No Shame in Believing

In our society it can be more than a little intimidating to admit we believe in Christ. Maybe not among our close friends, but in public we may even be ashamed to admit our faith in God. Afterall, our society teaches us to keep our faith to ourselves. Maybe we should obey. No! I don’t think so.

Brethren, the scripture says, “No one who believes in God will be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; the same Lord is Lord of all and bestows his riches upon all who call upon him. For, “every one who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved.” But how are men to call upon him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without a preacher? And how can men preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach good news!” But they have not all obeyed the gospel; for Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” So faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes by the preaching of Christ. But I ask, have they not heard? Indeed they have; for “Their voice has gone out to all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world.” Again I ask, did Israel not understand? First Moses says, “I will make you jealous of those who are not a nation; with a foolish nation I will make you angry.” Then Isaiah is so bold as to say, “I have been found by those who did not seek me; I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me.” But of Israel he says, “All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people.” I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew.

Romans 10:11-21;11:1-2

Fortunately for us, God has promised that we will not be put to shame. Unfortunately for us, He wasn’t talking about society. He was talking about heaven. Yes, we will be saved by God. No, society will not think that is cool. They may even shame us, and we should be ready.

Public shame is the exact reason the Church continues to inspire our courage and faith with stories of the saints. Today the Church commemorates Saint Athenogenes. It is believed that he went to his martyrdom signing O Gladsome Light from vespers. There is no shame in that!

Gladsome light of holy glory of the holy, blessed, heavenly, immortal Father, O Jesus Christ: arriving at the hour of sunset and having seen the evening light, we praise the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, God. It is worthy for You to be praised at all times with happy voices, O Son of God and Giver of life; * and therefore the world glorifies You.

Entrance hymn of vespers

People will never be able to believe if they do not hear about God. They will not have the courage of faith unless they see others with courage. Just as the Saints inspire us, we should strive to inspire others to faith and courage. We must not be ashamed of our faith.

God has been accused of many things in our society. Most (I would say all, but I’m being gracious) of what society accuses God is either blatantly false or twisted to make a point. Yes, there are countless violent acts done ‘in the name of God’. No, He didn’t want them done.

Society attempts to steer us away from God by shaming our belief. “How could you believe in a God that rejects people for who they are?” I hear this one quite often. As Saint Paul says. God doesn’t reject people. People reject God.

Shame is powerful. I have seen the most faithful people remain silent for fear of being shamed by others. We don’t like being called names. We don’t like being lied about. We don’t like being lumped in with others who are acting poorly. It is safer to remain quiet and to ourselves.

Here’s the deal. It isn’t a sin to ‘lay low’ when we are among unbelievers. It isn’t a sin to sit quietly in a crowd. It is a sin to deny faith. It is a sin to deny Christ. It is a sin to stop living as Christians. It requires discernment and courage to keep living while not denying.

Living as a Christian requires that we treat every human being with dignity and respect. We are commanded by God to love others without limits. That means giving them the freedom to live their lives. I promise we will not always agree with their choices.

It is not a sin to honor their freedom. It is a sin to agree with their choices. It is not a sin to sit quietly in a café next to someone who does not believe. It isn’t even a sin to provide them with a service in our business. It is a sin to ridicule them for their unbelief or sinful choices.

It is not a sin to reject tempting offers from others to engage in sinful acts. It is a sin to deny belief when challenged about our choice to reject the sin. It isn’t a sin to say, “No thank you.” It is a sin to say, “It isn’t because of Christ.” It should always be about Christ.

Once we reject Christ, we have chosen to walk away Him in favor of walking with others. We are more afraid of being shamed for belief than God. We become the disobedient people, not God. In the end, we are shamed by God instead of society.

I would rather be shamed by society, which will forget about me tomorrow. God will remember for eternity. Who knows. By choosing God, maybe our faith will inspire others as Saint Athenogenes inspires us.