Christening

So proud to be a Christian ... don't you just love that smile

6 December 2010.

Corinthians II 5:17 Therefore, if any one is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, behold, the new has come.

In the Bible we do not find any reference to the word Christening, we do however find the word Baptism. Depending on one’s background we have different understandings of what baptism is, and for people of British decent and historical background the word christening was used in place of the word baptism. The word Christian is defined as those who have been anointed by God, to be children of God, to leave the ways of the world behind and take on the ways of the Kingdom of heaven. To be a Christian means to live in the way taught by Jesus Christ of Nazareth, through His apostles and we follow this teaching as people anointed by the Holy Spirit and the revelation of Holy Scripture.

Christening is being named by the Church, and so we at the moment of Christening receive a new name, a new character that this name bestows upon the person being named. The old sinful person is dead and a new person with a new name is presented to the Christian community. This name is written into the register of the church, and at the same time is written into the Book of Everlasting life in heaven. So as Christians we have a Christian name, not a first name, and this name implies our relationship with Jesus Christ.

Only Christians have Christian names, and this was the way that from earliest times that baptism was part of naming people being baptised, so that this is the day that the person was reborn. In the Orthodox church the person celebrates their name day and not their actual birthday; also when a person is ordained as a priest or nun they receive new names in both the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church.

Be encouraged today to recognise that you have a Christian name, which is part of the Apostolic tradition of more than 2000 years.

David

Point to ponder: You have a new name in Jesus Christ.

Question to consider: Do you recognise that you have a Christian name?

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