Christian

Occurrences in Scripture

The word "Christian" appears three times in the New Testament.

• Acts 11:26: After recording that Barnabas and Saul (Paul) taught in the church at Antioch for a whole year, the text states, "And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch." This verse identifies where the name was first used.
• Acts 26:28: After Paul makes his defense before the tribunal, King Agrippa replies, "Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian."
• 1 Peter 4:16: "Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf." The verse presupposes a setting in which believers were persecuted on account of this name.

Meaning and Background of the Word

The Greek Christianos is formed by adding the suffix -ianos, which denotes belonging or allegiance, to Christ (Christos, "anointed one," a translation of the Hebrew Messiah). This suffix is thought to derive from the Latin -ianus, and the name of the Herodians (Herodianoi) in the Gospels is formed in the same way. The name thus carries the sense of "the Christ party" or "those who follow Christ."

In the New Testament, believers referred to themselves chiefly as "disciples," "brethren," "saints," and "believers." Acts also records the movement being called "the Way" (Acts 9:2) and being labeled by its opponents "the sect of the Nazarenes" (Acts 24:5). For this reason, many scholars believe that "Christian" was originally a name applied by outsiders to the church. The name also appears in the writings of the Roman historian Tacitus and the provincial governor Pliny the Younger in the late first and early second centuries, showing that it was used in Roman society to designate this group.

Interpretations and Points of Debate

• The nature of the name: Interpreters differ on whether the name was a mocking or derogatory nickname from the outset or simply a label distinguishing the group. Scholars also disagree over whether the verb in Acts 11:26 implies that the name was officially conferred.
• Agrippa's tone: Some read Acts 26:28 as sarcastic, while others read it as the words of a man half persuaded. Translations render the phrase either as "with few words" or as "almost" (as in the KJV), yielding slightly different shades of meaning.
• Who is a Christian?: Scripture offers no explicit definition of the word. Consequently, traditions differ in emphasis, some defining it in terms of confession of faith and others in terms of baptism. Churches of the nineteenth-century American Restoration Movement are known to have urged the exclusive use of the biblical name "Christian" in place of denominational names.

In the Korean Church

Gidok (基督) is a transliteration of "Christ" into Chinese characters. Accordingly, gidokgyoin ("adherent of Gidokgyo") and geuriseudoin ("Christian") originally mean the same thing. In Korea, however, Gidokgyo is commonly used to refer only to Protestantism, so whether "Christian" means only Protestants or also includes Catholic and Orthodox believers depends on the context. Within the church, terms such as seongdo ("saint"), gyoin ("church member"), sinja ("believer"), and keuriseuchyeon ("Christian," borrowed from English) are more common. Geuriseudoin is used mainly in preaching and Christian education when speaking of the believer's identity and way of life.