Anyone can claim to be a Christian these days and most people just accept their claim without question. Your pastor might have told you that if you went up the front of a church and prayed the sinners prayer then your a Christian. Is that what the Bible really teaches? Certainly not! It seems as though people no longer know what the word "Christian" means. Any basic study of what the bible says a Christian is will lead you to a passage in The Book of Acts;
And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch - Acts 11:26
This passage tells us the name "Christian", was a name given to the disciples of Jesus Christ. A disciple of Jesus is someone who seeks to become like Jesus Christ. A disciple of Jesus has determined that he will follow the teachings of Jesus Christ. Essentially a disciple is a dedicated student living in obedience to the teachings of the Bible.
In the Gospel of John, Jesus states that if you continue in His Word then you are truly His disciples and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free;
Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free - John 8:31-32
This passage deals a devastating blow to those who teach that you can become a Christian by repeating the sinners prayer. Notice these Jews "believed on Him"! They believe upon Jesus but Jesus didn't confirm their salvation on that basis. True faith comes from a heart that desires to be reconciled to God. Jesus said If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed. In other words your faith is genuine if you continue in my word. These are are difficult words for modern day Christians to accept, yet they are the words of Jesus Christ himself.
However a no one becomes a Christian by keeping or obeying Gods commands. The bible is clear that salvation is by faith apart from works.
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast - Ephesians 2:8
Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law [is] the knowledge of sin. Romans 3:20
So the bible does teach that salvation is by faith apart from works, however it also teaches that a Christian has been born again and is re-created, by God, into a new creature. A person who is born again has a new nature that loves righteousness and hates sin. No one is perfect or sinless but there is a desire in the disciples of Christ to be perfect. This desire and subsequent holiness is a work that God does in all those that truly believe and put their trust in Him. True faith comes only from a heart that desires to be reconciled to God and have his sins forgiven. Then man that simply wants a get out of jail free card, but has no desire for God or His righteousness, is not a disciple of Jesus and is not a Christian.
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new - 2 Corinthians 5:17
