Christian Is Not An Adjective
A friend of mine and I were sitting around at lunch the other day. We decided that we are going to quit our jobs and start a new company. It is going to be exactly like the one we currently work for. There is, however, going to be one difference. Ours is going to be a Christian version of our company. We are creating it to give Christians in our company an alternative place to work and provide customers with a Christian alternative to the product.
How does that sound?
You probably think I’ve lost my mind if you don’t realize that I’m saying this tongue in cheek.
Is it any different from what we have in society?
We have Christian TV stations.
We have Christian radio stations.
We have Christian rock bands.
Bluegrass groups.
Country singers.
Movies.
You name it and we use Christian as an adjective in front of it.
Don’t get me wrong. I think that some of this is good and necessary. However, I don’t want us to simply stop there and be happy.
I want TV stations full of employees who are Christians.
I want radio stations employing Christians.
I want rock bands made up of Christians.
I want movies made by Christians.
I simply want Christian to no longer be an adjective.
I want it to be a noun.
I want Christian to be used like it was originally used in Antioch. I want those of us who follow Christ to be called Christian because we are little Christs. Because of what we do and not what we claim to do.
How about you? Is Christian an adjective in your life? Or is it a noun?
I’ve always wondered Larry, how we can truly make a difference in our world if we hibernate into Christian this and Christian that. I like your idea of making the word “Christian” a noun instead of an adjective.
Bill, sometimes it seems like we live in a Christian ghetto. Notice me using it as an adjective.
Maybe it should be a verb…they’ll know we are Christians by our love. Love is a verb.
That is something I can get excited about.
Love this post. I’ve had this conversation many times. It’s so crazy how we apply that “Christian” tag to some things and not others, particularly with jobs. Is someone a “Christian” bank teller? How about a “Christian” construction laborer? If we’re truly Christians, it should just pour out of us, regardless of our profession. Good stuff.
Great stuff Larry! Have you ever read the book Roaring Lambs? It’s a great book about this very thing.
Does it have any connection to Steven Taylor? I think I have a CD.
So if i go to Christian Brothers Automotive…do they pray for my car before they start working on it?…i’m just asking…
love what you said…
I’m with switchfoot…
they are NOT a christian rock band…
They are a Rock Band with christians in it…
Same thing with other artist…they are not a Christian Artist…they are artist who happen to be Christian (gungor, jars of clay)
Arny, I don’t think it would hurt to go to Christian Brothers or for them to pray before working on your car.
Great food for thought. I have never thought about the label before, but you are right, we have to show our Christianity through our actions and not just by attaching the label to our everyday lives.
Great Christian blog post
We know the tree by the fruit it bears. What if people knew we were Christians by how we acted and spoke and treated people! My grandfather had a plaque on his dresser for years that said something like “if you were on trial for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?”