The nature of commitment to Christ can be quite different for confessing Christians in different parts of the world. Here in the West, commitment often means nothing more than having to deal with inconvenient or humiliating circumstances. It may be the inconvenience of having to get up early on a weekend to attend a worship service. It may mean having to endure ridicule from those who reject the gospel.
The situation can be dramatically different in other regions of the globe. I came across a list of questions that are asked of new believers seeking baptism in an Asian country where Christianity was not a major religion. These were questions that focused on a new convert’s readiness to follow Christ. The questions:
- Are you willing to leave home and lose the blessing of your father?
- Are you willing to lose your job?
- Are you willing to go to the village and those who persecute you, forgive them, and share the love of Christ with them?
- Are you willing to give an offering to the Lord?
- Are you willing to be beaten rather than deny your faith?
- Are you willing to go to prison?
- Are you willing to die for Jesus?
These questions give us a clear picture of what people had to face if they made a commitment to Christ. If a new convert answers in the affirmative, church leaders invite that person to sign a paper indicating that the decision to follow Jesus was made of one’s own free will. “But here’s the risk: if a new convert signs the paper and is caught by the government, he or she will spend three years behind bars. The one who did the evangelizing faces six years in prison.”
When I first read this list I could not help but feel the substantial disproportion between my situation and those in that Asian country. It was a vigorous reminder of how the challenges to my faith are quite tame. Yet I must face the reality that when conditions are less challenging, my commitment is in real danger of drifting without my realizing it.
Does this mean that my Christianity is less than those in more challenging circumstances? Not necessarily. The issue is whether I am faithful and obedient in the situation that the Lord has chosen for me. “Let each of you lead the life that the Lord has assigned, to which God called you…. In whatever condition you were called, brothers and sisters, there remain with God” (1 Corinthians 7.17, 24 NRSV). The key is my commitment; not my condition.
–Keith Y. Jainga