Would-Be Christians
In the year 305 A.D., Constantine became Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. He quickly outlawed the persecution of Christians. He took one step further and made Christianity the official religion of the Empire.
While the Church surely delighted in this turn of events, it presented a new problem. There were many Christians who had endured persecution and death rather than say,” Caesar is Lord;” there were also many Christians who for personal fear and other reasons had said, “Caesar is Lord.” How should the church respond to these “weak” believers? We refer to them as closet Christians or would-be Christians i.e., believers who are not strong enough to bear a cross.
It would appear Judas was a would-be follower of Jesus. Hoping to redirect Jesus’ plans from the Cross, Judas betrayed Him. As soon as he committed the betrayal, he realized, “I have made a terrible mistake.” Judas compounded the betrayal of Christ with suicide.
The Bible tells of others who seem to have been closet believers. Joseph of Arimathea, a Jewish leader, apparently lacked the courage to follow Jesus openly. He changed his mind when he saw how Jesus died. And what about Nicodemus? Jesus explained salvation to him, but there is no record of his acceptance. Following Jesus’ crucifixion, both men found courage enough to request to bury Jesus’ body. With this act one might say they “came out” as believers in Jesus Christ.
The polls tell us about half of American citizens claim to be Christian. Yet church attendance, the least costly act of following Jesus, does not substantiate that claim. It seems safe to assume many who profess to be Christians are would-be followers. They would like to have the blessings of Jesus but not His cross.
The church must decide how it will relate to these would-be disciples. Perhaps the answer to that is recorded in Jesus’ confrontation with Peter beside the Sea of Galilee---with love and forgiveness. Who knows what a would-be believer might become?
