Here’s what being a
follower of Jesus Christ does not mean: It does not mean your following a
celebrity gospelizer who proves his prosperity mantra by his own lavish
life-style and flashy showmanship. It does not mean crowd psychotherapy or
buying celebrity products.
It does not mean that
people other than yourself are obliged to live a moral and ethical life. It
does not you get to cohabitate, contract multiple marriages, commit fornication or adultery, procure abortion, dump human remains on top of dirt or water, absolve your sins in "your own way", swoon at television glamour, and no-show on the Lord’s Day.
So what does being a
faithful follower of Jesus Christ really mean? For starters, it means that a
Church's holy pastor first will lead people to Christ so that Christ can
lead them to the Father. In all other things, it means taking the hidden place, the last place. It means proving one's love by doing the Lord's own works of mercy.
It means that you follow
the example of Joseph of Arimethea and Mary Magdalene who helped Mary of
Nazareth bury her son the Lord Jesus Christ, tagged a notorious criminal. It means you will
reverence the bodies of all persons who have died. For the sake of the deceased
entrusted to your custody, you will provide him or her a proper religious
funeral service in the Church and burial in consecrated ground.
It means your being humane,
that you respect the lives and dignity of all human beings to live graced lives
from conception to natural death. It means your being reconciled with
God and neighbor at all times and accepting divine mercy as the indispensable
condition for your worship in the Church and your Christian life in the world.
Being a faithful follower
of Jesus Christ means that your food is doing
the will of the Father and accomplishing his work. This means then, that a
faithful follower who loves Christ will do these things and more:
Feed the hungry. Give a cup of cold water to the thirsty. Shelter the homeless. Clothe the naked. Visit the sick. Visit the imprisoned. Bury the dead reverently in consecrated ground.
More? Yes, there is more.
You will:
Correct the sinner. Instruct those who are ignorant of Christ. Counsel those whose faith is weak. Comfort the sorrowing. Bear wrongs patiently. Forgive all injuries. Pray for the living and the dead.
Go out into the world to do
these things. Live a holy way of life. Take up your own cross and follow the
Lord Jesus who carried his. Be worthy of him. Be worthy of humanity.
