People can be funny. One Sunday afternoon a few years ago the husband of one of my wife’s friends and I were running a quick errand and he asked me. “How was church this morning?” I said, “OK, nothing unusual.” Since he started it I asked him what he considered himself to be, agnostic or atheist? I was shocked when he answered “Christian.” I said, “Really?” Not wanting to be rude I was careful in my tone when I asked, “Have you ever even been in a church?” I was not surprised at this answer, “No.”. So I ventured further, “So, on what basis do you consider yourself to be Christian?” He said, “Because I was born in a Christian country.” Seriously. He was not joking. He thought (and still thinks) that means he is Christian.
Ha! Some friends belong to a church with a strong dualistic theology, featuring a very active Satan fighting against the Creator - anyway, the point is they teach that the devil won’t abolish churches so much as rot them out from within ( thus, the need for constant vigilence in church lest the pastor or anyone try to water down their doctrines). They say to be especially wary of doctrines being rendered unimportant, sidelined, or just spiritualized into a practical meaninglessness —- rather than Satan actually trying to directly confront or destroy them. Result if not “on guard?” A church can become an empty shell of its former self. It’s like your friend!s thinking- he thinks he’s as much a Christian without church as those folks who are in it. Viz, he thinks there’s nothing in church of any value to him. Sadly, this is pretty accurate for many churches and synagogues in this modern age. I hope your friend happens to visit a “real” church someday, because if he just walks into any number of today’s secularized- liberal- progressive churches.... his perception ( that there’s nothing of value there) will only be reinforced.
Being born in a Christian country no more makes one a Christian than stepping into a church. Accepting Jesus Christ as one’s savior is what makes one a Christian. It’s a personal relationship, in which one chooses to serve God The Father, God The Son, and God The Holy Ghost.