A Kingdom! Of Life and Intimacy, of Vulnerability and Love—not “Christians” per se.

“Never officially does the Bible refer to His People as ‘Christians.’ Christianity was never a term given to us by Jesus Christ or the apostles. The term ‘Christian’ was never to be a title or label that we wore, but a lifestyle that we live, demonstrating ‘Christ-likeness.” In essence, ‘Christian’ was supposed to be a description of the culture of the Kingdom being exhibited through our lives. This is why the first Believers were called ‘Christians’ by the early observers of their lifestyle, their power, their boldness and their Christ-like authority. We should stop trying so hard to live like ‘Christians’ and all of the false assumptions associated with that term, and instead focus more on living like sons and daughters of God, brothers and sisters of Christ, and citizens of the Kingdom of heaven. The Lord never originated or advanced the idea that those who have given their lives to Him as Messiah and King of Kings be referred to as ‘Christians.’ While the term is not bad in itself, it did not originate with Jesus or the apostles, but pagans, and now the term ‘Christian” has come to refer merely to an individual who adheres to, or sympathizes with, ‘the Christian faith.’

“The name ‘Christian’ was originally a derogatory label given by pagans to followers of Christ. [The word ‘Christian’ was not ever spoken or used until a decade after Pentecost, in a far away country from Jerusalem, Acts 11:26]. Of course, Believers through the centuries have generally accepted the term, regardless of its origin or use. The term ‘Christian’ [χριστιανους, χριστιανον, Χριστιανός] only occurs three times in the Scriptures. [This is QUITE odd, one must say, when an entire culture and religion uses this word ‘Christian’ so liberally—and almost exclusively—to describe themselves, what they are doing, and what they are ‘members of’’.]

“God’s Purpose was to establish relationship, not religion. As stated, earlier, religion is man’s search for God, and the Kingdom he lost. The original plan and purpose of God was to have a family of sons that He could relate to as a father to his children. A careful review of the principle set forth in Holy Scripture, which is the constitution of the Kingdom, will reveal this constant desire for personal and intimate relationship and fellowship that God desires with all mankind. All of His actions throughout history were extensions of Himself to us, as He desired to tabernacle or dwell with man. His ultimate goal was always to restore His original place with mankind. He wants sons, not servants or subjects; He wants citizens, not Christians; and He wants relationships, not religion.”


(Read this thought it was really worth posting here)
rdg

The Apostle Peter did jndeed refer to us as Christians. 1 Peter 4:16.

The kind of reductionism in this essay serves poorly. The urging to live as Christ is useful, but it assails the use of the term "Christian" without merit. Peter ratified it. It has power, as a word, by draping on us that contempt of the world that it drapes upon Jesus. We may be guilty of not emphasizing this enough to anyone who would repent and come to life in Christ, and we certainly do not embrace the idea as evangelicals or fundamentalists.

But, summing up "God's purposes" this way in a nebulous phrase like "God's purposes" is as unhelpful as the writer argues the word "Christian" is. And, the whole false pitting of the word "relationship" against the word "religion" is a horrible misstatement and shameful really.

Religion, the word, MEANS relationship. It means the binding together of persons in the strongest of bonds---the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. That is why James talks about the pure religion of binding ourselves together in aid and love to the widows and fatherless in the household of faith. Religion is not shorthand for legalism, works, self-righteousness or formalism; those who use the word in that way are defaming the work of the Holy Spirit in forming the relationships of God's people with Him and with one another. Unwittingly? Yes. But, that does not lessen the harm done.

What the writer describes as religion, James calls vain and false religion. It is not religion. It is a poser. That the writer misunderstands that causes his misunderstanding of the word Christian to stand out.

The objection to what I say here is this: People use the word religion to mean works-righteousness so that is what it means, and that we can only accept that the word has been redefined in this way. But, I respectfully disagree. Two issues arise.

One, we encounter the redefinition of other words that have fixed meaning and application if we allow a wonderful word like religion to be so redefined. Redemption, for example. It is also redefined to mean that we are saved from sin's penalty without being set apart (sanctified) from sin's power. This leads to what we see prevailing today in the church--Christians in name only, false converts who pray a prayer to punch their get out of hell free card and straightway walking away from the mirror that reveals their sinfulness and forgetting the work of Christ in them that their prayer pledged them to in the first place. They confidently boast their salvation but live like the devil. The church today treats this as the norm and says such people are redeemed. That is what redefinition does.

