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For a person to be a Christian, their beliefs must in some way involve Jesus Christ. Usually it means that they look to Christ for forgiveness of their sins and for salvation, and they follow his teachings.

The other things that you said, believing in God, an afterlife, and sins, are all part of Christianity, but I think since the word comes from Christ, it really has to involve him in some way.

Well..... That is a good question. First, let us look at Christianity. The word "Christian" means to be a follower of Jesus, or one of my definitions is a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. The means to be a Christian mostly concerns with the heart of the individual. To believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and to be forgiven of your sins and to have them washed away by the Grace of God.

you are a christian if you have been saved...and mean it, have been baptised, and believe that Jesus Christ died for your sins.

You don't have to be baptised to be a Christian. Baptism is just a sign to show you are Christian. I do however agree that you are Christian if you have been saved...meaning you accepted Jesus Christ into your heart (not your literal blood-pumping heart) and ask Him to forgive you for your sins. As a Christian there are so many more things you should do...

ok so Baptism is the PUBLIC display of faith. a symbolic dunking to show that you have died to sin and risen with Christ. the word "Christian" means Christ-like. it implies that we are emulating Yeshua the Christ. we cannot judge others, only our own hearts. so the question is, "Are YOU a Christian?" dont answer, just think on it a little.

Feel free to argue that opinion. But... just stating an opinion isn't making an argument. =) What are your reasons for this belief? Does it have any support from the Bible?

I'm one of those people who would disagree. =P But I'd like to hear you out.

Calvinism. Yeah, that's not at all an obscure system of theology, you can be confident of that. John Calvin was one of the most influential men of the Protestant Reformation, second perhaps only to Martin Luther. The Puritans who came over to America were mostly Calvinists, and it is still not an uncommon Christian belief today.

You know, though, that Calvinism does teach that a Christian can have assurance of their salvation? In the five points of Calvinism you mentioned, with the acronym T.U.L.I.P., the fifth point is "Perseverance of the Saints," which teaches that once a person has been saved, they cannot lose their salvation. The word "Saint" here is used in the general sense of the word, the way the Bible uses it, which just means anyone who is a Christian. What comes along with this teaching of perseverance is that it is possible for a person to be assured of their salvation. Even though we will surely have doubts at one time or another, by faith we should trust that he who began a good work in us will complete it. That faith will bring us through those times of doubt; without it we might fall into despair.

Here's a quote from Calvin on the issue of assurance and confidence of salvation: "The principal hinge on which faith turns is this—that we must not consider the promises of mercy, which the Lord offers, as true only to others, and not to ourselves; but rather make them our own, by embracing them in our hearts. Hence arises that confidence, which the same apostle in another place calls 'peace.'" (from Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book III, Chapter II, Section 16. Translated by John Allen) Calvin is a little difficult to read, since he wrote in the 1500's, before Shakespeare was born. But hopefully this is a good enough translation to get his meaning across.

Calvinism does teach that someone can be confident that they are a saved Christian, if they know that they have faith in Jesus Christ. Of course, you shouldn't believe in having assurance of salvation just because John Calvin taught it and you consider yourself to be a Calvinist; your decision on the matter should be based on the Bible. Here's a couple verses often used to support this teaching:

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. - Philippians 1:6

The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen. - 2 Timothy 4:18

From these two verses, we see that Paul had confidence that those he wrote to in the church of Philippi were saved; and confidence that he himself was saved. So, why not believe that we also can have that confidence?

Calvin's teaching on the Perseverance of the Saints is often misunderstood to be a "once saved, always saved" philosophy, which would allow someone to say that, now that they're a Christian, they can do whatever they want and not need to worry about punishment. That's really not what Calvin taught; that would be a "perseverance of the sinner" philosophy. If someone acts in such a way, it is evidence that they are really not saved, as Paul addresses in his letter to the Romans, in chapter 6. I wrote some about this in an earlier post in this thread.

The other point of Calvinism that hasn't already been covered between the two of us, is the doctrine of Irrestiable Grace, which is the teaching that whoever God wants to save, nothing can stop him from saving, not even the person who is being saved. Simply, a person cannot resist the grace of God. The process of salvation does occur willingly, but this is because the Holy Spirit has healed that person's will to no longer be corrupted by the sin which turns us away from God.

The Five Points of Calvinism, "TULIP" : Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Limited Atonement, Irrestable Grace, Perseverance of the Saints.