What’s An Evangelical Christian?

Q

What exactly is meant by the term ‘Evangelical Christians’? I hear and read it everywhere but am not sure how to explain it because it seems so many sources use it in differing ways.

A

The dictionary defines an Evangelical Christian as “being in agreement with the Christian gospel especially as it is presented in the four Gospels, emphasizing salvation by faith in the atoning death of Jesus Christ through personal conversion, the authority of Scripture, and the importance of preaching as contrasted with ritual.”

In other words, Evangelical Christians are born again believers who believe the Bible means exactly what it says and that the Church is called to preach the gospel. I’ll grant you there are many who claim to be evangelicals but don’t qualify according to this definition, but this is the accepted meaning of the term.