The Decline of the Name.

I know people don't like me saying the things I am about to say because they like to keep things on the positive. Well, so do I.  I like to talk about the good things that are happening in our world, and avoid the not so good because I don't want to get depressed or stressed by all the bad. However, in a world of "no common sense" and "no spiritual discernment" when should we talk about the dangers of our day?  As Christians we have been told for a decade or two through writers and speakers that we are in a war, a cultural war, a spiritual war, an ideological war, a worldview war and if that is true, then our best defense against an enemy is to know his thinking, and his strategy as he attacks our lives. The greatest decline in the Western Church is a lack of discernment and teaching on spiritual matters. We have replaced the Bible for commentary by well known authors and preachers who are redefining faith according to our culture. One trend is to change your ministry name to reflect a softer, milder, less offensive name. I am all for being creative with organizational names, but we have been removing the name Christ or Christian from the vocabulary of ministry names, and my question is why?  Campus Crusade for Christ renamed their organization CRU, which is a short name insiders called the ministry. But what does it mean? Nothing. It takes an offensive name like "crusade," or "campus" out of the the ministry name because both names no longer represent that ministry in our culture or the times in which we live. Okay, I understand changing the name to reflect how your ministry changed, but CRU?  I have a few suggestions: How about CIM?  "Christ in me."  Or, YIG?  Yeshua is God!  Okay, I know, you probably think what's in a name as long as they continue to do the great work CRU (formerly Campus Crusade) continues to do. 

But think about this verse for a minute:

Acts 4:12  12And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Did you catch that?  By no other name by which salvation comes, and yet we are continuing to remove it from the names of our ministries.  Am I just that stupid that I am missing something here?  One of the reasons ministry leaders are removing the name "Christ" or "Christian" is because it's offensive to some, and we don't want to offend anyone by the title of our name before we have a chance to minister to them. This kind of attitude is what is killing the power in the Church. We shouldn't have to apologize for being followers of Christ? We give, love, move and have our being in Christ, why is that so bad?  If you think the name Christ has baggage, come back to His real name Yeshua. Start using that name instead of Christ. We can be known as Yeshua's People. Listen you may think this is no big deal, but I do. It's another indication that we are quickly becoming the age of "anti-christ" a spirit that now fills the earth from Islam to post modernism. It's only the beginning, and instead of Christian leaders standing their ground in the name of "Christ", they are hiding behind a cloak of "no offense to anyone." I am sorry, but the cross is an offensive...get over it.  I am not opposed to a name change, but come on, CRU?  You have got to be kidding...... It must be another  sign of our times. Keeping it honest and truthtful.....K http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2011/julyweb-only/campus-crusade-name-change.html