‘All things are lawful’, but not all things are beneficial. ‘All things are lawful’, but not all things build up.
1 Corinthians 10: 23 (read more here)
There is a shift in thinking from living bound by law to one where faith provides your rule.
Those who have been brought up Christian often feel frustration as Christmas approaches and the streets fill up with tinsel, and advertisers ramp up the pressure to consume – all with the branding of Christendom.
How should a follower of the way respond?
Everything is permissible. Laugh in the market place with those who love joy, weep with those who mourn. We are free from the need to moralise or preserve the worthless religious practices* of even our recent ancestors. But we must prayerfully consider what choices are most beneficial.
Our faith is not in a set of beliefs and practices. Faith in Jesus is belief that through genuine loving we will build up ourselves and those around us. Transform obstacles into opportunities, and show things in a new light which brings peace, change, growth.
Living a rule to give this constancy is much more demanding than conserving a moral code. The freedom requires each of us to judge ourselves rather than just conform to expectations.
In a place where bibles are banned you can be a hero lawbreaker smuggling holy contraband. Where sectarian or nationalist violence mars the daily life of ordinary people you can transgress religious boundaries to display love like the good Samaritan. In a high street that no longer feels like it is your own, is it time to turn over tables and protest the against the cultural appropriation of Christian symbolism by secular society?
Who would that benefit, who would it build up?
What are people celebrating at Christmas, and why are they choosing to do that online, in their homes, and on the high street but less and less in church buildings?
Is our own house in order, are we truly welcoming of people of all ages, sexuality, and cultures who choose to celebrate significant moment as Church?
What are the rules you set for yourself to make the journey toward Christmas, and the festival itself, spiritually significant? please use the comments!
