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What is the difference between Convention and Conviction?
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Convention [noun]: a way in which something is usually done, especially within a particular area or activity.
Conviction [noun]: 1 : the act or process of finding a person guilty of a crime especially in a court of law 2a: a strong persuasion or belief 2b: the state of being convinced 3a: the act of convincing a person of error or of compelling the admission of a truth 3b: the state of being convinced of error or compelled to admit the truth.
How many of you guys have heard a friend or someone tell you “well I thought Christian’s don’t do that?”
What is your reaction?
In the past I’ve had people ask me a variation of this question. One moment I can think of is when someone found me eating without praying first. I was with a group of friends that I just met and we sat down to eat lunch and I just began digging in. One of the girls just stared and said “I thought Christians were supposed to pray before they eat?” Immediately I stopped my chewing and looked at her panicked. Because it was true, most Christians pray before eating as a way to thank God for His provision. I had gotten out of the habit of praying before eating because most of the time I was embarrassed to do it in public, especially at school. So to get over my shame of being called out I made a show of it, I was like “Oh yeah, you guys want me to pray?” and I clasped my hands together and said “Thank you God for this food.” and then kept eating. We laughed about it but in the end the shame stuck around.
It was a conviction. A moment where God called me out on my being ashamed of Him in public. Of keeping my faith “private” because why should I pray before eating if it just made me a target in school? But also I probably became a stumbling block for this girl who had been convicted on her own, which is why she reminded me of it. It prompted me to pray, not because of my conviction, but because her conviction prompted mine.
Paul talks about how everything is permissible but not everything is beneficial. He reminds us that sometimes we are asked to do things not because it makes us sin, but because it might make our brother sin. That sometimes the Holy Spirit brings conviction to us, but sometimes He brings it to others. This is where we get our general Christian conventions.
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