A Proactive Faith

If you ask the average person on the street what they think being a Christian is about, there’s a good chance that you will hear something about obeying a bunch of rules and not doing this or that fun thing.  Many folks seem to have a largely negative view of Christian faith — not necessarily that they view it negatively, but that they view it as primarily about negatives:  Don’t do this, don’t do that.

The truth is, that would actually be easier.  It doesn’t cost us much just to abstain from a few prohibited behaviors.  The call of being a follower of Jesus is actually much more difficult and costly.  In our Epistle lesson for this Sunday, toward the end of his letter to the churches of the region of Galatia, Paul sums up a bit and offers this nugget:  “Bear one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.”  (Click here for the full passage.)

For Paul, the “law of Christ” is not found first and foremost in obeying a set of restrictions, but in what we proactively do.  We are to bear one another’s burdens.  That takes many forms over many relationships.  Of course, that does mean refraining from a variety of things that harm others, or that harm ourselves and render us less able to “bear one another’s burdens.”  But, more importantly, it is a call to be proactive in our faith — to seek out opportunities to serve others.

How can you bear another’s burden today?

This column appeared in the July 7, 2019 edition of St. John’s eNews. Click here for the complete issue.

If you are reading this at a different time, you may click here for the current eNews.