Advent 3: Stop Being a Dull Christian

Every Christian should joyfully and confidently proclaim loudly with Mary, “My soul magnifies the Lord; My spirit finds joy in God my Saviour” (Lk 1:47).

Written by Fr Sean Sheehy for Catholic Unscripted

The dictionary defines ‘dull’ as foolish, tedious, uninteresting, or lacking in brightness. Sadly dullness all too often describes Christians. I have witnessed this in many parish churches at Sunday Mass where congregations are riddled with dull faces.

C.S. Lewis in his book “The Joyful Christian” wrote that “joy is the serious business of Heaven,” and attaining it is the business of the Christian. So Jesus’ Church begins the 3^rd week of Advent calling us to be joyful because His constant love puts joy in our hearts. Despite the misery and hardship we might be facing He promises to change it into joy.

“The desert and the parched land will exult; the steppe will rejoice and bloom. They will bloom with abundant flowers and rejoice with joyful song”

Is 35:1-2).

God’s word shocks us out of our dullness and dispels our darkness. God makes life come out of death, beauty out of barrenness, and a joyful song out of sorrow. God promises to

“Strengthen the hands that are feeble, make firm the knees that are weak, and tell those whose hearts are frightened: be strong, fear not! Here is your God … He comes to save you” Is 35:4-5).

How could anyone who believes in God’s promises be dull?

Dullness Has no Place in Christianity.

A dull Christian is not Christian. Christians should be the most excited and joyful people in the world. Knowing that God has come to save us gives us plenty of reasons to be joyful. Perhaps we aren’t as joyful as we should be because we don’t realise the awesome and wondrous gift of God’s love in sending His Son to save us and the sacrifice He made on our behalf. All too often we think we’re in control and are taking care of ourselves. It’s only when failure, disappointment, betrayal, disease, or death forces us to admit our fragility and helplessness. Like the recovering addict, we’re in constant need of God’s help since we’re never fully recovered from our proneness to sin.

The Illusion of Self-Salvation

All too often we underestimate our sinfulness. We suffer from a fallen nature inherited from Adam and Eve. It’s defective and prone to egotism due to our darkened intellect and weak will. In ignorance and arrogance we think we can save ourselves without God. A self-made man demonstrates the woes of unskilled labour. The illusion of being our own saviour ends in disillusionment and we cry for someone to save us. That “someone” is Jesus Christ. Because of Jesus we aren’t doomed by our sin-stained inheritance. Jesus frees us from a flawed past and gives us a present to enjoy, leading to a bright future in which to hope. How could a believer in Jesus be dull? Every Christian should joyfully and confidently proclaim loudly with Mary, “My soul magnifies the Lord; My spirit finds joy in God my Saviour” (Lk 1:47).

God’s Faithfulness to His Promises

John the Baptiser, Jesus’ cousin, imprisoned for publicly condemning Herod’s adulterous relationship with Herodias, was wondering if Jesus was the Messiah. He sent disciples to ask Jesus if He was the Messiah, God-with-us. Jesus didn’t say He was or He wasn’t. Instead He told them to, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them.. And blessed is the one who takes no offence at me” (Mt 11:4-6). Jesus wanted John to see that He was fulfilling what God had promised, namely to, “Strengthen the hands of the feeble, make firm the knees that are weak, say to those whose hearts are frightened: Be strong, fear not! Here is your God, He comes with vindication … He comes to save you … He will open the eyes of the blind, clear the ears of the deaf, enable the lame to leap and the tongue of the mute to sing” (Is 35:1-10).

Restoration to Wholeness and Holiness

The transforming effect on all who believed in Jesus was proof of His divine touch restoring physically and spiritually feeble, weak, fearful, lame, blind, and deaf human beings to wholeness. Have you ever been blind - blind to your own faults, your own and others’ innate value, worth, grace and beauty? Jesus came into the world to be the light that dispels the darkness of our ignorance and pride. Have you ever been lame - slow in showing your love and carrying out your responsibilities? Jesus came to found His Church in which He offers you strength especially in the Sacraments of Reconciliation and Eucharist. Have you ever been deaf – deaf to God’s Word, to the truth of your own worth and that of others, to the truth about your behaviour, your reason for being here, the importance of sharing your gifts, the love God and others have for you? Jesus came to help you hear the truth of His unconditional love which sets you free to be the self He created you to be. Have you ever been dead – dead to your own abilities, to the needs of others, to God’s call, to participation in Jesus’ Church where He sustains and nourishes you and gives you hope? Jesus raised you to life in Baptism and enables you to give life to others through sharing your gifts with them. Have you ever had a poor attitude – mean, miserly, jealous and envious, feeling others have more than you? Jesus came to help you see how rich you are and how much you have to give others. Have you ever felt like a leper – rejected, unclean from sin, ashamed of your background, unwanted? Jesus came to cleanse you and unite you with His people through reconciliation with Him and His Church. Jesus came to provide you with everything you lack so that His image and likeness might shine in you. Surely this is a reason to be joyful!

Patience Is Required

A woman once described herself to me as “a Christian under construction.” God the Father is the Architect, Jesus is the Builder, and the Holy Spirit supplies the materials. But we must let the Holy Trinity work on us, mould us, fill us and use us. St. James calls us to, “Be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord” (Jas 5:7). He encourages us to be like the farmer “who waits for the precious fruit of the earth until it receives the rains… You too must be patient. Make your hearts firm, because the coming of the Lord is at hand.” Much of the joy Christian faith generates is aborted by our impatience and trying to do things our way. God tells us that there is a proper time and place for everything (Eccles 3:2ff). But we expect God to act according to our timetable. If He doesn’t, we become irritated or feel rejected by Him. This impatience deprives us of the joy generated by Jesus’ promises. Someone said, “If you want to hear God laugh, tell Him your plans.” God’s plan for you and me is to be like Jesus. So when we follow Jesus’s way we will be excited and joyful because He makes us more than adequate to every situation, if we let Him.

The Power of Joy

Light a pink candle this week and celebrate the joy the Lord brings you, a joy that suffering and death can’t diminish or extinguish. Let that joy dispel your dullness. Jesus is the promised Messiah. He is here now in His Church, and rest assured that He will come again. He always does what He says, therefore you can totally depend on Him and that in itself is the reason to be joyful.

The Power to Change

If nature can turn coal into diamonds, sand into pearls, and a worm into a butterfly, surely God can turn your life around too! If you let Him.