Our God is perfect. Christians are not.
We have messed up constantly over the years. Gandhi reputedly said something like this:
I would have become a Christian if it was not for Christians.
Yes, we have messed up. And at times we have, as individuals and collectively, misrepresented our Lord, displaying everything but the loving servant hearts He birthed in us. People like Gandhi have looked at us and they have seen the difference between our Scriptures and our actions. We have looked at one another and faced the disappointment of a brother or sister messing up. So much so that some of us have started saying, 'Please don't call me a Christian. I'll be a Jesus-follower.' Or something similar.
It would be a pity if we moved away from this beautiful name. I want the whole world to now that I am a Jesus follower. That I am His disciple. That I am His child. His servant. His friend.
And I want the whole world to know, broken as I am, that I am a Christian. Saved by grace through the simple act of placing my trust in Him. Nothing I did qualify me for His acceptance and to be called a Christian.
The name Christian was not chosen by Christians. It literally means "little Christ". The secular world around the early church saw what they were doing, recognized that they were doing similar things to what Jesus did and started calling them little Christs.
I think that is awesome!
Christ means 'chosen one'. Or THE one. So when we say Christian or little Christs we are saying little chosen ones
Even more awesome!
I often abbreviate this to 'little one'. As in 'Hi there, Little One' or 'How is it going, Little One?' Since I am bigger than most people, I get away with it. At times. But at other times people will ask and then I get to explain!
So here goes.
Thank you, Little One, for reading this blog. I pray that the One who chose you will in due course be fully formed in you. And that you will accurately reflect Him to this world. Not just by being amazing often. But by displaying His amazing grace to a desperate world.
