When were you first called a Christian?

By Tim Hallman
Acts 11:26

The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.

When were you first called a Christian? Where were you when you were publicly declared a Christian? Have you always grown up with that title? Was it something given to you as a child? Did you choose that label as an adult? Do you ever pause to consider what it means to be called a Christian?

Antioch was like an ancient Chicago, a massive trading center on the crossroads of the region. It was a place of great wealth, powerful merchants, famous politicians, and lots of infamy. Antioch was home to a variety of ethnic groups including many Jews. And this included some Jews who had come to trust in Jesus, who they called Lord and Messiah.

The name "Christ" is the Greek word for the Hebrew word "Messiah." Both words mean "anointed one." Whatever the Greek word means, it takes its identity from the Hebrew word and it's context. The Hebrew idea of Messiah is rooted in the hope that God would send a deliverer to Israel, get them out of exile and then rule them justly, with mercy, in humility. 

The Messiah, as the anointed one of God, would come from the line of King David, thus the rightful one to lead the restored nation. Jewish communities, scattered all over the Mediterranean world due to exile and banishment, longed to be reunited in the Promised Land. It'd been a long time since Israel was a sovereign nation, able to freely abide by Torah, observe the Sabbath unpersecuted, and worship in the Temple without harassment.

Some Jewish men and women, as you know, came to believe that Jesus was the Messiah. Based on what they saw Jesus do, what they heard him say, and what they experienced through his death and resurrection, put their faith in him as the anointed one. And this put them at odds with other Jews who remained unconvinced of his identity as God's Messiah for Israel.

Some of those unbelieving Jews were motivated by their desire to keep political or religious power, or their wealth. Others were sincere Jews for whom Jesus did not fit their preconceived notions of what their Messiah ought to do. Jesus the Messiah undercut the power of the elite and confused the hearts of the pious.

The Jewish families who came to the conclusion that Jesus was indeed Israel's deliverer came to be seen as still part of Judaism, but part of a sect. These Jesus-Jews still observed Torah, still kept Sabbath, still ate kosher, still worshipped at the Temple and visited the synagogue. But they did all of this believing that YHWH, the God of Israel, had sent Jesus of Nazareth to be the One to rescue them from exile.

Israel had been in exile to Assyria, then Babylon, then Persia, then Greece, and now Rome. Four-hundred years later, Jewish families were ready for freedom from oppression, the grinding poverty was wearing them out spiritually and physically.

One the Day of Pentecost, when Jerusalem was full of Jewish men and women from thousands of miles away in every direction, the Spirit of YHWH swept into town. Tens of hundreds of Jews came to believe that Jesus really was the Messiah. All the evidence for his identity as God's anointed one which they had been weighing in their hearts and mind came to a trusting conclusion. Now there was a city full of Jewish Jesus followers, they were a community to be reckoned with. But what to call them?

In Antioch, ten to twenty years after the resurrection and ascension of Jesus, the crowds finally settle on a name for the Jews (and now Gentiles) who believed. What set these Jews apart from their fellow Jews was their belief about Jesus: that he was the Messiah, the Christ, the true King of Israel. It's a particularly dividing belief, especially when you mention this king's crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension. Jesus was the Christ you couldn't see.

Obviously there were endless ways to mock the early Christians for what they believed. But then why did the movement continue to grow? Not only were these Jesus-followers famous for their belief in his being the Christ, but because they imitated the way of the Christ. (The "Way" used to be their other name, until "Christian" stuck.) These Christ-ians or Messiah-ians became famous for their love of neighbor, their compassion for the poor, their integrity in business, their trustworthiness in community. People could question the identity of Jesus as Christ, but they had a hard time arguing with the works of Christians done in the name of the resurrected and ascended King of Israel.

In Antioch, city of immigrants and merchants and soldiers and vagrants, Christians earned their name. They knew what they saw when Jesus was killed, buried, and raised up. These Christians grasped what God was now doing in the world. In the name of Jesus the Christ, they went about their life, in the big cities and little villages. Yes they were at times mocked for believing in the resurrection and ascension. But they were also given assurance again and again that the life of Jesus and the promises of God gave birth to light amidst the darkness of a very pagan land full of dark idols and unending empires.

What makes you a Christian? Why are you still a Christian? What is it about Jesus that still compels you to follow Him? What makes you thankful to be known as a Christian? What makes you ashamed? What's the best contribution you can make to our world in the name of Christ?

Find the Poor, Find God's Ears

By Tim Hallman
Acts 10:30-43

Cornelius, God has heard your prayer and remembered your gifts to the poor.


What's it take to get God to answer our prayers?

How many times have you prayed to God for him to help you out, and you got nothing?

How come some people always seem to get their prayers answered, but you come up empty?

If you're really honest, you really don't want God to answer your prayers. What you really want is for your life to be convenient, pain-free, prosperous, and always happy. You don't really want God's will to prevail in your life, you want God to prop up your life aspirations. Thus, God rarely answers your prayers. He probably doesn't even hear most of your prayers.


Be honest: you don't even really care about God. You care about yourself - and you are interested in God as long as he helps you further your plans for yourself.

I'm not trying to be harsh or judgmental, I'm just attempting to be really honest with you concerning myself. The paragraph above is unfortunately true for me at times. Is it ever for you?

Cornelius had offered up many prayers, he had given many gifts to the poor before his encounter with God. Timing is everything. God hears the prayers of those that are willing to be patient with him and kind to the poor. God is on the side of the poor. If you want to know the heart of God, get to know the poor - more than that, start to love the poor around you.

