Welcome to Furnishing Faith, I'm glad you're here. My hope is that this place can be a source for your refreshment, an aid to regularly reorient your perspective on Christ, and a draw to think more deeply about the faith you hold. My name is Chris Jameson, and I'll regularly be posting prayers, devotionals, as well as pastoral and academic material which I have written in order to stir up faith in Christ followers everywhere. If you enjoy this, feel free to check out the other content I’ll be building on my page, or let a friend know about it.
In this first post I'd love to briefly write about what it is to be Christians, or bearers of Christ, and how one can remain standing under such a name, especially in a world so hostile to that which we carry. I've thought about this for some time, it's baked into me you see. I'd say that it's my middle name, but actually it's my first. My friends call me Chris, but my full name is Christopher, which is a combination of the Greek terms for "Christ" (Χριστος or christos) and "to bear" (φερω or "phero"), therefore Christ-opher means Christ-Bearer. Though my parents did not have this exact intent in naming me "Christ-Bearer," I have nonetheless often considered the weight that such a designation carries. A feeling which regularly accompanies these thoughts is a sense of intimidation, and a second guessing of myself. After all, it can seem like a bold thing to at any time declare oneself a Christ-bearer, with all that this must entail, but it is quite another thing to have this be the name by which all other people address you, I can assure you.
What if on all official documents, you were required to sign your name as "Christ-Bearer?" Can you imagine if instead of your given name, everyone in the world addressed you as "Christ-bearer?" "Christ-bearer, I'm hungry, could you spare any money? Christ-bearer, how did you spend your day? Christ-bearer, what do you think should be done about the immigration crisis?" However, it seems that Christ himself intended that we be recognizable by the general public. "By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another (Jn 13:35)." Paul said something similar, "Let your gentleness be apparent to all. The Lord is near (Philippians 4:5)." It seems apparent that we live in a time in which Christians are known for being anything but loving and gentle, even if this observation is sometimes made in bad faith. To be clear, I do not here seek to put an answer to what should be done to correct public perception of Christians. Instead, I aim to provide a sense of direction concerning how the life of faith may flourish even under such harsh conceptions.
Responsibility or Relief?
Being a Christ bearer is not merely a responsibility, but a great honor and a supreme comfort. Christ has put his very name upon you, Christian (Nm 6:23-27; Isa 43:6-7). Just as in marriage, we as the bride of Christ take the name of the bridegroom, and we bear it into the world (Eph 5:32). There is a sense of pride that comes with this, but also a deep sense of thankfulness and confidence in God's provision for and protection of those who bear his name. Though it may feel otherwise at times, to be called Christ bearer is no slur in truth, for it would be far worse for us to be identified by who we once were before Christ put his name upon us (1 Cor 6:11). Such is the wonderful blessing of the name of Christ that, as a value judgment, it definitively outweighs any and all reviling, ridicule, and wrath that may come as a result (1 Pt 4:14-16).
As a matter of fact, even as we can expect these things as a result of Christ's name upon us (Jn 15:18-21), our faith informs us that our expectations are to be set upon a glorious future hope (Prv 23:17-19; Ps 34:4-5; Heb 11:1; Rm 8:25). This hope is bearing fruit in your life, even now (Col 1:4-6). This is why Christ tells us unequivocally "Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you" (Mt 5:11-12). All of this simply means that when others would identify you as a Christ-bearer, even while breathing threats and disdain, the Lord of the Universe has said that this designation translates to "blessed, loved by God, approved, and inheritor of all things in Him." You, like me, may at times feel intimidated by the prospect of being publicly addressed by everyone at all times as "Christ-Bearer," but oh what a beautiful heritage, staggering love, and eternal reward are yours by that same name. Don't hide your identity Christian, for by it you are promised access to joy eternal under the name of Christ your savior who bled for you (Rm 5:9; Mt 26:28).