Monday, May 9, 2011

Acts 25; Investigation

Festus made an interesting statement in verse 20. He said, "I was at a loss how to investigate such matters." That rings true to me. How would a politician working to ascend the power ladder know how to investigate Jewish law or the new idea of Christianity? This made me think about the average person I meet in the stands at a football game, pass on the highway or see in the store. How would anyone know to investigate something totally out of their field of study and experience?

The most logical answer would be to talk with a follower of Jesus. Yet as Barna and Kinnaman point out in their research there is no statistical difference between North American Christian behavior and that of UnChristians. An investigator might be shocked to find out who claims the name of Christian. If no viable evidence exists to demonstrate that a person believes, then would any investigator be inclined to ask for the person for help? I think not.

What Festus and most UnChristians need for their investigation is simply a person who truly lives out the Christian life, someone dedicated to putting into practice the Sermon on the Mount. In some cases it might take the form of selling all you have to live among the poor but in most it probably is much simpler than that. Jesus used the Sermon on the Mount to talk about the little things of daily life. Instead of focusing on the big stuff of avoiding murder, be known as a person that radically loves and forgives. Instead of keeping major oaths, simply be totally honest and keep your word at all times. I don't think the Sermon on the Mount is a call to poverty but I do think it is a call to integrity. At any level of society, education or life-stage, a person of high integrity who reincarnates the life of Jesus will be distinctive.

Perhaps more sad than being an investigator who cannot find someone to explain Christianity is that most people know Christians but none of them live in such a way as to be worthy of investigation. Our incompetence of living out the new incarnation is actually more than sad, it is shameful.

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