day 13

1 John 2:11

A true sign of being in the Kingdom of God is determined by where and how you are walking. I meet a lot of people during my normal working hours. A great many of them would not, by their own accord, count themselves as Christian. Upon further investigation they say that the reason they do not wish to be a Christian is because they just don’t want to have to spend all of their time in church or have to live by a bunch of “don’t’s”. They mistakenly think that the Christian faith is about a few activities that, once they have been checked off, they can then say that they have fulfilled their religious requirements and get on with the rest of life.

If this is what being a Christian is all about then I agree with them. Better to cut out the religious activities and just get on with life. This does not mean that religion has no positive merit. Ritual and tradition can give form to our faith. It can be a way of interpreting deeper spiritual realities of Ritual and tradition can give form to our faith. It can be a way of interpreting deeper spiritual realities of our faith by making it more tangible.

On the other hand the Christian life is not only a call to a static introspective contemplation but to an active lifestyle. This lifestyle is itself an interpretive imitation of Jesus’ own life in the life of each individual Christian. It is a life in the light. It is a life following a path that is illuminated by the Word and God’s holiness.

It is measured not in our outward and visible adoration of God but in the way in which we believers deal with our fellow human. If you hate your brother then you walk in darkness. You are blind. You have no destination but are aimlessly walking around. This results in blindness. This blindness will eventually lead to the person stumbling.

It is very possible to hate someone who looks different from yourself. It is also possible to hate someone who has wronged us or someone else. It is even possible to hate someone who has views that differ or are even diametrically opposed to your own views. Sometimes someone is hated because they have betrayed a secret.

While this might be very normal and human it is not God’s way nor is it the way of the people of God. We are encouraged, that in spite of how we are mistreated or wronged we are to bless those who curse us. We are to pray for them and with great humility and meekness try to help them to choose a different path.

This blindness starts in small steps which are nearly impossible to detect. It is easily justified and once rooted it is very difficult to remove. It makes us like infants, being swept back and forth by the storms of life. It would be nice if this blindness could be defeated by just our willpower alone. The only way to be liberated from this darkness is by God’s power working in us.

I cannot achieve any success in the Christian life apart from the leading of the Holy Spirit. It is only through God’s strength that we can do battle against the darkness that threatens to engulf us. When we speak the truth in love we will stay connected to Jesus.

We need to be on our guard against this happening in our lives. We need to cling to God. Ephesians 4:14-20; Phillippians 4:12-13.

peace