Originally Appeared in the June 2015 Issue of Forward in Christ magazine
We Don't Want Them to Be Faithful
It’s an awkward situation we find ourselves in when we begin to think that what we want for ourselves as Christians and citizens we should also want for everyone else. We recognize the important role of the Scriptures in creating, sustaining, and guiding our faith and so we want, work, and pray for our churches, pastors, and all other Christians to be faithful to the Word as we are — in belief, preaching, and practice. We value the rule of law and the principles of equality and justice for all highly and therefore, politically, support those speak and act in ways that are faithful to both the ideals and the documents that have guided our nation from its beginning. And, of course, in our relationships — friendship, romance, business, family — we look for people to not only stand by us but stand firm as good and trustworthy partners.
So we naturally think, “Faithfulness is a quality I want in myself and those close to me, so — since I am a fair-minded and unselfish kind of person — I should want that in and for everyone.”
But imagine: Jesus tells his disciples, “Those Pharisees are sons of the devil for the way they enslave the people to the law, but it’s a great thing that they’re faithful to their principles.” Or Paul tells the crowds, “What we teach is the truth about the one true and saving God, but if you’re faithful to Zeus or Diana, hey, I have to respect that.” Or Elijah tells the people of Israel gathered on Mt. Carmel, “The Lord has just shown himself with fire to be God, but let’s applaud these prophets of Baal for their commitment and their effort here today!”
Sadly, we don’t have to imagine that kind of thing today. Countless Christians speak that way of Islam: “We believe what we believe, they believe what they believe, and religion is a good thing; let’s encourage them to be faithful to their god and consistent in their beliefs, and that will bring peace and understanding!” Granted, many of those who express such thoughts do so from ignorance — and from a comfortable position far from danger — but it’s not hard to know what faithfulness to Islam looks like: the beheadings of ISIS, the kidnappings of Boko Haram, the abuse of women, the horror and injustice of sharia law. It’s these things that are consistent with their scriptures and the founding of their faith, not peaceful co-existence, freedom of belief, equality, or justice.
Faithfulness to what is false or foul is no virtue, even when violence is not in view. The peaceful, patriotic Mormon coming down the street, if he follows his faith, is committed to leading others away from Christ and into hell. The leftist revolutionary who sticks to his principles wants the state to control everything and the church to disappear. The Christian who consistently holds to false teachings may miss out on the joys of the gospel, confuse others, or even lose her faith.
So instead of encouraging others’ false and dangerous beliefs and ideologies, we must do what Christians do: stand firm on God’s Word, speak the truth, pray, and love: love God and his gifts; love our fellow believers in harm’s way; love those who might be hurt, killed, or led astray; and love those who are caught up in these false faiths, because they are sinners in need of Christ’s salvation, and as long as they are committed to a wrong path, they cannot follow him to heaven. Whoever they are and wherever we find them, we want them to be unfaithful to their false gods, wrong religions, and erring ideologies because we want — and pray, and work — for them to be faithful to Jesus Christ, their Savior.