As Christians, Are We to Serve Or to Save?
by Pierce Crockett

When discussing the social mission of a Christian, a debate usually arises regarding the extent to which a Christian should provide for others' needs (i.e. food, clothing, shelter, etc.). This debate boils down to the question of whether we should concern ourselves with serving others or saving them. For us to discuss this debate, we must first define what is meant by "serving" and "saving". "Serving" is the act of becoming a servant to a particular person. It means providing what that person needs when he or she needs it. The intent or motives of the person being served does not impact the service provided to them. "Saving" is the act of teaching a particular person to provide for their own needs. It means taking an action which will eliminate the need for that person to be served as defined above. Since the intent or the motives of the person are directly addressed here, a conversion is necessary for that person to become "saved."

What is the teaching of Jesus regarding this debate? Does He teach us to serve or to save? The Gospels provide all the information that we need to make this determination.

The parable of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31) provides us information which addresses this debate. In this parable we have two people. The first is the rich man. We can probably assume that he wasn't an evil person, for Jesus makes no mention that he was. This man in the parable was probably like a typical middle class American. He worked, went to the synagogue on the Sabbath, and took pride in his ability to be self-sufficient. He was looked at as a good person who was respected in the community. He was what the World holds up as the ideal.

The other man, Lazarus, is the complete opposite. He was probably much like the poor and the homeless today. He didn't work, was sickly, and depended on charity to survive day-to-day. He was neither self-sufficient nor was he concerned with ever becoming self-sufficient. He was a non-person within the community. The World does not like to even recognize his existence.

The rich man had the same choice we have every day. Should he serve Lazarus or try to save Lazarus? He could bring Lazarus into his home, feed him, take care of his sores, and provide comfort. On the other hand, if the rich man just gave Lazarus these things, how would Lazarus be a better person? Would not Lazarus be encouraged to perpetuate his miserable condition in order to continue to receive charity? This is very typical of the struggle we endure in these situations.

Apparently from the parable, the rich man opts not to serve Lazarus. We can only guess the rationale he uses to walk by Lazarus and do nothing. Maybe he thought that the denial of service would motivate Lazarus to change his ways and begin to provide for himself. Maybe the reasons he had are similar to the ones we use every time we consider denying service to the poor. Whatever the reasons, the consequence of the rich man's apathy is clear -- denial of the eternal reward of heaven. We can safely assume that the consequences have not changed since the time of Jesus.

What we must realize is that we are not called by Jesus to convert people. That is His job. We are called by Jesus to love. It is this Christ-like love that enables a conversion within people. When we deny our service to the poor, we fail to love them. By failing to love them, we actually prohibit the conversion that we desire for them. It is clear then that by choosing to serve, we may actually become an instrument of God through which we play a part in God's conversion of that person. Serving becomes the most effective means to save. This is not only a win-win situation, but one that, through the help of God, can provide us and others with eternal life with Jesus in His kingdom.

How Do We Abandon Ourselves to God's Will?
by Pierce Crockett

Lately I have been noticing an alarming habit that we all share to some extent. This habit has been triggered by such national and world events as the Clinton impeachment, and the numerous and seemingly unending confrontations with Iraq. This habit also seems to be triggered when justice issues such as abortion, the death penalty, and racism are debated. So you may ask, "What is this habit?"

It seems that when we are confronted with difficult events or issues such as these, we like to separate ourselves from God's kingdom in order to do so. We call such considerations secular activities, temporal values, or concerns of this world. But do we ask ourselves some difficult but important questions: "Doesn't everything fit into the kingdom of God?" and "As followers of Jesus, how do we respond to these events or issues in ways that are consistent with His teachings?"

The answer to the first question is obvious. All things do, in fact, fit into the kingdom of God. The answer to the second question is not so obvious. Although the message of Jesus is easily understood, it is not always easily applied to the events or issues which are present in our everyday lives. So how do we respond?

The quick answer is that we abandon ourselves to the will of God. What exactly does that mean? A great place to find the answer to this is in a book written by our Diocese's own Father David Knight titled Reaching Jesus: 5 Steps to a Fuller Life. In this book, Father Knight spells out five steps we can take individually which help us to abandon ourselves to God.

The first step is to make Jesus an active participant in everything we do. This is easy to buy into once we believe that Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Light. We are simply accepting that our lives are subject to His teachings.

The second step is to lead a life characterized by reflection on the message of Jesus. If we accept that we are fully subject to His teachings, then we must constantly strive to learn and understand those teachings. Taking 5 - 10 minutes out of our busy days to read, to ask questions about, and to act on the Gospels is an easy way to accomplish this step.

The third step is to make everything in my life and life-style bear witness to Jesus Christ. It is here that we begin to evaluate our lives to see if we are effectively applying to our everyday lives what we have learned in the first two steps. This is where personal conversion and transformation begins.

The fourth step is to mediate the life of God to others in love. Evangelization and ministry have their roots at this step. It is at this step that we become a light to others. Here we show others where our abandonment has taken us and invite them to join us on our journey with Christ. We begin to reach out to others as Jesus reaches out to us.

The fifth step is to take responsibility for transforming the world as a steward of Christ's kingship. Here we are completing our abandonment to God's will and helping to establish His kingdom on the Earth. It is through this step that we can properly address the events and issues of our existence that seem difficult to frame in the context of God's will.

By accepting the challenge of these five steps, we can further ourselves on the road to abandonment to God's will. Through this abandonment, God leads us to respond in faith to events such as the Clinton impeachment and to issues such as the death penalty. There no longer is a difference between secular and religious activities: all are religious. There no longer is a difference between temporal and eternal values: all are eternal. There no longer is a difference between concerns of this world and that of the next: we are only concerned with our place in the next. By abandoning ourselves to God, we become more God-like in our words and actions. By becoming more God-like in our words and actions, we obtain eternal salvation with Him.

How Do We Get Started?
by Pierce Crockett

In the Gospel of Mark, one of the first words that Jesus uses at the beginning of His active ministry is "metanoia."

This is normally translated as "repent," but the actual meaning gives us an insight into what it takes to live a Christian life. The word "metanoia" literally means "change of mind." Within the context of Jesus' ministry, He is saying, "Change your mind!" or even "Change your life!" This may all just seem like an interesting but academic point, but I feel it is a concept that is crucial to the understanding of the Christian way.

Change is what Jesus constantly calls us to do.

He changed the way we look at sin. Sin had been viewed primarily as the outward action, but Jesus challenged us to confront sin at its very inception within the heart and mind. He wanted us to realize that hate was as much a sin as killing, and that lust was as much a sin as adultery or fornication. Furthermore, instead of mandating punishment for sins, He commands us to be merciful and forgiving. METANOIA!!

He changed the way we look at our enemies. Instead of loathing the enemy, Jesus challenges us to love the enemy the same as our neighbor, unconditionally. When our enemy hurts us, Jesus teaches us that the way to obtain justice is love, forgiveness, and mercy, NOT revenge or retribution. METANOIA!!

To return to Part 1, introduction of Crockett and his email, click here.
To return to Part 2, click here.