Photo by Juan Patlan on Unsplash
Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared on the Beacon of Light newsletter. It has been adapted here to help you trade the exhaustion of religious performance for a life of simple, life-changing grace.
Have you ever felt like being a Christian is just… complicated?
We hear all the time about what “true” believers think or what “real” Christians can’t do. It can feel like we’ve taken God’s message and turned it into a tangled mess of legalism. Following Jesus is supposed to be simpler than following the latest fitness trend. Yet, somewhere along the way, Christianity has become known for its complex rules and endless debates.
Is it possible that we make it too hard for people to just be ordinary Christians? Let’s take a step back and look at how we can trade the exhaustion of religious performance for a life of grace.
The Pool Metaphor: Getting Into the Water
Let’s use a pool as a metaphor for Christianity.
Imagine a pool party. The pool has steps leading into the shallowest part and a slow slant into the deep end. A few kids are swimming around, yelling for their mom to jump in. She sits down on the steps and splashes a little water around. But the kids, treading water in the deep end, aren’t satisfied. They keep yelling for her to get into the pool. To them, she’s not really in the pool, and she knows it.
She wades a little further in, waist-deep. Her kids are still yelling, splashing her. To them, she’s not truly in the pool until she passes a predetermined marker—she has to get her hair wet. Now, finally, she counts.
Many long-time Christians are splashing around in the deep end, acting exactly like those kids. We tell people they aren’t really in the faith until they pass some arbitrary criteria we’ve made up in our minds.
When we try to invite people into the pool, we must ensure our criteria match God’s criteria.
Arbitrary Rules vs. God's Invitation
We often hear requirements that sound spiritual but actually prevent people from experiencing grace. Have you ever heard phrases like these?
“A real Christian wouldn’t get a tattoo or drink alcohol.”
These might be personal convictions, but do they keep you out of the pool?
“A real Christian knows apologetics and systematic theology.”
These are wonderful things to study, but are they required for entry?
“A real Christian only uses the King James Bible.”
If that were true, there were no real Christians before the 1600s!
Sometimes, it is tougher to become a member of a modern church than it is to become a member of the body of Christ. Identifying with a family of believers is important, but we must stop making the barrier to entry so exhausting.
Looking at the First Disciples
Who does God say is in the pool? It is safe to assume that whatever is required to be a Christian, the first-century disciples of Jesus had it. After all, they were the ones Jesus commanded to go into the world and make more disciples.
Let’s analyze a few modern “prerequisites” against the lives of the early disciples:
Complex Doctrine: Did they understand the Hypostatic Union or the Apostles Creed? No. They didn’t have the writings of Saint Augustine to lean on.
Advanced Theology: Did they have a firm stance on predestination? The formalized understanding of Calvinism didn’t exist until the 16th century.
Owning a Bible: The disciples had the Torah, but the letters of Paul hadn’t been written yet. A regular person couldn’t even dream of owning a printed Bible until the 15th century.
The Essential Core: What Do You Have to Believe?
Developing an understanding of who Jesus is, what He did, and how that affects us is the core of the good news. Why do we make it more complicated than that?
Jesus is essential. He is the Son of God. He was crucified, buried, and came back to life on the third day. Through Jesus, we have forgiveness of our sins, a new life in God, and the restoration of our relationship with the Father.
When we come to Jesus, we simply say: “I want to stop doing life my way, and I choose to start doing life your way, knowing there is grace and forgiveness when I mess it up.”
Do you have enough guts to admit that? Congratulations, you’re in the pool. Everything else is a work in progress.
Navigating the Deep End: Miracles, Sin, and Repentance
As you learn to swim, you might bump into a few big questions. Here is how grace simplifies them:
Believing in miracles: The paramount miracle of the Christian faith is the resurrection of Jesus from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:4). If you can believe God raised someone from the dead, believing in the virgin birth or walking on water naturally follows.
Understanding origins: You can get into the pool without a full scientific understanding of how God created the universe. Look at Christ first, and then read the rest of scripture in the light of His grace.
Wrestling with sin: Every single person who gets into the pool is a sinner. But instead of preaching human depravity and making it all about our failures, we need to help people discover Jesus. If Jesus can’t be seen until our evil is discovered, then grace is predicated on our screw-ups—but we know Adam and Eve knew intimacy with God before they sinned.
Embracing repentance: Repentance is the first step down into the pool, but it is God’s goodness that leads us there (Romans 2:4). Confessing your sins is not greater than confessing Jesus as Lord.
Get in the Pool, But Start Swimming
The only question we are examining here is what we have to believe to become a Christian and start this journey. But don’t just sit on the stairs forever. There is an amazing life in the deep end full of purpose, meaning, and joy.
As you get deeper and grow in your faith, God will gently speak to you about every area of your life—your finances, your relationships, your family, and your work. But remember, being in the deep end doesn’t make you more of a child of God than when you were just dipping your ankles in.
If you are a new Christian, start with Jesus and work backward. Read the Gospel of John and the Book of Ephesians. Once you have those concepts of grace solid in your mind, interpret the rest of scripture from that standpoint.
Jump in the pool; the water’s great!
Thematic Bridge
Trading the exhaustion of religious performance for a life of grace is a journey of laying down heavy, man-made armor to embrace true light. In my heroic fantasy novels, the protagonists often face a similar struggle. They must abandon rigid traditions, overcome their past failures, and rely on a higher, redeeming power to defeat overwhelming darkness.
Join the Adventure
If you enjoy stories where broken heroes find redemption, grace, and ultimate victory, I invite you to explore my fictional worlds. Sign up for my author newsletter to get exclusive updates, free stories, behind-the-scenes looks, and news on my latest heroic fantasy novels. Let’s journey together!