13 Major Characteristics Of A True Christian [+ Sermon].

Today in this post, you lii discover 13 major characteristics of a true Christian who is truly saved that differentiates them from fake religious Christians who are not saved yet.

There are many traits and characteristics that one will show if that person is a true believer who has been saved and washed by the blood of the Lamb.

And this post will only list 13 major characteristics of a true Christian that are based on the bible that one will show if they are truly saved.

Who Is A True Christian?

A true Christian is simply a person who is truly saved on their way to heaven with a definite salvation experience in their life and lives a life that reflects Christ and His holy character.

Implying that a true Christian isn’t just someone who goes to church every Sunday but a person who shows the good fruits of true Christianity in their daily life.

Additionally, a person who is a true Christian will live in obedience to God’s word, an important trait that will differentiate them from fake Christians who are rebellious to God’s word (1 John 5:3).

Related: 15 Signs Of A True Christian [Who Has Experienced Genuine Conversion].

13 Characteristics Of True Christianity.

Below are the 13 major characteristics of true Christianity that a true Christian who has experienced genuine conversion will show in their Christian life.

  • Saved.
  • Lives Godly.
  • Loves God.
  • Obeys God’s Word.
  • Selfless Love Others.
  • Not Of The World.
  • Loves The Truth.
  • Willing To Suffer Persecution.
  • Has A New Life.
  • Abhors Evil.
  • Denies Self.
  • Bears Good Fruits Of The Spirit.
  • Practices Forgiveness.

1. Saved.

Being saved is the number 1 most important characteristic of a true Christian that anyone who claims to be a true believer must have.

You can’t be a true Christian without genuine salvation in your life as salvation which gives one eternal life through Christ Jesus is the foundation of true Christianity.

This is why Jesus Christ said in Luke 13:3 that unless you repent of your sins so that you can have salvation, you will likewise perish in hellfire prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthews 25:41).

Related:

2. Lives Godly.

All true believers who have been truly saved by the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ that cleanses one from all sins will live godly in this present evil world.

And this will be so because of the grace Titus 2:11 talks about which has been made available to all true believers who have a genuine salvation experience in their lives that empowers them to deny all forms of ungodliness and worldly lusts.

But if you are not a true Christian, this grace, will now where to be seen in your life which is why living a godly life of righteousness that’s free from sin will seem impossible to you.

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3. Loves God.

It’s just a matter of fact that if you are a true believer or disciple of Jesus Christ is that you will love God with all your heart, soul mind and might above everything and anyone else which is the greatest commandment God has given us (Mark 12:30).

And this fervent love for God in your Christian life will be proven by your obedience to His word which is why Jesus Christ said in John 14:15 that if we love Him, we will keep His commandments.

On the flip side, however, if you are a fake Christian you will certainly not love God with all your heart which is why you won’t bother obeying His word.

4. Obeys God’s Word.

True Christianity is all about living a life that in sin conformity and obedience to God’s word which most people who claim to be believers aren’t willing to do so, sadly.

But if you are a true Christian who has been genuinely born again with the new nature of Christ Jesus in you, certainly you are going to obey God’s word and live by it (John 8:31).

You can’t say that you are a true Christian on your way to heaven if you are still living in disobedience to God’s word with your sinful lifestyle. Otherwise, you are merely deceiving yourself if you do that.

Related: 15 Characteristics Of A True Disciple Of Christ [+ Nice Sermon].

5. Selfless Love Others.

Selfless love for others is one of the most important characteristics of a true Christian or Christian living that anyone who claims to be a true believer will have and show others that will be seen in the selfless hospitality to others.

And this love we are talking about here is the selfless agape love that only comes from God whose traits are summarized in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 which will make you truly love others not because of what you can get from them.

You can’t have this agape love if you are not saved with the new nature of Christ Jesus in you because we as humans are naturally selfish which is why we only love others because of what they can benefit us which isn’t love at all but a transaction.

Related: 54 Agape Love Quotes (To Help You Keep Selfishness At Bay).

6. Not Of The World.

If you are a genuine Christian with a definite and genuine salvation experience in your life, you won’t be of this world even if you are in this world nor will you conform to its evil systems (John 17:16-26).

Romans 12:2 tells all believers in Christ Jesus that they must not conform to this world rather be transformed by the renewing of their minds which will be the case if you are a true Christian.

Sadly, most people who claim to be Christians nowadays are very worldly and you can’t distinguish them from the people of the world which clearly shows that such people are fake Christians on their way to hell.

Related: 11 Signs Of Worldliness [That Show If One Is Worldly].

7. Loves The Truth.

A true Christian will love the truth and the sound doctrine of the bible and will hate falsehood and false teachings. Implying that if you are a true believer, you will go to a church that teaches the truth and the sound doctrine of the bible (Psalms 119:97).

Unfortunately, this isn’t the case with many fake Sunday Christians today who only go to a church on Sunday which tells them what they want to hear or what will make their sinful flesh feel good and don’t preach about sin.

The apostle Paul in 2 Timothy 4:3 warns of such people in the last days who won’t be able to endure the sound doctrine of the bible due to the itching ears which is why to such people, the truth of God’s word will be offensive to them as its makes their sinful flesh uncomfortable.

