Have you ever tried to define the term “Christian”?
Has anyone ever asked you too?
Do you know how, why and when we got the term Christian and who gave it to us?
All three of those questions were asked to the Jr. High youth group on Sunday nights and the Sr. High Sunday school class as expected, many different responses came out, not one of them which was wrong, but while the first two of those three seemed to be pretty easy to answer, the third one seemed to be a struggle. So, without looking, I ask you the same question. “How/why/when did we get the “name” Christian?
Give up?
In Acts chapter 11 verses 25 & 26, it says “Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.” Now, popular belief and research puts this around 45 A.D. or around 10 to 15 years after Christ Ascended! So, now that we know the when, let’s get to the How and Why. It’s obvious (hopefully) that the term Christian came into existence because they were people that were now following the ways and teachings of Jesus, The Christ. But why was it given? Why are we referred to as Christians? Why we are not still referred to as Jews or Gentiles? Have you ever wondered that? (Maybe, maybe not) but it really struck me a couple weeks ago while I was preparing lessons. So I did a little research on it and found a thought that really stuck with me, in my ESV Study Bible it says “…the fact that the disciples were first called Christian in Antioch probably reflects a label applied by the unbelieving public in Antioch and shows that the disciples were beginning to have an identity of their own apart from other Jews.” Now some of you may know/remember that I do like looking up the literal definitions of words, so, according to the amazingly wise Webster, a disciple is “…a person who is a pupil or an adherent of the doctrines of another… “It also says “any follower of Christ.” I hope I’m not the only person who likes those definitions.
So, what does that all mean? They were called Christians back in 45 A.D. because they had a “different identity” then the common person (Jew or Unbeliever.) They didn’t subscribe anymore to the idea that you could only take a certain number of steps on the Lords Day but instead they couldn’t help but go out and share how they were different, and how great it was to have a new identity in Christ.
So, how is your indentity? Better yet, What is your indentity? Do we have an easily indentifiable one or are we just another "Bi-Polar Christian" Having a great mood every Sunday morning for everyone to see, but then every other day of the week we are just like every other person. Shouldn't the people we come in contact with on a daily basis say "man, that person is different, and it's a breath of fresh air." Isn't that was Christianity should be? A Breath of Fresh Air from the dirty, mundane experiences of the every day world?
Are we helping others discover a new identity by showing ours? or re-discovering a past identity?
I hope we are...
I truly hope I am
