The scene was from Spiderman. Peter Parker, with super strength and powers, lets a thief go by him which he then learns that the same thief killed his uncle on the same night. It’s a dramatic consequence of a very common attitude we have when we see something that is wrong i.e. bystanding. When we see injustice or advocacy groups protest against the injustice, more often we, the everyday Christian, sit on the sidelines and become bystanders as opposed to further understand what’s going on and be part of the solution. Because hey, we have our lives to deal with, kids to look after, jobs to do, fun activities that we want to enjoy so we don’t have time right now. Let’s just wait till retirement. And besides, those protests and rallies are really annoying and getting in the way of my life’s norms!
This is the point today. In the movie, Spiderman, this phrase has become the staple throughout Spiderman’s life i.e. “With great power comes great responsibility.” Christians, when we receive Jesus as our Lord and Saviour and become saved ones in Christ, WE, like Jacob, have a great responsibility and have God-given capacities i.e. the Holy Spirit, to fulfill it. Jonathan argues that if we do not fulfill our God-given responsibility and leave the world to fend for themselves, there will always be a zero sum. In fact, historically, when Christians were bystanding while the world tried to deal with the injustice, things didn’t turn out well. Chaos ensues. Globally, look at the Arab Spring and locally, we still haven’t figured out how to reconcile with our indigenous neighbours without a zero sum. My point is this: Following Jesus comes God-given responsibility, if we shirk it we become like Jacob, a stink.
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