Vaccinations are an amazing tool. By introducing a small amount of a dangerous organism into our system, we encourage our body to build an immunity to that organism. If it is successful, we are immune to that organism’s effect on our bodies.
Sometimes I think people in the world are vaccinated against faith--against Jesus himself. It works the same way as a medical vaccination. Someone gives us a small amount of “faith”. We incorporate that small amount of faith into our lives and think we have responded to the gospel. Maybe we change a little. We worship with the body occasionally. We give a little. We may even be part of a church activity. So we believe we have faith.
Then when real faith comes along, we reject it. Real worship. Real service to others. Real awareness that everything we are, everything we say, and everything we do can be given as an act of worship to the Lord. We reject it.
We don’t want to become fanatical. Go to a worship service every week? Seriously? Tithe–give a tenth of MY income? Really? You want me to stop doing what? No. We don’t need that. We don’t want that. We already have faith. Don’t we?
I suspect many who call themselves Christian are not. Instead, they have been inoculated against real faith. They have just enough to make them believe they are Christian–but not enough to make them literally accept Jesus as Lord–as the one who has the right to tell them how to live their life. They are willing to do some “Christian” things, but not to go too far with it. And certainly not to adopt a lifestyle that might not make them happy–a life of submission to Jesus.
The good news is that vaccinations tend to wear off. When they do, we can catch the disease.
So those people who have been vaccinated against Jesus might still have hope. If their vaccination isn’t updated. If they are exposed to the real organism. And if they choose to be infected.
“Catching” faith–catching Jesus–is good. But if we are going to infect someone, let’s make sure they catch the real thing.
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