Holding Out
Do we have a responsibility to share what we know?
When it comes to giving advice to someone we care about, few would deny that we do have a responsibility to set them on the right path, to warn them of the dangers ahead, to guide them.
But what if they don't listen? Does our responsibility end there?
For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than, after knowing it, to turn back from the holy commandment that was passed on to them. - 2 Peter 2:21
Peter tells us that it is better never to have turned from one's evil ways than to turn back to them again after knowing the commandment to love God above all else and one another as ourselves.
So, does that let us off the hook? Are we justified in keeping our faith to ourselves, since the person who never hears of the love of God through Christ is at less risk than if he goes back?
When we hear that we are called to spread the Gospel, we might envision the man on the street corner with the microphone and Bible shouting out to the commuters as they rush to and from work.
In the digital age, that may be the same as posting this blog or Tweeting, or snapping pictures and adding words of Scripture. It is totally one way, a voice shouting out in the wilderness, to paraphrase John the Baptizer.
Like the fisherman with one line and no bait, chances are the catch will be small.
Is that it? Is that all we do?
Why catch the fish anyway, if all we are going to do is throw them back?
That, I think, is Peter's point. He goes on to explain the nature of the dog and the sow, giving examples of how they turn back, how they are programmed to be what they were.
If that is the nature of the beast, then there must be more to the equation. Either we hold out, fail to share what we know of God with others, or we commit ourselves to be guides on the path, willing to have company on our journey, willing to be responsible for the fish we catch.
That's work.
Who would want to buy in to that? So, what do we do?
Many of us do nothing. It is not up to us, we say, to tell others how to live, what to believe, how to think, what path to take. All paths lead to the same place, right?
How many times would you try to keep your kids on track? Would you ever give up? Even when they turn back time and again, do you stop trying?
That may be a touchy subject for some, and others may find it offensive to think they should put the same effort into showing others the way.
Maybe the reason it is so odd has more to do with our commitment to our faith than to our commitment to others.
If I have doubts about my own future, how can I guide someone else?
So, holding out is a working strategy for all of us. We cling to it like a security blanket. What are we waiting for?
Perhaps we want someone to come along and guide us?
Hmmm.
More to come...
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