City Life Starter

Written by Paul Lane

The Word

²⁵ So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, ²⁶ and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians.

Acts 11:25-26 (ESV)

2 “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: ‘The words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands.

² “‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. ³ I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. ⁴ But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. ⁵ Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. ⁶ Yet this you have: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. ⁷ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.’

Revelation 2:1-7 (ESV)

Reflection

The passage this week contains a verse that I always think about for some reason, “And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians.”   I think I remember this sentence so easily because the first church I ever went to was Antioch Baptist Church, in St. Louis Missouri.  It was the church that my father, and his twelve brothers and sisters, grew up in.  So, it was the church we went to; which means that I too was first called a Christian in Antioch.

But what does it mean to be called a Christian? There have been lots of teachings about how the word Christian meant “little Christ.”  It was a derogatory term that non-Christians used for those who followed Jesus.  Mockingly they might say, “oh you are just trying to be like that Christ guy that got killed.”  However, instead of shrinking back from the insult, the early Christians would say, “yeah, that’s right.”  The insult was not enough to cause them to shrink back from their love of the Lord, and they would not want to miss the opportunity to be associated with Him.

But over time, some did start to shrink back, to avoid the insult.  It is to those Christians that John’s first love revelation was addressed.  They were still Christians.  They still loved the Lord.  They had just gotten distracted by the wants and pressures of this world.  So, God called them back to their first love; to a love that is not ashamed to be identified with Christ.  It is a kind of love that holds the gaze between the lover and the loved, neither wanting to be the first to break off.  It is God’s wooing us back to the beginning. 

Application

What are some things you did when you first became a Christian?  Were you a fiery young Chirstian, preaching and trying to get everyone saved?  Or were you a behind the scene Christian, looking for any opportunity to pitch in and do you part?  Or were you praying for everything and believing that God would move and do miracles at any moment?

Now that you are so old, perhaps you’ve gained some wisdom, but lost some of that fire.  It need not be the case.  Wisdom does not prevent you from living out your love for the Lord.  Perhaps it mainly helps you with timing and hearing what the Lord is saying.  Think about when you first became a Christian.  Find some friends and tell them some of those stories.  Before you know it, you might find something reawakening in you.  Listen to the Lord and embrace it.

Prayer

The Lord’s Faithfulness Endures Forever

117 Praise the Lord, all nations!
    Extol him, all peoples!
² For great is his steadfast love toward us,
    and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.
Praise the Lord!

Psalm 117:1-2 (ESV)