; 4) A desire to live like Jesus Christ; 5) Love for other Christians; 6) A distaste for the world's value system; 7) An awareness of and caution against false teachers and false teaching; 8) A hope of eternal life; 9) A resistance towards a lifestyle of sin; 10) An ability to discern truth and false teaching; 11) An obvious indwelling of the Holy Spirit (people see it); 12) An acknowledgement of Jesus Christ as God's Son and as the promised Messiah; 13) Faith in God; 14) A confident prayer life.

If you focused just on I John, you should have more than enough material to write your paper.

Scott