MetamoraPatter
MetamoraPatter
This is an article I had published this week in our local newspaper.
WHY WERE THEY CALLED CHRISTIANS?
BY PAT GULLEY
Acts 11:26
And when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch. (KJV)
The disciples were called Christians first in Antioch. The terms “Disciples” and “Christians” are still used today. But what really caught my attention was the ‘first’ time the disciples were called “CHRISTIANS.” I have heard it said that it might have been intended more as an insult than a compliment.
But let’s see what had happened the year before that brought such a name on the disciples. The Gospel of Jesus Christ was preached only to the Jews for the first few years after Calvary. And we know that Peter was the first one to take the Gospel to the non-Jews when he went to Cornelius’ household when the Church was about ten years old. (Acts 10) At this same time, there was much persecution in Jerusalem because so many Jews were calling on Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. The Jewish Priesthood was very unset. The persecution got so great that many believers left town and went to other cities with the Good News of salvation. (Phenice, Cyprus and Antioch)
Those who went to Antioch preached the Gospel to the Grecians and many of them believed and received Jesus as their Lord. When the Apostles in Jerusalem heard the glad tidings of the great outpouring of God’s Grace on people of other nations, they sent Barnabas to Antioch to Pastor these young believers, and to encourage them to cleave unto the Lord with all their heart. When Barnabas arrived he saw the new disciples and realized he needed help to minister to them. He immediately sent for Saul (Paul) at Tarsus to come and work with him because he had met Saul in Damascus and was impressed with his love for the Lord, and with his knowledge of the Law of Moses and of the Psalms and Prophets.
Saul arrived in Antioch and ministered to the Church with Barnabas, and after only one year, the disciples were being called CHRISTIANS. WHY? What had happened to these non-Jewish believers that they were being associated with the name of Jesus Christ?
The New Testament had not yet been written. All they had as their BIBLE was the Old Testament. But these Holy Scriptures were filled with the promises of God concerning the coming Messiah. They read about Jesus Christ from Genesis to Malachi. (Many Bibles have these prophecies marked with a backward P) Their hearts and their minds were filled with knowledge and they perceived the plan of God for the human race. The Lord had fulfilled his Promise to Adam and to Abraham. (Gen 3, 12:1-3) They believe it and they lived it. They were called Christians because they had been taught the WORD and The Word renewed their mind, their talk and their walk. (Rom 12:1-2)
The Greek work for Christian is “CHRISTIANOS”. ‘Christ’ means “anointed” and ‘nous’ means MIND. In other words, a Christian is one who has the mind of Christ. When Paul wrote his letters to the Churches, he told the Corinthians in 1Co 2:16, “we have the mind of Christ”, and in the letter to the Philippians he said, (2:5) “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ.”
To let, means to allow. Allow the Holy Spirit to renew your mind by the knowledge of the Word of God. Receive the Word. Believe the Word. Be a Christian. Amen.
This is an article I had published this week in our local newspaper.
WHY WERE THEY CALLED CHRISTIANS?
BY PAT GULLEY
Acts 11:26
And when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch. (KJV)
The disciples were called Christians first in Antioch. The terms “Disciples” and “Christians” are still used today. But what really caught my attention was the ‘first’ time the disciples were called “CHRISTIANS.” I have heard it said that it might have been intended more as an insult than a compliment.
But let’s see what had happened the year before that brought such a name on the disciples. The Gospel of Jesus Christ was preached only to the Jews for the first few years after Calvary. And we know that Peter was the first one to take the Gospel to the non-Jews when he went to Cornelius’ household when the Church was about ten years old. (Acts 10) At this same time, there was much persecution in Jerusalem because so many Jews were calling on Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. The Jewish Priesthood was very unset. The persecution got so great that many believers left town and went to other cities with the Good News of salvation. (Phenice, Cyprus and Antioch)
Those who went to Antioch preached the Gospel to the Grecians and many of them believed and received Jesus as their Lord. When the Apostles in Jerusalem heard the glad tidings of the great outpouring of God’s Grace on people of other nations, they sent Barnabas to Antioch to Pastor these young believers, and to encourage them to cleave unto the Lord with all their heart. When Barnabas arrived he saw the new disciples and realized he needed help to minister to them. He immediately sent for Saul (Paul) at Tarsus to come and work with him because he had met Saul in Damascus and was impressed with his love for the Lord, and with his knowledge of the Law of Moses and of the Psalms and Prophets.
Saul arrived in Antioch and ministered to the Church with Barnabas, and after only one year, the disciples were being called CHRISTIANS. WHY? What had happened to these non-Jewish believers that they were being associated with the name of Jesus Christ?
The New Testament had not yet been written. All they had as their BIBLE was the Old Testament. But these Holy Scriptures were filled with the promises of God concerning the coming Messiah. They read about Jesus Christ from Genesis to Malachi. (Many Bibles have these prophecies marked with a backward P) Their hearts and their minds were filled with knowledge and they perceived the plan of God for the human race. The Lord had fulfilled his Promise to Adam and to Abraham. (Gen 3, 12:1-3) They believe it and they lived it. They were called Christians because they had been taught the WORD and The Word renewed their mind, their talk and their walk. (Rom 12:1-2)
The Greek work for Christian is “CHRISTIANOS”. ‘Christ’ means “anointed” and ‘nous’ means MIND. In other words, a Christian is one who has the mind of Christ. When Paul wrote his letters to the Churches, he told the Corinthians in 1Co 2:16, “we have the mind of Christ”, and in the letter to the Philippians he said, (2:5) “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ.”
To let, means to allow. Allow the Holy Spirit to renew your mind by the knowledge of the Word of God. Receive the Word. Believe the Word. Be a Christian. Amen.
posted by Metamora Patter at 2/23/2005 11:28:00 AM
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