Hello friend: I’m Mack Lyon. The program’s a nationwide Bible study program “In Search of the Lord’s Way.” We’re presented here by some churches of Christ in the broadcast area of this station. The word “Christian” evokes different ideas about Christianity. Many of these ideas are quite different from what the New Testament teaches about it. What is authentic Christianity really like? Phil Sanders has a message for us today on what God’s Word says about Christianity. So don’t go away.
Thank you, Mack, and God be with you! Hello, I’m Phil Sanders and this is In Search of the Lord’s Way, where we search the Scriptures to find the Lord’s way of life and salvation. Thanks for spending this time with us. And we love hearing from you that you are watching or listening. We want you to be a part of our life each week.
If you ask “what is Christianity?” people will give you all kinds of opinions. They will tell you what they think Christianity is or what they wished it were. People see Christianity historically and socially as it appears in America; but if that’s all they ever see, they may never know what Christianity is all about from a biblical standpoint. Today we’re exploring the question, “What is authentic Christianity?” Is the Christianity we see in America today what God intended when He sent Jesus into the world? In the early days Christians were known among themselves as “brethren,” “the faithful,” “the elect,” “saints” (and by the way, all of them were called saints), and were also called “believers.” But people outside the church called them “Christians.” Once this word came into use, it was universally accepted.
You might think the word “Christian” would occur frequently in the New Testament, but this name only occurs three times. The word “Christian” refers to an individual who “belongs to Christ.” Originally words that ended in the letters “i-a-n” applied to slaves belonging to the great households; it had passed into regular use to refer to followers of an individual or a party. Some Bible dictionaries define the word Christian as “The name given by Greeks or Romans, probably in reproach, to the followers of Jesus. It was first used at Antioch.” But the name “Christian” is far more than that as we are going to see.
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Well, Ken Helterbrand’s going to lead us now, and lead the Edmond Church as they sing; and then we’ll read from Acts chapter 26, verses 24 to 29.
Our reading today comes from the Acts of the Apostles chapter 26, verses 24 to 29. “Now as he thus made his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, “Paul, you are beside yourself! Much learning is driving you mad! But he said, I am not mad, most noble Festus, but speak the words of truth and reason. For the king, before whom I also speak freely, knows these things; for I am convinced that none of these things escapes his attention, since this thing was not done in a corner. King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you do believe. Then Agrippa said to Paul, You almost persuade me to become a Christian. And Paul said, I would to God that not only you, but also all who hear me today, might become both almost and altogether such as I am, except for these chains.” This is from the Word of God. Let’s pray together. Father, we are grateful for the death of Jesus for our sins, and we pray that all people would almost and altogether become a Christian. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
The first time the word “Christian” is used in the New Testament is in the book of Acts chapter 11, verses 25 and 26. And the Bible says, “So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. And for a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians.” The word for “called” here is the word chrematisai, not the common word in Greek for “called” which is the word kalleo. Now, chrematisai refers to a divinely revealed name or instruction. You see the name “Christian” did not come from men as a term of reproach, oh no! It came from God in fulfillment of the prophecy found in Isaiah 62 and verse 2 that: “The nations will see your righteousness, And all kings your glory; And you will be called by a new name, Which the mouth of the Lord will designate.”
To call myself a Christian means that I’m a servant of Christ. I wear his name, follow his teachings, call upon him as my Lord, and share in his spiritual and moral way of life. A disciple is a person who imitates his master, becomes like him in manner, in speech, in mind, and in behavior. The disciples were called Christians. Now both words, the word “disciple” and the word “Christians,” show the close relationship between the Lord Jesus and those who follow him. I’m happy and honored to wear the name of Jesus Christ. I love him and want to wear his name; and I don’t mind the world knowing that I’m his servant.
