Christianity: World's Leading Religion With 31.5% of Global Population - Research Paper

Introduction

Basically, there are several religions that are known around the world. The major religions are Christianity and Islam, with the latest data showing that Christianity is the leading. It boasts of about 31.5% of the world's population.

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Spiritually, I am a Christian. I learned spiritual belief from my parents. What this means to me is that I have a Supreme being called God who is the creator of the world and everything in it and bears the ultimate truth of all the happenings (Genesis 1:1-31; 2:1-2). This entails an additional belief that every creature in the world has to serve Him, and man being the superior creature, has to take care of all the other creatures for the continuity of the generations. For Christians again, the belief in the Bible as a true recording of Godly inspired words is very crucial. Further, to redeem the human from sinful nature, I believe that I must confess the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ (God the Son) who was sent by God to redeem human from sin and bring them back to eternal life (1 John 5:11). The belief in God the Son brings salvation to the believers hence as it is believed, they will pass the judgment after death. Finally, I believe in the Holy Spirit sent by God to act as a counsellor and direct my actions in an appropriate manner as God wants me to (Acts 1:8).

How has the experience affected the way you view God?

I view God as a trinity - God the Father Almighty who is the creator, the Son Jesus Christ who gives us salvation, and the Holy Spirit who acts as the counsellor. Basically, the Trinity acts for our good in unison, but have distinct roles to play in my life (Corinthians 8:5-6). I view God as the Supreme Being who holds good intentions for each creature. He lacks nothing but has put a man in charge of all the creation. All the creatures should give Him praise in worship and adore him for the grace upon their lives (Psalm 150:6; 1 Chronicle 16:34). Those who serve him diligently all through their lives will prevail after the judgment and proceed to enjoy eternal life (1 John 5:11; John 10:28-30).

What do Christians and Muslims Believe?

Christians believe in the Holy Trinity that entails God the Father, the Son Jesus Christ who is the Messiah and God the Holy Spirit. Also, they use the Bible as the sacred book, with the Gospels Books giving the account of Jesus's life and enforcing the birth of Jesus Christ by a virgin. They believe that following His teachings and leading a prayerful life will entitle them to a fair judgment after death, therefore, they will enjoy eternal life.

On the other hand, the Muslims hold almost a similar belief to the Christians except for some few disparities. With the Muslims, they believe in one God and argue that the belief in Trinity is a grave sin since it is a division of the Oneness of God. Their teachings are anchored on the Quran, which contains teachings inspired by Muhammad and serves to express their surrender to God. Further, they believe that Jesus is not a son of God, but rather His messenger and this serves to explain the differences in the accounts of the gospel books between the religions.

What is your personal testimony on how you became a Christian?

Personally, I was born in a Christian family, received a baptism in the Church and these encouraged me to adopt the Christian way of life. But even without this, I came to learn about so many wonderful things that exist in the face of the world and some occurrences that make me believe that there is a Supreme Being who controls everything. Even if different religions perceive the ways to express their faith, I believe in Christian ways but this means that I condemn other religions.

What was your life like before you trusted 'God' or other faith?

For me, I began trusting in God and the Christian faith at my childhood ages since I was raised up in a Christian family. From then, my life has taken several minor shifts that merely involve a change in some Christian perspectives as motivated by learning. I get to feel that I am getting more connected with God by leading a more prayerful life, something I never experienced before.

How are you different now from then?

With the additional information I have about God and how to serve Him, I feel that I am becoming more connected to Him and that I am on the right track as per His will to serve Him and believe in Jesus Christ, our Savior. I believe that if I continue in this manner, I will be entitled to eternal life after death.

What is your concept of God?

I hold the Christian view of God. I believe that He exists as a Holy Trinity made up of God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. God the Father is the creator of the Universe and all within it. God the Son is Jesus Christ, who was sent by the Father to lead us to salvation and the eternal life afterwards and finally God the Holy Spirit who acts as our counsellor to reveal to us what the Father wants from us. However, the Trinity acts in oneness. I believe that He created all and controls all, but put a man in charge of all, and to further worship him. He only plans for our good in our entire life, including before birth (Jeremiah 29:11).

Do you view God positively or negatively?

I hold a positive view of God. He created the world and everything within it and loved it (Genesis 1:31). He further created man in His own image and likeness and made him superior of all the creation. According to a variety of Bible verses, He always desires the best for us and our prosperity (Romans 8:28). Because of these, I believe that God is a positive Supreme Being who wants us to serve all the creation and also serve Him in an attempt to attain spiritual purity (Ephesians 5:15-16). Who are we to receive such favours and grace from Him?

Do you find that faith and spiritual value play a role in your life?

I believe that my Christian beliefs dictate most of my actions and my relations with other people around. I get to serve others as well as the other creation and this gives me personal satisfaction of life. Spiritual and cultural faith guides my cultural beliefs and also morality that in the end account for my healthy way of life as this is what God intends for all His creation. The belief further gives me the hope and strive for constant improvements in all the spheres of life as I hope for eternal life after death.

If you die today, are you sure that you will go to heaven?

Going to heaven and enjoying the eternal life is the ultimate experience every Christian hopes for. This makes all strive to do the will of God as stipulated in the Bible during their entire life. However, the human soul is frail and can fall temptations that make him fall short of God's grace. Furthermore, the decision to enter heaven lies with God and no human can purport to know his destiny after death (1 Corinthians 4:5; Acts 17:31). Therefore, as we attempt to fulfil what Gods want of us, we should always pray for His considerations upon us for eternal life.

Bibliography

Antonova, C., 2016. Space, time, and presence in the icon: Seeing the world with the eyes of God. Routledge.

DeWeese, Garrett J. God, and the Nature of Time. Routledge, 2017.

Rayment-Pickard, Hugh. Impossible God: Derrida's Theology. Routledge, 2018.