People are Afraid of Commitment
I have been considering this statement made to me by a good friend of mine this week, "People are afraid of commitment." I suppose I should know that, but it still seems strange to me on several levels. I have been afraid of making commitments before, myself.
We want commitment when it comes to what we expect from other people. If we want them to pay us what they owe us, we want them to believe in commitment. If they tell us they are coming for an appointment, we want them to believe in commitment. I think we believe in that kind of commitment, don't we? We believe in paying our bills and keeping our appointments, so we are not afraid of those types of commitments, are we?
We make long term commitments to people and to ourselves all the time, and we manage to keep those commitments. We finish high school and college. We get married, and stay married for many years. We sign a mortgage for a house, and we pay for it faithfully for up to 30 years. We commit to eating right or staying in shape, and we do those things. We do not appear to be too afraid of those commitments most of the time.
Since all of those things are true, why would anyone be afraid of commitment to the Lord Jesus? I agree that we are afraid of making commitments to Him and to His will, but why? We are not afraid of Him, I don't think. Maybe afraid is too strong of a word, maybe in some cases, it is just being hesitant to make commitments to Him. However, why would we be hesitant to make commitments to Him? Is it that we can't trust Him? Surely, that is not the reason. Maybe, it is a lack of understanding Him and His plan for our lives, or maybe it does not have anything to do with Him, just us. Whatever, it is, it is serious, because Christianity is built on trust or faith. That is not just a one time head faith that Jesus died for us. It is a constant living faith that He is Lord. Jesus expressed that to the rich, young ruler in Matthew 19:21, and he decided to leave. He was afraid of commitment, but he never was a believer. Why would a person who had come to know the Living Lord be afraid of commitment, since it takes full commitment to come to know Him?
I have come to the conclusion that I agree with my friend's assessment, but I do not really understand it as it applies to a Christian. The Christian life is being committed to Jesus as Lord, so why would a believer be afraid of commitment? It shouldn't be fear of the unknown, because we know Jesus is fully trustworthy.
Tomorrow, I intend to read I Samuel 19-21 and Luke 11:29-54.
We want commitment when it comes to what we expect from other people. If we want them to pay us what they owe us, we want them to believe in commitment. If they tell us they are coming for an appointment, we want them to believe in commitment. I think we believe in that kind of commitment, don't we? We believe in paying our bills and keeping our appointments, so we are not afraid of those types of commitments, are we?
We make long term commitments to people and to ourselves all the time, and we manage to keep those commitments. We finish high school and college. We get married, and stay married for many years. We sign a mortgage for a house, and we pay for it faithfully for up to 30 years. We commit to eating right or staying in shape, and we do those things. We do not appear to be too afraid of those commitments most of the time.
Since all of those things are true, why would anyone be afraid of commitment to the Lord Jesus? I agree that we are afraid of making commitments to Him and to His will, but why? We are not afraid of Him, I don't think. Maybe afraid is too strong of a word, maybe in some cases, it is just being hesitant to make commitments to Him. However, why would we be hesitant to make commitments to Him? Is it that we can't trust Him? Surely, that is not the reason. Maybe, it is a lack of understanding Him and His plan for our lives, or maybe it does not have anything to do with Him, just us. Whatever, it is, it is serious, because Christianity is built on trust or faith. That is not just a one time head faith that Jesus died for us. It is a constant living faith that He is Lord. Jesus expressed that to the rich, young ruler in Matthew 19:21, and he decided to leave. He was afraid of commitment, but he never was a believer. Why would a person who had come to know the Living Lord be afraid of commitment, since it takes full commitment to come to know Him?
I have come to the conclusion that I agree with my friend's assessment, but I do not really understand it as it applies to a Christian. The Christian life is being committed to Jesus as Lord, so why would a believer be afraid of commitment? It shouldn't be fear of the unknown, because we know Jesus is fully trustworthy.
Tomorrow, I intend to read I Samuel 19-21 and Luke 11:29-54.