I was reminded the other day of a precious promise from the
Bible. I was listening to the discussion on the Christian radio station about
knowing that God was always with us. When I hear things like that I am always
drawn to the Collect for Purity which is read at almost every Anglican Communion
(Mass, Eucharist) on Sunday’s. It states in part, “For to you all hearts are
open, all desires known and from you no secrets are hid.” While I know Jesus
knows all and sees all, I think part of this statement is true because Jesus is
a friend who sticks closer than a brother. (Proverbs 18:24). Jesus' close proximity
to those who know him, love him and serve him brings comfort, strength and
assurance. Jesus’ departing words at his Ascension were, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
(Matthew 28:20) The can be no denying this fact. We are always in an audience
of one.
That promise stuck with me most of that day.
I was pleased to know that I was never alone. I drew immense comfort from this.
That is until I realized that with this promise, this blessed assurance, there
comes a responsibility. This is the opposite side of the same coin. If Jesus is
present with me all the time, every time, wherever I am, that means I am never
alone. There is never a time when I can get away with something because Jesus
won’t see me. Just because other people are not with me does not mean I am free
from the responsibility of being, acting, striving to be Christ-like. This became a profound reality for me very quickly.
At my other employment I have to deal with
difficult people on a regular basis. I am used to it. In fact I am so used to
it that I am becoming jaded and somewhat irreverent when they are not around. I
really did not realize how far I had backslidden until I remembered that Jesus
was with me all the time. As one of those difficult people left my office the
other day, I said under my breath, almost inaudible to even me, something not
very flattering about that person. I guess I have done that a lot lately
without even being aware of it. This time I became acutely aware of it because
Jesus reminded me he was there. I realized that even though no one else had
heard what I said, Jesus did! Immediately I got image in my mind of Jesus covering
his ears, closing his eyes, disappointed in my actions. He looked like two of
those monkeys: see no evil and speak no evil both at the same time. I was
instantly convicted. He reminded me of the many passages of Scripture that speak
to what I had just done. I was certainly not proud of myself. We are always in the
audience of one.
Here are two of the passages he brought to my attention. Proverbs
29:20 states: “Do you see someone who speaks in haste? There is more hope
for a fool than for them.”
This verse can bring a smile to your face when you think there is more hope
for a fool than for you. I know it did for me. I had no idea what that person was going through other
than the imposition they were placing on me. Instead of seeking to offer
comfort, understanding or support, I basically cursed them when they left.
Jesus’ rebuke of my verbal assault was justified. It did not make me feel good
either! Being a fair weather Christian is easy. It is not hard to pretend in
public, to put on the good, pious Christian mask. But as Paul encouraged the church at Colossae, “live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing
fruit in every good work.” (Colossians 1:10) Life is not just lived in
public but before an audience of one. And, make no mistake about it; my actions
did not bear good fruit. It was not a good work and any fruit coming from it
was rotten, tainted and worthless. I should know better. If I did not then, I
do now.
The one thing about Jesus rebuking you is that he does not leave
off with a reprimand. He offers you a solution, a positive way forward,
something to change about yourself to make your life more in line with his will and purpose.
So, he prompted me to another verse of Scripture. In the Sermon on the Mount,
Jesus said: “But I tell you, love your
enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” (Matthew 5:44) Some people
make it so hard to love them. And these difficult people are not really
persecuting me. They just aggravate, disturb and inconvenience me. I know those
are not the same things. But I think from Jesus’ point of view these are
distinctions without a difference. We can try to rationalize that they are not
really our enemies. They do not want to see any real harm come to us. They
certainly do not want to end our lives – at least I think not. As such, we really
do not have to pray for them, much less love them, right? Jesus sets the bar so
high, impossibly high. If we find people aggravating, disturbing and
inconvenient, then we should love and pray for them. Our job, our duty, our goal is to
present Jesus Christ in a favorable light whenever possible. We should attempt
to do this most especially when no one is looking, except Jesus himself.
I know there are times when I will not live up to the
expectations of Jesus Christ. But I also know there is never a time when I should
not try! Jesus’ teachings are difficult and hard to adhere to. If they were
easy, everyone would do them and we would have no need for a Savior. Even in my
meager attempts, I know that I could – I should – try to do better. If only
because I am always in an audience of one – the ONE!
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