Christian Rule of Life

Principles

The Christian Life is about relationships:

• Duty towards God,
• duty towards other people,
• and enabling the relationship to flourish between God and other people.

Our lives must therefore enable others to see the attractiveness of what a relationship with God must be like by the example we set in our relationships with Him and with those around us.

As with all rules, there are do’s and don’ts, but the motive is always love in the carrying out of the rules.

As a Christian you are also a member of the Church, the body of disciples set up by Jesus.

There is a duty of fellowship with the church as it proclaims Christ to the world “making all nations my disciples.”

The rule of life will necessarily include direct commands by Jesus.

• “When you pray…..” Jesus gave us the Lord’s Prayer.
• “Do this in remembrance of me….” We must receive the Holy Communion with other Christians.
• “Make all nations my disciples” We must work together for the building of the church and the growth in numbers of disciples.
• There are many other instructions by Jesus to be found in the scriptures, so there must be a duty in the Rule of Life to read the Bible regularly.

Rules

Each Christian should make a personal Rule of Life and seek to keep it without fail day by day for life.

It will not be easy, such will be the temptation to let standards slip, but the more the rule is kept without fail, the easier it will become in time. Set a personal standard around each of the following:

1. Attendance at Holy Communion at least once per week. It would be a sin to attend less, except in illness or other extreme reason. Even in illness a priest would bring you your communion.
2. Punctuality: It gives a “couldn’t care less” attitude and is ill manners to turn up late to appointments given normal circumstances. It is therefore a sin casually to turn up late to worship.
3. Daily prayer for a given time, but developing to a continuous awareness of God’s presence with you in a constant loving relationship. This is “talking to God” in your relationship.
4. Bible Reading daily. This is opportunity for God talking to you. To know God’s will you will begin to recognise God’s purposes in scripture. Use a commentary, and use bible study groups when available.
5. Sacrificial Giving is one of the disciplines existing amongst the Jews as Jesus fulfilled his ministry. It was strongly affirmed by Jesus as long as it went with the right motives.

6. Making your confession. We usually fail to live up to the high standards of the faith. Only Christ was perfect. That does not mean we give up, any more than the musician gives up after hitting a wrong note. Confession takes three forms.

a)      Personal confession in private daily prayer. This is a self analysis of each day and the seeking awareness of the faults in our behaviour in thought, word and deed. A sin is usually doing something to someone else that you wouldn’t like someone doing to you. The thought might have been a temptation into which we did not fall, (not a sin therefore) rather than a self indulgent pattern of thought which betrays a weakness of attitude. A true confession in prayer guarantees forgiveness by God.

b)      Corporate confession in a church service. All other Christians have failings as well, and we need the re-assurance of forgiveness. This is proclaimed in church by the priest or minister.

c)      Sacramental Confession is one of the seven sacraments. In total confidentiality you would tell your priest of your sins to receive absolution, the assurance of God’s forgiveness. Sometimes our sins weigh on us, and as human beings we need to hear the words of forgiveness above the simple faith that we are forgiven.

7. Fasting. In self discipline, self denial has its place. Motive here is very important. (see Matthew 6, especially verses 16-18.) Making oneself ill by under eating is not God’s will. Gluttony is one of the “seven deadly sins.” God is for health and therefore a sensible healthy diet. Total denial of food should only be occasional and for a short period. At the most extreme, Lent, like Ramadan, was the abstinence from food during daylight hours. There are other things to deny oneself apart from food, and taking a new commitment as a discipline (e.g. exercise or taking on someone else’s chore) is equally commendable.
8. Good works. You may see your priest doing good things, but ministry begins not with ordination, but with Baptism. Being a Christian is not just a list of “Thou shalt nots” but is the commitment to work with God and other Christians in the power of the Spirit to build the Kingdom of God on earth. This is another example of doing something for some else that you would like doing for you if you were in their situation.
9. Honest dealing is being a good example of what a Christian should be. Others should want to imitate your goodness. Being a Christian is not just about doing “churchy” things in our spare time, but in seeing the Christian dimension to everything we are doing, at work, in leisure, at home, in politics, current affairs, issues etc.
10. Mission is related to most of 8 and 9 above. We should be trying to make all nations my disciples. St Francis of Assisi said to his followers “Go and preach the Gospel. Use words if necessary.”
11. In your work seek to be creative as God is creative, and see yourself as serving just as Christ served. Remember the words of the hymn by George Herbert, “Teach me my God and King in all things Thee to see, and what I do in anything to do it as for Thee.”
12. Attitude of mind, and the way you relate to others. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. You are hardly likely to bring others to Christ and His Church if you are such an unattractive person in your behaviour that you are constantly being thoughtless, hurtful and giving offence. In all relationships try to feel what others a feeling as you relate to them. That sort of sensitivity will win you friends in the faith.