UN-PC TO GIVE GOD THE CREDIT?

A Christian sister had been raving about a program for prisoners, which has been reducing recidivism through counseling and job readiness training. As she continued to praise this program before a mixed group, I began to wonder if it was a Christian program. I therefore asked, and she emphatically answered, “Yes, Prison Fellowship.” Had I not asked, it seemed that this essential piece of information would not have been disclosed, and secular intervention would have been credited instead.

This made me think of a conversation I had had with a Christian drug treatment counselor who had been asked to work for a secular drug treatment program. He had asked if he’d be able to share his faith with his counselees. He was told that this was not allowed. He therefore felt that he had to refuse this employment.

He explained that even if he was to successfully impart sound principles of growth and change, he would be misleading his clients by giving them a false hope in their ability to meaningfully change.

“A false hope?” I asked. He explained that if he wasn’t allowed to share the one hope in the Gospel of Jesus, he would be leaving his clients with the misimpression that they had the resources to change themselves or else that he, the counselor, had what it took to live a “successful life.” He reasoned that to leave them with this impression was to fail them and also to be unfaithful to the Lord.

I praised his decision, which made me think of Jesus’ words: “Without Me, you can do nothing” (John 15:4-5). Yes, some have escaped drug addiction without Jesus, but wouldn’t this come with a different price tag - a tragic relapse or arrogance?

While the drug counselor thought it necessary to place Jesus in the forefront, the Christian woman didn’t. However, Jesus taught:

• “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.” (Matthew 5:14-15 NKJV)

To let our light shine is not only a matter of doing good. It is also a matter of verbally explaining the Source of the good expressed in the Word of the Gospel:

• Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life... (Philippians 2:14-16)

When we fail to allow “the word of life” to shine, we fail to give the credit to the One who deserves the credit. In contrast, the Scriptures are adamant that God must get all the credit:

• I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make its boast in the LORD; The humble shall hear of it and be glad. Oh, magnify the LORD with me, And let us exalt His name together. I sought the LORD, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. (Psalms 34:1-4)

Our Lord is the answer, and it is our responsibility to let the world know of this all-surpassing truth.