Status Quo

Matthew 24:10 – “Then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another.”

Jesus is saying that in response to the threat of torture and death, many will quit the faith and even persecute those that remain. He’s still talking about what his disciples have called the “close of the age.” We’ve seen wars and rumors of wars as a sign of the beginning. Now we have people leaving the faith and betraying those in it as another sign. This sign is just as useless as the first sign, for we have always had people betraying the faith in many ways in the face of torture or death.

Why, though, were Christians threatened with torture or death? Was it just for being a Christian or was there something more there? The problem with being a Christian in the Roman Empire and beyond was that Christians threatened the status quo. Christians threatened the status quo by refusing to sacrifice on behalf of the emperor. This was seen as a threat to the social structure. Just as Jesus was crucified for threatening the status quo, so are Christians threatened when we speak out against unjust laws, unjust actions, unjust governments.

And if you’re thinking that doesn’t happen anymore, here’s a few names: Abraham Lincoln, Dr. Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Gandhi, Robert Kennedy. They were all killed because they were seen as threatening the status quo. We think of Christianity as a comforting and soothing religion in the US. Christianity in the US has largely identified itself with the status quo rather than those whom the status quo oppresses. These are the people Jesus spoke against for that same behavior. But Christianity is also challenging and risky. Its symbol is a form of execution, reminding people what should be at stake in our faith.

This is what it means to live for Christ; to risk torture or death for doing the right thing. Following Jesus’ commandments to love our neighbor can and must mean speaking with those neighbors who are abused, oppressed, homeless, poor, and/or ill. It means taking the sermon on the mount seriously and literally. It means recognizing that God’s grace does not come cheap. Following Christ is risky and dangerous to our wellbeing. We in the US often substitute saving souls for helping people get decent housing or food. We have personalized and spiritualized Christianity and left off the caring for the least of these in our society. Yet, Christianity is a communal endeavor rather than a personal one. We must practice our faith in community and for our communities, all of our communities, rather than for ourselves alone.

No, we in the US are not persecuted just for being Christian. It is for the actions we take in following Christ that we are sometimes jailed, persecuted, tortured, or killed. In reality, we take fewer risks than our brothers and sisters around the world. No matter what we face, Jesus demands we love our neighbors, and loving our neighbors means risking our comfort and safety that others might also be comfortable and safe. That is a message that threatens the status quo.