8. Willing To Suffer Persecution.

One of the major characteristics that will show that a person is indeed a genuine Christian is that they will be willing to suffer persecution for the sake of their Christian faith or Jesus Christ who was also persecuted before us.

In the new testament, Paul tells us in 2 Timothy 3:12 that any person who desires to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution which has now become intense in these last days we are living in especially in the middle east and just worldwide in general where churches are being burnt.

But if you are not a genuine Christian, you won’t be willing to suffer persecution and you will abandon your Christian faith like most when times of persecution come.

Related: 11 Clear Signs Of A Fake Christian (+ Powerful Sermon).

9. Has A New Life.

If you are a genuine Christian saved by the saving grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, you will have a new life and this new life will be the life that reflects Christ in you.

And this new life in Christ Jesus will be as the result of the new birth you will experience at salvation when you become truly born again after true repentance.

Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 5:17 that anyone who’s in Christ is a new creature and that old things have passed away and everything have become new. Implying that, you will no longer live the old sinful lifestyle you once lived before you got saved.

Related: 11 Signs Of Being Born Again (Every True Christian Must Have).

10. Abhors Evil.

True Christians with a godly character of Christ in them will hate sin and evil. Instead, they will love righteousness and pursue it all the days of their lives.

The apostle Paul tells us in Romans 12:9 that we must hate that which is evil or sinful and cling to that which is good or promotes righteousness which will be the case if you are a genuine Christian.

But if you are a fake Christian with just a label, you will instead love that which is evil and hate that which is righteous due to the sinful nature that’s still active in your life that makes you naturally love sin.

Related: 15 Traits of The Old Nature Of Sin [Summarizing Sinners].

11. Denies Self.

Self-denial which many people who claim to be Christians aren’t willing to do is part of true Christianity and without it, you can’t claim to be a true disciple of our Lord Jesus Christ.

But if you are a true believer, you are going to deny yourself and take up the cross that comes with true Christianity.

Jesus Christ said in Luke 9:23 that anyone who desires to come after Him must deny themselves and take up their crosses daily to follow Him of which without, you can’t be His disciple and later on a true Christian.

Related: 11 Major Characteristics Of False Disciples [+ Sermon].

12. Bears Good Fruits Of The Spirit.

Bearing the 9 fruits of the Holy Spirit found in Galatians 5:22,23 will be one of the major characteristics of a true Christian that you will bear if you are truly saved.

And one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit that you will show is love, humility, compassion and many other good fruits that come when you walk after the Spirit and not the flesh.

If you are a fake Christian or a mere churchgoer, the good fruits of the Holy Spirit mentioned in the above verse will nowhere to be seen in your life because the old Adamic nature of sin is still active in you as you haven’t experienced the new birth yet.

13. Practices Forgiveness.

Last and not least, you will practice forgiveness if you are a true Christian and you will now hold grudges against all those who have offended and deeply hurt you in some way.

You will easily forgive others because God through Jesus Christ has forgiven you as well as you understand that if you don’t forgive others of their trespasses, neither will you heavenly Father forgive you, too which is fair (Mathews 6:15).

Nevertheless, if you don’t practice true Christianity in your life, you won’t forgive those who have offended you which is murder and hatred in some way as you can only not forgive someone you hate and sadly, most people claim to be Christians don’t practice forgiveness.

Conclusion.

Have these 13 characteristics of a true Christian taught you something new about what it means to be a true Christian or benefited you in some way? If so, kindly let me know in the comments below along with any questions you might have on what you have read. Stay blessed and don’t forget to share.

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4 thoughts on “13 Major Characteristics Of A True Christian [+ Sermon].”

  1. A great blessing to have read this article. It’s so simple and explained well, and yet so deep. It really has helped me to understand more about the simplicity in Christ and also a reminder that it is the grace of God that enables such things and anybody who is fake cannot possibly copy it. I’ve been very bothered lately with people and not knowing if they genuinely do love God and are saved, I know on one hand I shouldn’t judge them so quickly and I don’t know their heart but at the same time I know fruits are something I can judge, and it has bothered me so much the mixed signals I have gotten from some people. This article has really helped me to better discern the difference between genuine and fake, the wheat and the tares. Thanks for taking the time to write it, it has helped a young brother in Christ. ❤️

    Reply
  2. This is inspirational and precise to the points. Most often we lose out on the hope we have in Christ because of failure to follow some of the highlighted characteristics of a true Christian. I have a concern that needs help. What can you do to someone who feels offended by you and doesn’t want to even greet you even when you make efforts to greet him. I have forgiven him but on his part he seems bitter and yet we have shared the word of God together but are now far apart. I don’t want to feel guilt, help me.

    Reply
    • Good question. All you can do in such a situation, dear brother in the Lord is pray for such a person and remember on God can change him as it’s not your job to change that person as he’s a grown adult, too who fully know what he’s doing. If all fails, you may have to distance yourself from that person as trying to fix someone who doesn’t see any wrong in what there are doing is just a waste of your precious time and not worth your emotional energy. Hope this helps and God bless.

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