The second time the word Christian is used is also found in the book of Acts. In chapter 26 as we mentioned, Paul is defending his faith before the governor Felix and the Jewish king Herod Agrippa. And Paul said in Acts 26, verses 27 to 29, “King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you believe.” And Agrippa said to Paul, “In a short time would you persuade me to be a Christian?” And Paul said, “Whether short or long, I would to God that not only you but also all who hear me this day might become such as I am—except for these chains.” Paul wished everyone was a Christian, and so do I. My friend, I hope you are a Christian.
People choose to be Christians; did you hear that? They choose to be Christians! Nobody is born a Christian. We might be born into a family of Christians, but that doesn’t make a person a Christian. We have to decide for ourselves. We must be born again to be a Christian. And we do that when by faith we decide to follow Christ and to be baptized. The Bible says in Romans 6, verses 16 to 18, “Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, that you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness? But God, thanks be to God rather, that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.” You see, you become a Christian by your heartfelt obedience to the gospel. And each of us must choose to believe.
The Bible teaches us in Ephesians about the transformation that takes place when a person becomes a Christian. Ephesians 4, verses 17 to 24 says: “Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their mind. Why they are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. But that is not the way you learned Christ!—assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and then to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on this new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”
Ah, there is a great change that takes place when a person decides to become a Christian. He leaves the old sinful way of life, a way that’s darkened and futile; and he puts on a new way of life that’s patterned after Jesus Christ. A Christian who loves the Lord no longer wants to live the way the world lives. He sees an abundant life that is higher and nobler than his old way. Christianity is the way that people become new people. They’re no longer darkened in their understanding, living callous and impure lives. Now in Christ, they’ve learned a better way, full of love and good deeds. People learn Christ, and as they grow in knowledge their lives become better and better.
The third Scripture that mentions the name “Christian” is 1 Peter 4, verses 15 and 16. Now these verses say: “But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name.” Now, here the Bible says that one should not be ashamed of being a Christian but to glorify God in that name, that God-given name that associates us with Jesus Christ our Lord. Christians in those days were undergoing great persecution and Peter was revealing to them that they would face this. I could see how some of them might feel hesitant to admit that they were Christians, especially if they acted sinfully. But wearing the name of Christ honorably glorifies God. And this is truly the name that God designates for his people.
The apostle Paul, like Peter, was willing to endure whatever shame and punishment necessary in order to preach the gospel and to serve the Lord Jesus. Paul felt obligated to serve the Lord in a pagan society; and so he said in Romans 1, verses 14 to 16 that, “I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. So, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome. For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” Now no one has to be ashamed of the gospel of the Lord Jesus, because of all the good that Christ does in their lives.
A Christian doesn’t have to be ashamed when he wakes up without a hangover. A Christian doesn’t have to be ashamed that he tells the truth, that he keeps his word, that he practices what is right, and that he loves his neighbor. The way of Christians is God’s way, God’s plan to bless all of mankind. And that’s why Christians are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. They’re God’s people making a difference for good and right in an evil world; and in their lives they prove what the will of God is, that which is “good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12 and verse 2).
Well, what does it mean to be a Christian? It means: I don’t belong to me; I totally belong to my Lord Jesus Christ. I give him first place in my life. I believe what he teaches. I practice a life that imitates him. He loves, so I love. He gives of himself, so I give of myself. He avoids evil, so I avoid evil. He kept his heart right, so I keep my heart right. To belong totally to Christ is a radical notion. And the reason many people wonder what a Christian is arises from the fact that many so-called Christians play with the notion of following Christ but never fully embrace the idea that we fully belong to him and not to ourselves.
Many people think that being a Christian is a great thing until it interferes with what they want to do. They are willing to let God be a part of their lives, but they’re not willing to follow Jesus when they don’t agree with him or they don’t like what he asks of them. Oh, they like Jesus until he interferes with their freedom to live as they please. Well, such people may call themselves Christians, but they are only fair-weather Christians. The Bible says in 1 Peter 1, verses 18 and 19, “knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, that of a lamb without blemish or spot.” The Lord Jesus paid his precious blood to save you and to redeem you from sin and, yes, from hell. What he has done for you will give you things that will far outweigh any earthly pleasure. We all ought to count it an honor to belong to Jesus.
