Acts 11:26 And when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.
The believers in Antioch were given the gospel about 9 years after Pentecost. They believed through the witness of those that were scattered from Jerusalem after the stoning of Stephen. They were the first followers of Christ to be identified as Christians. They were people that may have been Jews or Grecians, from Cyprus or Cyrene, however their were identified as followers of Christ.
We can get our identity from many places in our lives, work, home, hobbies or even life experiences. People may identify themselves as cancer survivors or as a veteran. But, will we identify ourselves as a Christian first. We can allow circumstances define or identify us, but as a child of God our identity should be foremost as a follower of the Lord.
While our son Johnny was still alive we were identified by many as, Johnny’s Mom or Dad. That is how people knew us, we wore it pretty well. But, we self-Identified with Christ. He is, after all, the most important part of our lives. We were following Christ while being Johnny’s Mom and Dad. We hope that people could see Christ in us through the years.
How are we identified today? People around us have an opinion of us, or a way that they would identify us. But, how do we self-identify today? Are we following Christ? Would people look at us and see Christ in us? Do we get our identity from who we are in the Lord?
If you have Christ as your Savior, you are a child of the King. Let that be our identity today. Be a follower of Christ!!
Love it, thank you!