The Cost Of Being Consistent: By Vahe Sargsyan

A while ago, I put a sticker of my country on the rear window of my car. Almost immediately, I became more careful about how I drove.

With that flag on my car, I felt that I was representing something beyond myself. I did not want another driver to see that flag, watch me drive recklessly, and form a negative opinion about the people I was claiming to represent.

After a while, something unexpected happened. It actually felt good to drive better. That small symbol created a constant awareness of who I represented.

The same principle should matter much more for a Christian.

When we call ourselves Christian, wear a cross, attend church, and openly identify ourselves with Christ, we make a claim. We say that we belong to Him. And if we belong to Him, then our behavior should reflect the One we represent.

This does not mean that Christians are perfect. I am not. I can be proud. Sometimes I fail to trust Christ. Sometimes I am lazy. Sometimes I am not truthful. We all fall.

But there is a difference between falling and becoming comfortable with the fall.

Sometimes we resist pride. Sometimes we choose truth when lying would be easier. Sometimes we forgive when we would rather hold a grudge. The problem is that we are often inconsistent. At one moment we remember who we belong to. At another, we act as though we represent only ourselves.

And these tests are often very ordinary.

You are sitting with friends at a restaurant, and the food arrives. Do you quietly make the sign of the Cross, or do you avoid it because you worry someone might think you are too religious? You are at an Armenian gathering, and someone begins mocking the Christian faith. Do you remain silent because speaking up would make things awkward? A friend begins gossiping about someone who is not there. Do you stop it, or do you join in because everyone else is doing it?

These moments may look small, but they reveal something important: whether we dare to be consistent when faith becomes uncomfortable.

So what does it take to become more consistent and faithful to Christ?

It begins with awareness of Whom we represent.

St. Paul writes, “Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:20). An ambassador does not represent himself. In the same way, the Christian cannot separate his identity from his conduct.

St. Ignatius of Antioch puts it simply: “It is better for a man to be silent and be [a Christian], than to talk and not to be one.” (Letter to the Ephesians, 15)

Consistency also has a cost. Sometimes honesty costs money. Sometimes refusing to gossip costs social acceptance. Sometimes forgiveness costs pride. Sometimes openly living your faith means being misunderstood or mocked.

That is where faith becomes real.

Christ says, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me” (Matthew 16:24). Self-denial often happens in ordinary decisions. It means telling the truth when a lie would protect us. It means refusing dishonest profit. It means controlling anger when pride wants to win. It means remaining faithful when compromise would be easier.

And when we fail, the answer is not pretending that failure does not matter. The answer is repentance, correction, and another attempt to live faithfully.

St. John Chrysostom reminds us, “For indeed we are soldiers of a heavenly King.” He then adds, “For where the King is, there should also the soldier be.” (Homily 54 on Matthew)

The Christian life is not about maintaining a perfect image. It is about remembering, every day, Who we represent.

Once we call ourselves Christian, our behavior no longer speaks only about us. It also tells the people around us something about the Christ we claim to follow.

The question is not whether we will represent Him perfectly.

We will not.

The question is whether we care enough to represent Christ faithfully.