The Hardcore Christian

Whenever I tell someone I don’t drink, I always get the same response.

“Oh, so you’re one of those hardcore Christians,” they say.

The sad part about that statement is not that everyone drinks, or even that the person I’m talking to is not a Christian. The truly depressing aspect is that they see a difference between a Christian and a hardcore Christian.

Let’s take out the debate about what the truth is when it comes to religion. If you actually claim to be a Christian, and you truly believe that God sent himself in human form and chose to die an extremely painful death so that we could be free from sin and have eternal life, how could you not be hardcore about it?

I’m not trying to condemn a Christian who sins. I sin all the time. Everybody on this earth is a sinner. The problem is that the “non-hardcore Christian” does not show any regret or signs of repentance as a result of their sin.

I see self-proclaimed Christians on this campus who get wasted every weekend, smoke weed, use the Lord’s name in vain and may or may not be awake before noon on Sunday. And again, I’m not saying you are not a Christian if you have done these things, but if you fail to show anyone around you that you do believe in Christ, you’re missing the point.

The discrepancy between a Christian and a hardcore Christian is more evident on this campus than anywhere I’ve seen.

Much of this stems from the college lifestyle. Parties, non-Christian influences and the absence of a family to go to church with for the first time in one’s life certainly don’t help things.

Many people who were on fire for God in high school begin to let their relationship with Christ slowly fade away because of those things, or because they fail to find a church home in Tuscaloosa. In their mind, they still hold Christian beliefs, but their actions become those of a person with no faith.

Jesus is quoted in Revelation 3:15-17 as saying, “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of my mouth … [you] do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked.”

Does it sound like Jesus is describing a Christian at the end of that scripture? It sounds like a lost person to me.

There’s nothing worse than being lukewarm for Christ. It’s not OK to be satisfied with where you stand in your relationship with Christ, especially if you are part of that large group of Christian college students who hasn’t touched a Bible on a weekday for years. A Christian should be hungry to grow in his or her faith every day and should always strive to develop themselves to be more Christ-like.

I encourage every believer on campus to actually show that they are a believer, not just to your friends or family or yourself, but also to God. Read the Bible as much as you can, find a church home, surround yourself with positive influences and find time for daily prayer.

John Piper once said, “One of the great uses of Twitter and Facebook will be to prove at the last day that prayerlessness was not from a lack of time.”

Even if it’s just a few minutes, you’ll find that trying to pray and read scripture on a daily basis will make a huge difference in your life as a Christian. Please don’t think that you can reach eternal life by proclaiming you are a Christian, only to show it for one hour a week.

I’m sick of seeing the disparity between a Christian and a hardcore Christian. There shouldn’t be a difference.

Jason Galloway is the sports editor of The Crimson White. His column will run bi-weekly on Mondays starting after spring break.