by Edwin Crozier<\/p>\n
We find the closest thing to a name given to Christ’s church in Paul’s defense before Governor Felix in Acts 24:14-15. Paul said: “But this I confess to you, that according to the Way, which they call a sect, I worship the God of our fathers, believing everything laid down by the Law and written in the Prophets, having a hope in God, which these men themselves accept, that there will be a resurrection of both the just and the unjust<\/em>” (ESV).<\/p>\n Paul says the Jews call the Way a sect, referring back to Acts 24:5 when Tertullus called Paul a “ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes<\/em>.” In other words, Paul seems to use the phrase “the Way” to refer not merely to a teaching, discipline, or way of life, but to a group of people. The word translated “sect” appears in Acts 5:17 to refer to the party<\/em> of the Sadducees and in Acts 15:5 to the party<\/em> of the Pharisees. It is used in Galatians 5:20 to talk about “divisions.” It is also used in I Corinthians 11:19 to speak of “factions.” And Tertullus was definitely using it to refer to the group of people following Jesus.<\/p>\n Tertullus was trying to dismiss this group of Christ followers as nothing more than another sect or party among the Jews. He called them the sect of the Nazarenes. Don’t miss how derisive this was. Nazarenes were inhabitants of Nazareth. Recall what Nathanael said: “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?<\/em>” (John 1:46 ESV). Calling this group the “sect of the Nazarenes<\/em>” did not mean to honor Jesus’s hometown. It meant to say this sect could not be anything good.<\/p>\n However, when Paul contrasted the Way with Tertullus’s pejorative accusation that it was a sect, he was making a claim. The Way is not a sect. It is not “a<\/strong>” Way. It is “the<\/strong>” Way. In other words, no longer should the Jews be satisfied divvying up behind favorite teachers and doctrines as if any way among the Jews might lead to God. They all needed to get in the Way.<\/p>\n No doubt, this moniker came from Jesus’s own self-description: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me<\/em>” (John 14:6 ESV). The Way is named after Jesus Himself. He is the Way. The group that follows Him, being His body, is the Way.<\/p>\n Which says something. We cannot get to the Father apart from Christ, who is the Way. However, we also cannot get to the Father apart from Christ’s church, which is the Way. The notion of having some kind of individualized spirituality, being on good terms with God by ourselves, or doing our own thing did not occur to these ancient Christians.<\/p>\n Christ is the Way. His church is the Way. If you want to get to the Father, you have to get in the Way. Can we help you do that? If so, let us know in the comments below.<\/p>\n\t\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Edwin Crozier We find the closest thing to a name given to Christ’s church in Paul’s defense before Governor Felix in Acts 24:14-15. Paul said: “But this I confess to you, that according to the Way, which they call a sect, I worship the God of our fathers, believing everything laid down by the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[642],"class_list":["post-99124","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-christianity"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":30894,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-syllable-should-be-stressed-in-the-name-jeshua\/","url_meta":{"origin":99124,"position":0},"title":"What syllable should be stressed in the name Jeshua?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 10, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I have a pronunciation question for you. \u00a0I did read\u00a0\"Understanding\u00a0the\u00a0 Tetragrammaton: How is it\u00a0Pronounced\"\u00a0on La Vista's web site, but it does not answer this question. Whether Aramaic, Hebrew or Greek, the name \"Jeshua,\" is the accent on the first or second\u00a0syllable? In the film \"The Passion of the Christ\"\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":46711,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-charges-against-paul\/","url_meta":{"origin":99124,"position":1},"title":"The Charges Against Paul","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 22, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doy Moyer Paul was charged with four things in Acts 24:4-7 Being a pest (a plague). Stirring up riots. Being a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. Trying to profane the temple. Paul's answer to 1 and 2 was that he had not stirred up any crowds in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":31862,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/can-the-world-repent-enough-to-postpone-the-second-coming-of-christ\/","url_meta":{"origin":99124,"position":2},"title":"Can the world repent enough to postpone the second coming of Christ?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 18, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Can the world repent enough to postpone the revelation and the second coming of Christ? Answer: There is no way to answer this question. But why so tied to this world? \"Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":90419,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-does-isles-of-the-gentiles-refer-to\/","url_meta":{"origin":99124,"position":3},"title":"What does “isles of the Gentiles” refer to?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 11, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: What do \"Isle\" and \"Gentile\" mean in the verse: \"By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations\" (Genesis 10:5 KJV). Answer: \"Gentile\" refers to nations, specifically nations other than Israel. \"Isles\" is an older\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":17978,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-happened-before-the-restoration-movement\/","url_meta":{"origin":99124,"position":4},"title":"What happened before the Restoration movement?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 25, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I have been discussing with a lady about the importance of worshiping God in \"spirit and in truth.\" I told her that the seed was planted in America according to the biblical pattern.\u00a0\u00a0Her question is \"what happened to all the people between the time of the early church and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":60313,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/were-adam-and-eve-saved\/","url_meta":{"origin":99124,"position":5},"title":"Were Adam and Eve saved?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 15, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Were Adam and Eve saved and or will they go to heaven on judgment day? 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