COMMONWEALTH

Over the development of my pastoral ministry and personal theology, there has been an increasingly narrow focus on what I believe is of utmost importance in the life of the Christian. This focus has become more and more pronounced as I grow older.

My attention has settled on the reality that we need a concrete application of the Christian faith we all hold dear. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer approached his execution in 1945, his reflections on “religionless Christianity” and his desire to see believers strip away false piety and substitute religiosity in favor of a more incarnational expression of faith make more and more sense to me.

This incarnational expression of faith is what the world needs now—more than new programs or religious activities. It is a focus that compels Christians to actually live out Christ’s command to love God and love neighbor. It is free from the games and distractions that cause us to forget or ignore the true calling of the people of God.

So how can we, as Christians, be incarnational? We do as Jesus did—we enter into the realities of life and simply be present. We enter those realities proclaiming hope. We enter them carrying the love of Christ. This narrowed focus opens us to greater vulnerability and discomfort than we might naturally choose. But that is the way of the cross. As Bonhoeffer wrote in Discipleship, “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.” No one wants to die, yet this is precisely what following Christ looks like.

Are you an incarnational Christian? I ask not because I have figured it out, but because I want to share my heart and seek companions who desire to pursue the way of Christ in a time marked by uncertainty, unrest, and profound change. How can we, as the people of God, live as a concrete witness to Christ’s love? How do we move beyond merely agreeing with doctrines and truths to actually being reborn into a life of obedience?

These are the questions the church must answer as we look toward the future. The church will likely look very different than it does today, and if we do not move where God is leading, we risk being left behind. How often have we recognized the need for change—in life, in church, and in our work—yet remained comforted by the status quo?

Any threat to the status quo—whether social upheaval, cultural shifts, or personal disruption—has the power to expose how fragile our attachments to familiarity can be. Yet praise be to Christ, who is the Resurrection and the Life. May we no longer be defined by what is comfortable or familiar, but by the power of the Resurrection. Now is the time to narrow our focus and live incarnationally.