CONTAGIOUS OR CONTAINED CHRISTIAN
[6-minute read]
Today, if someone from the past caught up with you, what kind of Christian will they see? Will they find that the intervening years and seasons of life have brought no real change in you? Or will people sense something intrinsically different about you that inspires them to not let life slip away for one more day?
In other words, will they see an infectious Christian or one who is piously guarded and contained? As a community, Christians can sometimes overestimate the importance of conformity and we forget that godly compassion connects diverse people. So what is the difference between an infectious Christian and a contained one? We appear ‘contained’ when we are reserved about our relationship with God, when we seem ashamed to show Him off in public or bring Him up in normal conversations. Jesus has warned us that whoever is ashamed of Him and His words, He will be ashamed of them too (Luke 9:26). To put it another way: a contained Christian is close-minded. They can be well-travelled but has a dim worldview, unenlightened by the Word of God.
Contrastingly, a contagious Christian is one who cannot resist being “the salt of the earth and the light of the world” (Matthew 5:13-16). They seem to have an unremitting supply of joy, hope and love that infect all they come into contact with.
In attitude, speech and actions, both contained and contagious Christians have little in common except being in similar environments. Contained Christians are passive and have a higher tolerance of injustice suffered by others (even those close to them) while contagious Christians will expose fallacies and falsehood with the Word of God instead of dealing with their symptoms.
What attracts people to contagious Christians and how can we become more effective and contagious? Here are three areas of focus:
ATTITUDE
When Christian living is confined to checking all the right boxes for attendance and participation in this or that as an end in itself, we are guilty of turning Christian living into a playbook of conformity. People can see right through the pretense!
A contagious Christian has a healthy God-given appetite for taking relational risks and is less preoccupied with ‘fitting in’ and ‘playing it safe’ for themselves when they sense opportunities to step in and step up as God’s servants to create His outcomes. They let Scripture rather than convention and personal preferences define their response to situations and people often sense that they are always serving a larger mission than what they seem to be doing each day. As a result, the names of contagious Christians are often mentioned by people in their life journeys because they operate relationships on the mandate of God’s Word rather than rely on doing only things that boost their egos and popularity.
The apostle Paul therefore urged the early believers: ‘Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.’ (Romans 12:16). There is only one Bible, one salvation and one God for all human race – whatever our backgrounds, personalities, education and income levels. A Christ-like attitude can remove fault lines, as well as the dividing line between two people of divergent backgrounds.
At the same time, Paul also taught all believers that “Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.” (Philippians 1:27). This refers to times when we are deliberately being overlooked by a demeaning leadership; when we are being discriminated against because of our appearance, convictions or ethnicity; and when we are deserted by the people we thought had our backs, we are called to uphold the Word of God even when it does not immediately offer the solutions or outcomes we desire.
Also, our conduct and behavior in public before man and in private before God must be consistent. We can play along as though we care for others but time and circumstances will reveal if we are just being patronizing. Maintaining a muted response to the injustice, miseries and adversities that others experience helps no one. But when we consistently make God’s Word so livable and real in big and small moments of our own lives, our faith becomes truly contagious to others.
SPEECH
The Bible teaches us that ‘The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.’ (Proverbs 18:21). Likewise, horses are controlled by bits inserted in their mouths and massive ships are steered by small rudders (James 3:3-4). Day in and day out, what are we saying to the people around us? Do we encourage people to get even when they are mistreated by their spouses, employers or pastors, or do we connect empathetically and speak the truth of God’s Word? Does it help anyone when we constantly stay in the place of avoidance because we don’t know what to do? So we refrain from saying anything: whether it is disparaging or ‘beneficial to those who listen’? (Ephesians 4:29).
Matthew 5:15 tells us not to keep our light under a bowl. Staying under a bowl describes a lack of meaningful connection with others. Withdrawn from people outside, we begin to endure bad behaviour at huge mental and emotional costs and we tolerate unhealthy boundaries that increase our stress, depress our self-esteem and reduce our ability to shine for Christ.
Let’s speak as ambassadors for Christ charged with the ministry of reconciliation which is our God-given mission (2 Corinthians 5:17-20). So when we feel unsure about how we should speak, a quick prayer from Psalm 141:3 helps: Set a guard over my mouth, Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips so what I say will bring life and not death.
ACTIONS
Martin Luther King once said: If you have one more day God has given you – it’s not because YOU need it but SOMEBODY ELSE needs it so we can be a blessing to that someone. Who is the ‘somebody else’ in your life today? Is it always the same person needing you all the time? There is a difference between enabling the neediness of a person and meeting a person’s needs the way God wants you to. Is the neediness of someone always taking you away from blessing others with well-timed gestures?
Created as relational beings, the biblical golden rule is ‘So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you’, and ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ (Matthew 9:12, Matthew 22:39-40). Our neighbours don’t live in our house; so it is clear that neighbours are not people in our immediate families. Luke 6:37-38 instructs us not to judge or condemn other people, especially when we think about those whose emotions and experience are different from how we would respond in similar situations. ‘For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.’
The things we can do to create meaningful connections are not necessarily things that will come naturally to us. It would not be God’s idea if it is always easy. Yet, when you do the most unlikely thing to bless someone in your life, you will see how God moves in your own life in ways you would never expect.
Let nothing keep you in spiritual hibernation. Step out to be a contagious Christian to impact and inspire lives for the Kingdom of God.
This is a summary and reflection based on a virtual BIR Session held on 3 June 2023.
