So You're a Christian... What Does That Mean?

“And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.” Acts 11:26

Today we live in a world where almost anything seems to be defined as Christian or in the name of Christ.  Most in our society still identify themselves as Christian… yet most also don’t worship God with any regularity.
Most politicians claim to be Christians… That being said, why are we are not the least bit surprised when one of them lies or has an extra marital fling? How can this be? 

The Bible uses the term in only 3 places: Acts 11:26, 26:28, and I Peter 4:16.  At it’s simplest level, it means a follower of Christ. 

What does it mean when you call yourself a Christian, a follower of Christ?

The Precious Death of a Christian

"Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.  

O Lord, truly I am thy servant; I am thy servant, 

and the son of thine handmaid: thou hast loosed my bonds. 

I will offer to thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving, 

and will call upon the name of the Lord." (Psalm 116:15-17) 

After my last “jotting,”  I received word that a Christian lady that I had only once met was dying.  Last month the father of a dear friend, and a dear friend, who was the wife of a dear friend, (all Christians) had passed away.  Yet another friend sent me the linked video of a gospel preacher’s saying farewell to his congregation 5 days before his cancerous death… after preaching there for 40 years.  You can click here to listen to his last sermon.   

There is a beauty to knowing you have done the best you could with all integrity and now it is time to receive your reward.  Not because you are famous, but because your Lord knows you… and you know Him.  You are not just one of the endless hordes… you matter; God knows and cares for you.

We use euphemisms to try to soften every aspect of death.  On the contrary, our Lord teaches us to embrace it.  We cannot control death, that is why we fear it so.  We can cause it, but we cannot avoid it.  He has promised that we need not fear.