The Highway Forums General Discussion Theology Discussion Forum What does the word 'Christian' mean in Greek?

Some has said it translates as 'follower of Christ'; I've also seen it as 'believers'.

What's behind me asking is that I saw a FB entry that makes me uncomfortable. A friend posted a portion of 1 Corinthians 13, and he cited "Paul a follower of Jesus (in 1 Cor. 13)" as the source. In my thinking that citation takes away from Scripture as being God-breathed and it sounds as if the follower is the active agent. Maybe I am being too nit-picky here, especially if the Greek for Christian is 'follower of Christ.

Is this a new fad?

John,

The word 'Christian(s)' [Christianos] only appears in three places in the NT; Acts 11:26; 26:28; 1Pet 4:16. It is most always understood to mean "follower of Christ".

A 'follower' must be an active agent, no? who is moved along by the indwelling Spirit (Phil 2:12,13).

Can you explain what is bothering you with this phrase, "follower of Christ", a little more than you have?

What could also be true is that there is a 'new fad' as you put it coming on the scene that has a different understanding of what it means to be a Christian.

What bother me is this.

Referencing the quote by "Paul a follower of Jesus (in 1 Cor. 13)" instead of just by 1 Cor. 13.

John,

I see nothing in 1Cor 13 that has the phrase or anything related to "Paul a follower of Jesus". There is a similar phrase in 1Cor 11:1:

1 Corinthians 11:1 (KJV) "Be ye followers of me, even as I also [am] of Christ."

The word "followers" in the Greek mimetes I think is better translated by "imitators", which is how the ASV translates it. We get our word, "mimic" from this.

And lastly, I'm still not clear what is bothering you. You may have a legitimate concern, but I'm not able to grasp what it is from what you have shared thus far.

I saw this posted by a friend in FB.

What bothers me is citing the source of the quote as Paul, a follower of Jesus (quoted from 1st Corinthians). What's wrong with just citing 1 Corinthians 13 as the source.

John,

Technically, you are correct in that Paul in 1Corinthins 13 does not hold himself up as a follower of Christ. The standard of love which is the specific subject of the passage is Christ, for nothing short of perfect love is acceptable. It probably would have been more accurate of the person who applied that phrase, "Paul, a follower of Christ" to have simply quoted the text and left it there. Paul always points to the Lord Christ of whom he is only a follower. Why settle for anything less than He who is the embodiment of love??

John,

Yes, there is a fad amongst certain sectors of evangelicalism to refer to "Christians" as "followers of Jesus." It dissociates them from "organized religion" & "dogma." Typically people who call themselves by this name are wishy-washy on doctrine & practice, emphasizing a vague understanding of "love" over all else. I don't know your friend's intentions, but I think you are correct that the form of his citation does take away from the God-breathed nature of Scripture, intentional or not. Paul, rather than an apostle writing his letter under divine inspiration, is instead a mere "follower of Jesus." We may be able to learn from him, but we are all mere "followers of Jesus," each with our own journeys of faith, so we may understand things differently than Paul in at least some areas. That's the subtle implication.

Good observation!

Yes, this could be just yet another attempt to "individualize" Christianity even more than Evangelicalism has done already. And, in addition to minimize or even ignore the corporate reality of the Church as an organization apart from the Church as an organism.