Something I have found interesting over the years is the way that words change in usage. The list might include: hot, bad, rad, cool, far-out, wicked … the list is almost endless.
A word that has changed is ‘awful.’ Historically and etymologically, ‘awful,’ meant ‘full of awe.’ When someone said something was awful, they meant that it was full of awe; it was wonderful, delightful, and amazing. Over time the word has evolved to mean exactly the opposite. Isn’t that awful?
It is interesting that early Christians were referred to as atheist. In the Roman world of the early church years the emperor was believed to be ‘a god’ and there were literally hundreds of ‘gods.’ The early Christians rejected, and didn’t believe in, the emperor as god and they rejected the pantheon of gods. They were, therefore, referred to as atheist. A pagan Roman citizen might have referred to a disciple of Jesus by saying: He’s an atheist.
This, of course, is totally different than how the word is used today. An ‘atheist’ is someone who believes or is convinced there is no such thing as God or gods or anything outside the material realm. An atheist and a Christian are on opposite ends when it comes to anything that might smack of a belief in a god or a higher power.
The early Christians didn’t just reject the emperor god or the pantheon of gods. They rejected anything that had got in the way of, or was opposed to, a life that honored God through living for the resurrected Jesus. If it meant a loss of livelihood, shelter, food, acceptance and even life – they were not going to capitulate and were proud to be called ‘atheist.’ They were proud to reject anything that hindered them in the service of Jesus.
I have to ask myself: Is there anything that I am allowing to hinder me in my service of Jesus?
What about you?
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