If your prayers are really about ways to honor God and less about furthering your agenda for your life, then you don't mind how much time it takes for an answer. If you are tapped into the heart of God, your prayers go up in confidence and trust. The prayer and it's answer are more about God's work in the world than my will. And to the degree that I have a heart for the poor, I'll have more of a heart for God.

And as I grow a bigger heart for the poor, I'll learn to offer up bigger prayers with more heart.

As I reflect on this story with Cornelius, I am forced to reconsider the way God works in this world. Cornelius is the Roman, a soldier - the face of an Empire. Rome is famous for their political innovations and military might. Rome brought "peace" with a sword and a cross. Cornelius carried a sword. And yet he worshipped the God of Israel and was generous to the poor of Caesarea.

I'm very curious to know how Cornelius the Centurion became an atheist in the eyes of the Romans and loyal to Yahweh of the Jews. We know about Cornelius all these years later because of his heart for God and his heart for the poor. Neither of these connections was normal, encouraged, or valued by the Roman Empire. Cornelius was courageous.

Could Cornelius have been central to this story had he not been generous to the poor? No. Would God have heard this soldier's prayer had he been closed to the needs of the local widows and orphans? No. God would connect Cornelius to Peter, and through this encounter reveal that God accepted pagans and Jews, Romans and Israel - all were welcome to join the Kingdom of God. And central to this new identity is one where followers of Yahweh have a heart for the poor.

You can't be loyal to God but be ignorant of the cries of the oppressed.

The poor are motivation for your prayers, the poor inherit the kingdom of God. One can't be like Christ and walk away from the misery of the poor. One can't trust in salvation through Jesus if one won't be the hands and feet of the Savior to the poor.

If you want God, if you want God to hear your prayers, if you want God's will to prevail in your world, then be generous to the poor, then hear the prayers of the poor, hold the hands of the poor.

Jesus came to Cornelius after all those years to affirm his salvation, and to use his life to announce salvation to the whole Empire. Jesus can use you, he will hear you if you will hear him, if you will listen to him: feed the hungry, quench the thirsty, visit the prisoner, care for the widow, clothe the orphan.

Our Empire needs more women and men who will dig deep, live courageously and keep praying to God while they care for the poor.

God Says, "I Want To Use You!"

by Carla Castro

I too have fallen into the abyss that has swallowed up the great Anchorite bloggers for the book of Acts. I know that for me, it has been a combination of increased working hours, summertime busy schedules, and the constand go-go-go that comes from having two little ones.

For those who are following Acts, this is the week for Chapter 12.

My intention for writing today, however, has little to do with Acts. I figured, Pastor Tim has given me the access for this blog, so I will use it. ;)

Yesterday, I joined four Anchorites (Pastor Tim, Pat Minch, Steve Dennie, and Terry Leatherman), who I strongly admire for their work and dedication to the church, at the Global Leadership Conference being led by Willow Creek out of Chicago.

It was an honor for me to join them for many reasons. Often, I feel like I'm just one person, what change can I make? Often, the sense of, I'm still too young to be impactful hits my soul. Manytimes, I wonder, why would God want to use ME, imperfect, drama magnet, overweight, lazy, OCD, sinful me to teach others about Him?

Then I realized, because I am His child. Because He loves me.

It was a lesson that was admist the speakers yesterday, and today again, I'm sure. But it wasn't the primary lesson. There were many speeches about leadership, how not to fall, how to follow God's will, how to have a higher purpose, but amongst all those, the first and foremost whisper that I got from God was: I want to use YOU.

And God can use all of us. No matter if you are struggling with an eating disorder or the pinnacle of good health. No difference if you have been born and raised a Christian believer since you were biologically born, or if you lived a life walking alongside Satan before being reborn as a Christian. God does not matter the color of your skin, your IQ, your educational background or you financial status. He has made each of us wonderfully different, so we can impact one another. So we can mentor one another. So we can lead one another.

If you grew up perfect, in a world full of perfect people, how boring would that be? What would you have to strive for? What would you have to show for growth? What would you have to talk about? Nothing. And if we were all perfect, why turn to God? If you have everything, no purpose, no goals, you would need nothing else...including God.

And I don't know about you, but I lived once in a life where I felt like I had it all. Sure, there was more I could obtain, but it was all fruitless. It had no purpose. It was mundane and dull. And I would choose ten thousand struggles if I can have my Savior by my side than a perfect life without Him.

Now, do not mistake this as saying that we should stay put in our sinful and fallen lives. No, this is just saying that God will use you, no matter what you are coming from, no matter where you are right now.

It is now our time to rise. We are called to have our hand out, reaching for that next marker of progress. We are asked to continue to grow, for years and years, into the best Christian leader we may become. And it's a gradual and slow process. Isn't God the best at making us wait?

That's been a huge struggle for me the past year or so since re-accepting Him into my life. He has time and time again told me: "Wait." It's the hardest thing to accept in our give-it-to-me-now consumerist society. You want a movie right now? Stream it into your tv or computer. You want to read that book right now? Download an ebook. You can't afford those nice clothes? Charge them. It works for economics. Not with God.

God will change us, strengthen us, call us to progress and improve. And we should have the desire to rise to that request. But slowly.

So, to bring this back to Acts. Reread it. Look at it closely. Circle or make a note in your Bible of who God chose as His leaders through it all. Was it those who were born into fame and fortune? Or were they the underdogs, the little guys, the people like you and I who woke up asking, "Why would God want to use ME?" And then, pay attention to what they did when God revealed His challenge to them for what He wanted to do in their lives. Pick one to dive into further. Do some additional research. Find a Biblical mentor for your life. And let me know how it goes! :)