Radical Faith

 

 

 

When I was a blissfully happy, zealous new convert to the Christian faith many years ago, someone told me: "If you were to know in advance everything that God was going to do in your life, you'd never be willing to follow him in the first place." I disagreed with that at the time, thinking, like the apostles James and John, that I was ready to pay any price for the kingdom. But I agree with it now. I am thankful that God did not disclose the details (or allow me to experience the associated emotions!) of what I would undergo in the years to follow, because indeed I may not have had the confidence to continue in the faith.

 

Possibly this explains why Christ's call to us is unconditional, contingent only upon his own authority as Messiah, Savior and King. "Follow me" he says (Matt. 5:10; John 21:19), and "Forsake all" (Luke 14:33). He knows that if we leave our options open ("I'll follow him, unless of course it gets too difficult") we will eventually find reason to abandon our commitment to follow. So we either "take the plunge" and follow Christ unconditionally, or we don't follow him at all. Effectual faith requires this kind of unqualified obedience. Dietrich Bonhoeffer put it memorably: "Only those who obey can believe, and only those who believe can obey." 

 

Jesus persistently disallows any qualifications or disclaimers in asserting his right to rule and reign over our lives. Moreover he reserves the right to carve out different destinies for different individuals within his grand kingdom purpose. We answer directly to God, on his terms. Thus when Peter asks what fate awaits his fellow disciple (probably John), Jesus tells him, "What is that to you? You follow me" (John 21:22). Such an orientation to life can only be described as "radical," literally rooted in the self-evident goodness and authority of Jesus himself. 

 

How does this play out in "real life"? Countless ways. Here are a few:

 

We must forgive and love our worst enemies.

We must confess our sins, even while sincerely striving to overcome them.

We must tell the truth, even when it hurts us or costs us.

We must endure hardship and suffering without complaining. Etc.

 

Now this message is troubling for most of us, partly because these demands sometimes seem downright impossible to meet. Only by radical faith, rooted in the promises and character of God himself, can anyone come to accept, let alone hope to one day actually meet, these demands. But for the radically faithful (literally "full of faith"), there is great comfort in the assurance of Scripture that God will bless, protect and honor those who risk everything for the costly pearl and great treasure of the kingdom of God.