Vicarious Christianity

Is your faith based on a vicarious relationship?

As followers of Christ we must accept the vicarious atonement of our Lord Jesus Christ in order to become a part of His church. In this context, the word would take on the following meaning. - performed, exercised, received, or suffered in place of another.

It is the vicarious atonement for our sins that brings us forgiveness, cleansing, and a restored relationship with God. Without this vicarious act we would be unable to satisfy the demands of God’s justice and therefore be forever condemned to eternal punishment.

In America today I see another form of vicarious Christianity that I find troubling. This vicarious relationship is with the church that the Christian attends. In this context the definition of the word would be one or all of the following - taking the place of another person or thing; acting or serving as a substitute - felt or enjoyed through imagined participation in the experience of others

This form of vicarious Christianity has crippled the transformational power of God’s people. When I ask people about their ministry I often hear people tell me about things their church does that they take no part in themselves. When I speak of my ministry I often hear – our church does something like that. It is as if there is an outline of responsibility in the Bible that can be met through membership in an organization that contributes to an effort. Yes the body is to work together to bless the world but each Christian has personal responsibility to minister as well. I believe this is one of the attractions of large churches. I believe that people feel better about their vicarious faith if the church they are attending is addressing as many issues as possible.

This approach to faith and ministry has only propelled the consumer attitudes of today’s churchgoers to a new level. Its almost as if they know they have a responsibility to preach the word, serve the poor, help the widows and orphans, etc… If their church has a ministry addressing one of these issues then they are vicariously addressing the issue and therefore off the hook for their own personal responsibility to these issues. The prime example of this is the huge number of people that try to compel people to come to church to hear their pastor when in reality they do not share their faith personally with anyone.

So we find the smorgasbord of programs laid out on pamphlets in the foyer. New guests can quickly assess if the church will provide a vicarious substitutionary provision for their personal responsibility. Now I can become affiliated with that church and I can appease my own conscience when someone asks me, “what is your ministry?” I can answer with “we” do this or that even if I don’t participate in any of the mentioned ministries. I can avoid the tension of sharing my faith personally by inviting people to hear my pastor.

We need people to return to the place of accepting and fulfilling their personal responsibility as Christians.