The Bible says in Colossians 1, verses 13 and 14, “For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” Jesus took us from sin and darkness and brought us into the kingdom of hope and peace and promise. He rescued us from an evil world and brought us to the love of God. How could we imagine living ungodly lives, when we consider all that he has done for us? 1 Corinthians 6, verses 19 and 20 says, “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.”
In the book of Philippians Paul described himself in chapter one and verse one as a bond-servant of Christ Jesus. To be a bond-servant, a slave, means that I’m a slave to my Lord. The Lord owns me and He has a right to make important decisions that affect my life, decisions that I can’t change or overrule. And we’re certainly not political servants of anyone, but, you see, Christianity is not a democracy. It’s a kingdom. And Jesus Christ is the King of kings and the Lord of lords. He is the one in charge, and we must give our hearts to him.
So much of what people think of as “Christianity” is changed from what Jesus meant for it to be into what they want. People have filled it full of human creeds and human traditions so that it hardly resembles his divinely revealed will in the New Testament. For many people Christianity is like a smorgasbord from which they can pick and choose what they like. You pick the kind of Jesus you want. You pick the kind of church you like. You pick what you want to believe and leave the rest alone. Well, that kind of religion is not the Christianity of the Bible; it’s not the kind of Christianity that God wants, but the kind that people manufacture for themselves.
Now, New Testament Christianity is built upon the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ! It’s built on the truth, the Word, because God never lies. Jesus loves us so much that He willingly died for us. His grace and forgiveness are available to every one of us. And He is Lord of all mankind. His words are the final authority for our lives; and His promises are open to all who will obey Him; and, my friend, He is coming again to judge the world in righteousness.
Biblical Christianity is the most exciting, fulfilling, powerful, and loving life imaginable. To have Jesus as Lord and Savior and God as our Father is the best life with the best mission and the best result. God wants us to spread the good word to everyone. In Mark 16, verses 15 and 16 Jesus said “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.” Ah, Jesus is in the saving business, and His church is the way that He spreads the gospel to everyone. Let’s pray. Father, help us to live our lives according to the teaching of Your word, and may our Christianity be genuine and authentic according to that teaching. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
People often define Christianity unfairly. Many don’t understand the Christianity of the New Testament. Talk to some about Christianity and they bring up the crusades or witch trials. But neither the crusades or the Salem witch trials or the inquisition reflect New Testament Christianity. Titles, robes, cathedrals and icons don’t show the simple New Testament Christianity. Monasteries, incense, sitting on flagpoles, vows of silence and forced celibacy don’t reflect the Christianity of the Bible. Worship concerts, egg hunts, enterprises, and fake healings have nothing to do with the Biblical Christianity. If you want to know what real Christianity is, look in the Scriptures. The New Testament gives God’s truth about Christianity.
New Testament Christianity is God’s way to bless this world with love, with purity, with grace, with hope, and with heaven. Titus 2, verses 11 to 14 says, “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.”
Are you one of the redeemed? Have you become a Christian? To become one, believe with all your heart that Jesus in the Christ, repent of your sins, confess the name of Christ, and be baptized. Baptism is an immersion in water in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And when you’re baptized, the Lord will wash away your sins and add you to his church. He’ll rescue you out of the domain of darkness and transfer you into His kingdom. Don’t let even one day go by outside of Christ or true Christianity.
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Now, please visit one of the churches of Christ in the area served by this station or network. They’re the reason that we don’t ask for money. They support us; and they love guests, and you’ll be glad you visited. Well, Mack and I will be back next week, Lord willing. So keep searching God’s Word with us and tell a friend about the program. Ah, we want you to know God bless you and we love you from all of us at In Search of the Lord’s Way.
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