THE DISCIPLES WERE CALLED CHRISTIANS

3/22/2022

March 22 - Start Your Day Right Devotion

Acts 11:25-26 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.

THE DISCIPLES WERE CALLED CHRISTIANS

At that time, Antioch was perhaps the largest and most important city in the eastern region of the Roman Empire. As a result of the persecution and scattering of Christians, the gospel message had spread to this city and a strong church had arisen there. Barnabas and Paul spent a significant amount of time in Antioch teaching and training the believers there.
Up to that time, Christ’s followers in the early church called themselves “believers” (Acts 2:44; 4:32; 5:12; 9:41), “disciples” (Acts 6:1-2, 7; 9:1, 19, 26), those belonging to “the Way” (Acts 9:2; 19:9, 23; 24:14, 22), “saints” (Acts 9:13, 32; 26:10; 29 times in Paul’s letters) and the “church” (Greek ekklesia, “assembly”; Acts 5:11; 8:1, 3; 9:31). Not until the message of Christ spread to Antioch were Jesus’ followers called “Christians” – most likely by people outside the church.
The term probably originated as an insult to Christ’s followers, but they considered this name as a mark of honor because it directly identified them with Christ.
The word “Christian” (Greek christianos) occurs only three times in the New Testament (Acts 11:26; 26:28; 1 Peter 4:16). It originally was a term describing devoted servants and followers of Christ who were not afraid to separate themselves from the ungodliness, corruption, and immorality in society in order to identify with Christ. Today the term has become a general name applied to almost anyone who claims to believe in Jesus. As a result, the term has been nearly emptied to the original New Testament meaning. It should suggest the name of our Redeemer (Savior, spiritual rescuer and restorer, Romans 3:24) and the idea of our deep personal relation and devotion to Christ (Romans 8:38-39). It should suggest that we serve and obey Him without reservation as our eternal Lord (Romans 5:1) and Savior (Hebrews 5:9). To claim the name “Christian” should be a statement that Christ and His Word have become our supreme authority in life and that our aim is to be more like Jesus (Christlike). It should also suggest that he is our only source of future hope (Colossians 1:5, 27).

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