The Immune System

After reading an advisory about disease risks for travelers, I visited our Community Health Service to get updated on immunizations. Actually, my wife told me to go down and get my shots (smile). ¶  During the visit, the clinic nurse asked me how long I was going to be out of the country. She said anyone who travels internationally repeatedly, or for any length of time, is at special risk to disease. “Seasoned” travelers, she went on to say, are apt to become careless about their food and water. ¶  Before leaving the clinic, I rolled up my sleeves and took two shots in each arm. Four doses of “inactivated cells” were injected into my veins. The principle of immunization, as I understand it, is that the body doesn’t see the difference between dead and living cells. When the serum is injected, our body begins to build up a defense system against the real thing.

Another side of inoculation.

As with almost everything else in life, immunizations can have side-effects. After getting my shots, I talked to a friend who said he didn’t like the idea of having “swamp water” put in his veins. Even though serum is not “swamp water,” I knew what he was talking about. In a small percentage of cases inoculations are followed by complications. Because of such remote but real risks, I had to read and sign a paper at the Health Department indicating that I understood the potential dangers.

There is, however, another danger of “inoculation” the Health Department didn’t warn me about. I wouldn’t expect them to. The danger is spiritual and is related only in principle to “shots of dead cells” that make us resistant to the real thing. It is the kind of subtle inoculation that causes us to say, “familiarity breeds contempt.”

This natural resistance that develops with time shows up in the last book of the Bible. The Book of Revelation is addressed to seven churches at the end of the first century. These congregations probably included second and third generation believers who had been on the road for a while. A few decades of church history were in the books. The members of these churches would have had a fair amount of history on one another, and on their Lord as well.

The “spiritual honeymoon” was over. Familiarity was at work. Five out of seven congregations had carelessly become infected with life-threatening diseases of the spirit. From “a loss of first love” to “the cooling effects of material success,” these veteran churches were becoming resistant to one another, to their Lord, and to the needs around them.

The pattern of 5 out of 7 life-threatening conditions puts me off balance. The percentage runs against what I’d like to believe. I’d rather believe that time, knowledge, and experience are all working for us. I’d rather believe that our familiarity with the issues of faith is making us resistant to diseases of the soul.

Inoculation in reverse.

What I see in these churches, in history, and in myself is a kind of immunity that works against health rather than for it. What child, neighbor, or acquaintance of religion doesn’t run the risk of getting injected with the “dead cells” of familiarity? Given enough disappointment with people of faith, who among us isn’t inclined to build up immunities to the real thing. Given enough knowledge of the failures of others, who among us isn’t inclined to focus more on the failures of believers than on the Lord of the church Himself?

Inoculation in surprising places.

But before assuming that spiritual immunity is only about the failures of people like us, let’s remember that the family and neighbors of Jesus also used “time and familiarity” to take Him for granted. Even those who lived in the same neighborhood as the Son of God were inclined to dismiss Him with the excuse, “Oh, Him! I know Him. I know His father, His mother, His brothers and sisters” (John 6:42).

Seeing that familiarity could breed contempt even for the Son of God helps us keep matters in perspective. We can be inoculated not only by the real failures of people of faith. We can also develop immunity by what we take for granted. We can wrongly assume that we are seeing the whole picture. We can blame God for the wrongs of others. We can even suppose that because heaven doesn’t strike us dead for our self-centered choices our Lord isn’t watching, or concerned, or grieving, or angry.

Inoculation has an antidote.

Thankfully, there is an antidote to reverse our human tendency. Christ offers this remedy to the aging churches of the Revelation when He asks them to take another look at Him. Each personal message begins with a carefully selected word picture of Himself. Part of the implication is, “Stop looking at everyone else! Look at Me!”

Then, while reminding them that He Himself is the beginning and end of their journey (Revelation 1:8), He reminds them of the wonder of His power, the power of His presence, and the renewing presence of His Spirit.

Father, please forgive me for taking You, Your Son, and Your renewing Spirit for granted. Even though I know better, I’ve acted as if You were predictable, and as if my ways were Your ways.