Do you ever take a moment to appreciate the name that Jesus has given you? If you have been baptized into Christ’s church, then you are a Christian. You have been forgiven of your sins, raised as a new man, and given a holy inheritance as a child of God (cf. Eph. 1:11-14). What did we ever do to deserve such an honor?
To be a Christian is to be declared a disciple of our perfect Lord who suffered and died the death that was awaiting us all. He committed no crime, He never sinned, yet He bore our sins to purchase us and make us His own. “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Cor. 5:21). What did we ever do to deserve such mercy?
We haven’t done a thing to deserve the name of Christian. What we deserve is punishment for all the acts of rebellion we’ve committed against our heavenly Father. We deserve the wages of death accrued for our sin (cf. Rom. 6:23). The absolute last thing we deserve is to be forgiven and made sons of the Most High God (cf. Rom. 8:14-17).
The actions we’ve taken in our lives should mark us as forsaken and condemned. As Paul put it, “Oh wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? (Rom. 7:24). But instead, God calls us His beloved (cf. Col. 3:12).
Paul saw himself as what he was: a murderer who should be condemned. In 1 Corinthians 15:9, Paul says, “For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.” Paul was the worst kind of criminal, yet God granted him a new identity. In verse 10, Paul continues, “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.”
Paul didn’t deserve to be called a Christian, but God made him one. He has done the same thing for us. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Eph. 2:8-9). Though we were sinners Christ died for us and gave us the chance to attain a new life free of all of our guilt. All praise belongs to God.
We deserve to be called sinners. We deserve to be called children of wrath. We don’t deserve to wear the name “Christian.” But, we can choose to live like we do. We can live like Paul who recognized the incredible mercy bestowed on him and pushed himself to labor as hard as he could for the name he was given. What could we do today to show the world the glorious name of Christ that we wear?