It's an old photo, from when it was very new. It means a lot to me. My daughter and I took a Greek class together (so the letters are Greek). My son designed it for me.

But the deeper meaning is what it is. What I am.

There is a "thing" going on about labels.

This tattoo - it says "Christ". And it's all about Christ on the cross. There is no room there for me, for my works, for anything that I can say or do to earn what Christ has done to me and for me.

People ask about it. I point them to Christ on the cross.

There are others that identify with Christ on the cross. We (generally) call ourselves "Christians". There are other terms. "Bond-servant of Christ" is one of my favorites - we are either a slave to sin or a slave to Christ and I have been bought with the precious Blood of the Lamb.

One of the reasons (that I've read over the last few days) to use the term "Christian" is that it identifies us with the body of Christ (the church). That (to me, anyway) smacks of a couple of the folks I work with that says something to the effect of "of course I'm saved, I was baptised in the Catholic church". If somebody asks me what makes me a Christian, it's not because I'm part of the church. I'm part of the church because I belong to Christ.

Belonging to the body means more than identifying with the church. Yes, the bride is beautiful, but it's not because of the people in it - it's because the people in it are covered by the Blood.

Back to the tattoo. My class swims two or three times a week, so a variety of folks see it. Somebody asked me if I'm a Christian. My answer is not a simple "yes". My answer is more than that.

I don't point the people that ask about my tattoo at the church. I point them to Christ on the Cross.

Belonging to a church doesn't save you.
Having a tattoo doesn't save you.
Wearing a cross around your neck doesn't save you.
Claiming the label "Christian" doesn't save you.

It takes so much more. It takes Christ on the Cross.