I am seeing a lot of talk these days around what is called “cultural Christianity”. The term has been around for a long time, although sometimes taking on different names such as “nominal Christianity”, or even “carnal Christianity”, but it always manifests in the same way. A so-called “cultural Christian” is one who either grew up in a Christian home, or was at least exposed to the teachings of the Bible, and still leans toward those life principles they remember from their youth.
Many who identify as cultural Christians walked away from all things Christianity but are returning to its tenets later in life. There are two important things we must know about cultural Christianity: first, there is no Biblical basis for it, and second, it is rare for those professing such a belief to place their faith in Jesus Christ.
Cultural Christianity is becoming somewhat trendy among some influential and powerful people, and thus many may be sucked in by its appeal. It’s dangerous because, for all its platitudes, it won’t lead someone to salvation. More likely it will lull many to sleep, thinking they are Christians and Christians go to Heaven, right? This is just one more of Satan’s subtle illusions that will damn people to Hell.
When you surrender your life to the Lordship of Jesus and confess your faith in Him as the resurrected Son of God who gave His life for you, your life is never the same (Romans 10:9-10). God’s Holy Spirit penetrates your soul to its very core and never departs (John 14:16-17). A genuine conversion to Christ never results in a nominal commitment. Cultural Christianity is an oxymoron. When the love of God pervades your being, it changes you to the point you can never go back. If someone departs from the faith, it is only proof that their confession was never genuine in the first place (1 John 2:19).
You can’t sincerely repent of every sin you’ve committed and return to that sin (1 John 3:6). I’m not saying we will live sinless lives, but our desire will always be for Christ and never for our old habits. Sin will horrify us like nothing else because we understand how abhorrent it is to our King. Jesus sacrificed His life to free us from sin. If we believe that and love Him for it, we cannot live lives that make a mockery of His death (Romans 6:1-2).
To be a Christian is to bow before Jesus in reverence, awe, submission, and surrender. There is nothing cultural, nominal, or carnal about it. It’s not something we decide we’ll do one day and turn away from the next (Luke 9:23). You are in Christ or you are heading for Hell. There is no convenient happy middle ground by which you can tiptoe through life (Revelation 3:15-16). A cultural Christian is just as lost as those who reject God outright.
Don’t buy into the lie of cultural Christianity. Pray for those professing such nonsense. Only a sincere belief in Jesus, coupled with a genuine repentance of your sins, will find you welcome into God’s Kingdom (Romans 10:9; 1 John 1:9). It is only by God’s grace that He saves us through faith in Him, and no amount of cultural goodness will save our souls (Ephesians 2:8-9). There are no shortcuts, and there is no way to eternal life other than Jesus Christ (John 14:6; Acts 4:11-12).