Second, we are telling the Holy Spirit that we know better than He does the meaning of what He says. If He guided James to write about what true religion is using the word itself, and if our word has the same historical meaning and application as James's own word for this thing, we are in danger if we start redefining the word to mean the opposite of what the Spirit says. It is arrogant and many other things. But, chiefly, it dethrones God as the definer of our thoughts. It is not overstatement to say so. I can say one name to prove the point: Joel Osteen. Our presumption to restate what God says so that His own words mean the opposite of what He says is what makes Osteen able to do what he does successfully.

The point is way larger and more far reaching than can be adequately stated in a post.

Christian....a good word that we gloss over its biblically historical meaning attached to suffering and ridicule and we should emphasize it more to would be believers and everyone else who does believe.

Religion....a good word that is the essence and not the antithesis of our relationship in Christ to Him and to each other.

Reductionism....a false, oversimplified form of knowledge that exalts itself against God and needs to be rejected as a way of thinking.

Redefinition....the cultural embrace of perversion of God's words to us so that they mean the opposite of what God says; a Satanic attack that we are eager to approve, but we must learn to recognize and not fear to oppose it.

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Tim

still think its worth reading and posting. sorry you did not get from it what God was showing me but oh well.

rdg

Wonderfully put brother Tim! Thank you for taking the time to help clear up the "verbal laziness" that has become so widespread in the evangelical world. Another word that I feel we sadly mix up and incorrectly use quite often is the word guilt vs condemnation, where it is used interchangeably and thus "guilt" made to seem like a bad thing and something that Christians shouldn't feel which we know clearly from scripture is false. The correct use of words has tremendous importance and significance because it is an essential component to rightly understanding the Word of God, let alone forming one's world view. And on the "flipside" I believe that it is the redefinition of words that has contributed significantly to the many errors and false teachings we see so rampant today. But yeah, it is quite remarkable to see how even our dictionaries have changed so much in the past couple decades. One can't help but wonder what the future holds and what the full impact of all this will be in the end. Thank God for His sovereign grace...where would we be without it, haha...man...

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Will

Also, a thought that came to mind:
'Religion' without relationship is empty moralism, whereas 'relationship' without religion is lawless idolatry. In biblical Christianity, the two must go hand in hand, and are pretty much two sides of the same coin.

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Will

rdg,

It was the writer that I disagreed with. Truly, his intent I believe was good....we must seek Jesus, love Him, and leave what is dead and abandon any thought of our merit.

I would like.......if you would share.....to hear your heart about what God said to you through it and what He is saying to you today.

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Tim

Thank you for your post. The article is well written and was refreshing to read. When people ask me what my religion is I'm trying to tell them that I don't have a religion, I know a person and his name is Jesus. Through Him we can be right with God again and call Him "our Father"

by markuskiwi on 2014/12/10 1:31:37

Thank you for your post. The article is well written and was refreshing to read. When people ask me what my religion is I'm trying to tell them that I don't have a religion, I know a person and his name is Jesus. Through Him we can be right with God again and call Him "our Father"

(thanks so much for your reply. that was exactly what God was showing me as i read it. really made my morning to read what you posted. rdg)

tim

its about knowing Jesus, He is a person and its about relationship with Him not all the trappings that religion wants to ensnare us in. Jesus as Head of the body, we as members fellow shipping one to another daily, serving, laying down our lives for one another. its about having His heart and understanding what it means to call another brother or sister even though there is no blood relation just the bond we share in Jesus. its about learning and growing together in Him with out regard to schedules, meetings times, or traditions of men. its about being so connected to Him and those He gives around us that if need be in a moment you could stand back and say i have a hundred mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters and know they will be there for you just as you would for them. its about relationship with Jesus as Lord, King, and me surrendering all to Him.

i have not found that in religion, but i know its there in the family of believers, those who follow Jesus with out regard for their own lives.

just some of the things God put on my heart as i read what I posted. rdg

And, rdg, I long for it too.

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Tim