LIVING WITH UNBELIEVERS

From the Christian point of view, unbelievers are people who do not live according to faith in Jesus Christ. They may know or even admire Him, but they do not believe He is worth the following He demands. We Christians live among many unbelievers; and an awareness of their types would not only help us maximize our impact on them, but also save us unnecessary heartaches, especially from those who appear to be part of the Church (you may read Ephesians 5: 1-16 for an Paul’s overview). In this write-up, I present briefly the characteristics of the typical believer and discuss six types of unbelievers and how we may live with them.

Three Typical Characteristics of the Believer (Based On Mt 11:29)

·         Salvation-Oriented Lifestyle: They live a life of grateful sacrifice, knowing they have been spared eternal damnation through the sacrifice of Christ, they are compelled by the love of Christ to live and work for the salvation of others.

·         Self-Sacrificing Love: They live as if for the interest of others. They know as secure as their souls are, it is well with them in all things. They do not struggle with others over temporary possessions. Rather, they actively seek that it goes well with others.

·         Sincere Humility: They are ever ready to be washers of dirty feet, so long as they are human feet, and in that they identify with Christ’s value for every soul however demeaned.

The Six Types of Unbelievers

1.       Anti-Christ: These have made up their minds not only not to have anything to do with Christ, but also to actively persecute His cause. Like Herod, such people feel that Christ is a threat to their privileged way of life (and of this they are completely deceived, because Christ is a threat to no one’s life. He is the Savior and Giver of life.) They attack Christ and His followers in order to protect their religions, positions, criminal and depraved lifestyles. Like Herod’s offer to worship Christ, these would not mind infiltrating the Christian faith with an agenda to dilute its lofty ideals in order to bring it down (see Mt. 2:4-8, 16). The verbal and sometimes legal confrontations that they deserve suit their purpose, as they are quick to twist reactions and play victims. But alas! Like such fellows was Saul of Tarsus! (Ac. 9:1-2). We must keep an eye out for their treachery and refuse to be drawn into the confrontations they regularly initiate. Rather, we must be on our own warpath, ever upholding Christ as the Supreme Ruler of the domains they pretend to! And when their persecutions touch even our lives, retaliation is out of the question, as the weight of their guilt, like burning coals, has some value in melting their apprehensions about the Savior.

2.       Non-Christ: There are people who play neutral to Christ. They know enough about Christ, that it takes faith to follow Him, but would not commit to Him. Some, like Nicodemus or Agrippa cringe at the idea of publicly acknowledging Christ but admire Him in their closet (John 3:1-3, Ac. 26:28-32). Their dilemma is their awareness that a Savior denied in public is not really theirs, and they carry on with the show, grieving within (Mt. 10:33). What these really need is close-circuit clarifications and assurances like the audience Jesus gave to Nicodemus and the treatise Luke wrote for Theophilus (Lk. 1:1-4, Ac. 1:1). Perhaps by the assurance that the Savior is after them despite their cowardice they will come out of the closet the right way.

3.       Un-Christ: These are Christian only in appearance, like the wrongdoers who would not accept their offence though the Scriptures clearly convict them (Mt 18:17) : Like Judas, they are fair weather Christians who follow Christ up to the point of their convenience only. They publicly declare which parts of Christ’s injunctions they feel obliged by and which they cannot live with. Like Demas, their true state usually remains hidden until a crisis erupts or an enticing opportunity comes along (2Tim. 4:10). Do not trust them with high Christian responsibility, and be careful not to hold them accountable to high Christian standards as they may feel more offended. Rather, overlook their offences against you, treat them generously and keep praying for them.

4.       Mis-Christ: These are mistaken for Christians even by other Christians because of their close association with prominent Christians, and they present a real danger of unequal yokefellows (2Cor. 6:14) At heart, they do not value the Christian faith as the all-in-all, but they like to enjoy its shadows or may feel entrapped by marriage or employment relationships that they want to maintain (1 Cor. 7:12-16). They may do everything that the community of Christians requires, but in private they have absolutely no motivation to maintain a close fellowship with Christ Himself or sacrifice to serve Him. These cannot be relied upon to show initiative in ministry or motivate others to serve. Do not depend on these for exceptional sacrifice. Make up your mind to be exceptionally generous to them, but be careful not to come down to their level of cold and selfish love.

5.       Ante-Christ: Ante means ‘before’, and there are people who act Christian before they have known His essence. Like such was Simon, who wanted to buy the Holy Spirit (Acts 8: 18-20) and Diotrephes who would not welcome other Christian leaders (3John 9). These do not know Christ well yet, and may follow Him in ways they feel are right and in accordance with their experience. They may be quite bold in assuming Christian leadership, especially if they were in some secular leadership before coming to Christ, but their selfishness and quest for recognition betray their unsettled faith. These must be approached and put right as early and as clearly as possible (Ac. 18: 24-28). Their zeal without knowledge put them in danger of falling into Satan’s trap, and their error must not be glossed over.

6.       Neo-Christ: There are those who seem to be following a Christ of laws and rituals rather than the one who has saved us by grace through faith (2 Cor. 4:11/ Eph 2:8-9). These insist on observing elaborate rituals along with Christ (Col. 2: 8-23). They have an endless list of requirements under their sleeves and never cease to question the certainty or sincerity of others’ salvation. Their real problem, however, is in their own insecurity. Somehow, they believe they will be saved according to the number of ritualistic tests they pass. They can be really irritating, but must be tolerated and gradually made confident in the love of Christ. They have many ‘relatives’ in the New Testament, typically the Judaizers, ascetics, etc., the fruitlessness of whose efforts may be brought to their notice with compassion. Stay free from their worthless burdens, though.

Conclusion

The Christian faith is as lovely as it is demanding. The Savior’s injunction that those who find rest in Him be authenticated by their willingness to take up their cross and follow Him is quite uncompromising. It however remains a loving call to follow Him who has guaranteed our eternal life. Any commitment that falls short our absolute trust in Him betrays a lack of integrity of our faith, and we must not rejoice in such, as it could signal an affirmation for those who truly do not believe and risk perishing. We must also take note of the various types of unbelief in our midst and refuse to make them the yardsticks of our faith. Rather, we must reprove those, as we watch to remain completely faithful to our Lord, with all zeal and knowledge.