Done Being a Christian...

It was last January when I stood before about 300 students and leaders and told them, "I think I'm done being a Christian."

The name Christian first shows up in Acts 11:26 when the disciples are in Antioch. We don't really get clear explaination of how it was started. Some say it was intended to be an insulting term. Others say it was just a label.

Either way the term "Christian" was significant and rare at the time... literally meaning "Little Christ" or "belonging to Christ". It meant something. I'm more convinced than ever that in our world today the tag means very little in conjuction with who and what Jesus Christ is about.

Christian is a church attender
Chritian is a moral person
Christian is a political stance
Christian is a social club
Christian is an irrelavent member of society
Christian is a pro-life homo hater
Christian is a music label
Chistian is a believer, but not always a follower.

Some of those things have some relevance to what Jesus Christ is about, and some are a direct slap in the face of it all. The ones that are relevant seem to be more like the "gnats" that Jesus refers to in Matthew 23 compared to the "camels" that we need to make sure we're focusing in on.

So, back to January... the full quote. After saying what I said, I repeated myself. "I think I'm done being a Christian... I'm ready to be a Christ Follower."

I'm to the point that I try not to use the term "Christian." I still do, because the "little Christ" is a beautiful picture to me. Yet I'm recognizing that this world doesn't see a Christian the way I might.

May the church be more marked by "Christ Followers" than they are "Christians"

This little rant was brought to you by Christianity Today.