What's in a name?

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet." ~ Juliet Capulet (William Shakespeare)

During his inaugural address the President spoke about America "as a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus--and non-believers" trying to point to the diversity of our nation. But in April 2009 during a visit to Turkey he created a stir when he said that the United States "does not consider itself a Christian nation or a Jewish nation or a Muslim nation" but "a nation of citizens who are bound by ideals and a set of values." This was met with consternation and rebuttal from all corners. How dare someone question the Christian heritage and virtues that were the basis for which our nation was formed! The pundits and politicos made hay with this statement and even those from the "religious" community were wringing their hands with despair.

In Shakespeare's classic play "Romeo and Juliet" we see the two star-crossed lovers deal with the problem of their name. Juliet was a Capulet and Romeo was a Montague; two families that were embroiled in a deadly feud. The famous quote of Juliet; "what's in a name" speaks to her feeling that a name is an artificial and meaningless convention and that love conquers all. But are names or labels meaningless and trivial or do words have meaning?

In his classic book "Mere Christianity" C.S. Lewis addresses this very issue in the Preface. He acknowledges that when we use the word "Christian" we all assume that this applies to anyone who "accepts the common doctrines of Christianity." He goes on to address those who would object about who or what determines who this label can be applied, and that we tend to use it in a way that shows charitableness or sensitivity to others rather than see if the name really applies. He uses the example of the word gentleman and how it used to mean someone with a coat of arms, land or means and was not applied to behavior or actions. He rightly points out that the term gentleman has now become a useless word because we apply it indiscriminately, and it has different meanings for different people. He states; "When a word ceases to be a term of description and becomes merely a term of praise, it no longer tells you facts about the object: it only tells you about the speaker's attitude to that object."

Lewis continues this discussion pointing out the difference between fact and opinion when it comes to the term "Christian." The term was first used in Acts 11:26 to identify those who had accepted the teachings of Jesus Christ through His disciples. The word was originally meant as a term of derision by Roman society, but was willingly embraced by those desiring to be identified with Jesus Christ. In it's simplest terms it means "of the party of Christ", but anyone who has spent any time reading about the 1st century church during the rule of Nero can tell you that identification with Jesus Christ was anything but a party.

Over the weekend I picked up a book by Craig Hartman called "Through Jewish Eyes" which talks about the early Jewish roots of Christianity. Hartman, who is a Jewish Christian points out that the term Christian is a transliteration or a word taken from another language, in this case Greek, and it is massaged to make it fit into our language. The word Christian appears three places in the New Testament and in the Greek it is the word Christianous. Hartman states that it comes from the root word Christos and that the suffix -anous means "to belong to" or "to be of". So the word Christian literally means someone who belongs to Jesus Christ; and this ownership extends to every aspect of our life and existence. Hartman rightly states; "What I call myself is important, and what God calls me is even more important. Though words seem to be less meaningful today because people use language so loosely, words do mean something, especially when God uses them."

Hartman points out that the Bible, God's Word defines a Christian as; "someone who believes in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (with a true heart surrender) and belongs to or follows the Hebrew Messiah, the anointed one of God sent through the nation of Israel to be a blessing to all the nations by His redemptive work of sacrifice." He goes on to say; "That name is the proclamation God made about the believers in Antioch. They belonged to and followed the Hebrew Messiah, and they trusted with complete faith in the depth of their hearts that only by faith could they enter heaven. Anyone who does not fit this definition is simply not a Christian but rather a "claimer," claiming to be something he or she is not, even if that person is well intentioned."

Maybe the President was not so far off. Are we truly a "Christian nation" by God's definition rather than our own? To call ourselves Christians means that we are identifying ourselves with Jesus Christ and that requires our complete allegiance to His will and His rule as our Savior and our Lord. If we claim the name Christian are we willing to be identified with Jesus Christ and share the Gospel with others? Do we know what God expects of those that claim to "be of Christ"? If we do not know what responsibilities come along with the name wouldn't it behoove us to search God's Word and find out? Are we claimers or are we Christians?

"And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. "I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do." ~ John 17:3-4