LOYALTY: RELATIONAL STICK-TO-IT-IVE-NESS

When looking for exemplars of the virtue of loyalty, one can scan the pages of history for shining acts of magnanimity and selfless service, but loyalty doesn’t seem rightly characterized by loftiness. Loyalty is an inherently humble virtue, and while easily associated with grand acts of heroism, we are more likely to meet it in lowliness. Consider your dog: glad eyes and wagging tail—are we foolish to imagine that our dogs really love us? Loyalty—even canine loyalty—is humbling. You and I both know full well that we do not deserve to be loved and adored so much—we couldn’t possibly be that wonderful.

You may have heard the dog-lover’s prayer:

God, let me become half the person my dog thinks I am.

To be the recipient of another’s loyalty makes us feel valued, even worthy. Those are good things everybody should be able to feel.

Faith and Devotion

The Christian heart lives in humility before God, ever-acknowledging The Lord’s superiority and surpassing goodness. God is holy, and we never lose sight of this. Our worship is like that loving, canine gaze and unswervingly-devoted heart. When we worship, we are not taking from God, we are giving to him. Our songs and prayers say, in effect, “You are wonderful! You are worthy! You are all-valuable!” This is true in ancient hymns as well as the simplest praise choruses.

The Dogs of God

The Dominican order of Roman Catholic preachers were Domini Canes (dogs of God). They were watchdogs against heresy, which seems far less satisfying than the idea (from my imagination) of being like God’s loyal and beloved pet dogs. That we should love and adore him, and be enormously eager to please him—this is a good image of Discipleship—one that undercuts prideful piety or the me-first-ism clearly prevalent in the more self-serving forms of Christianity. We should be keenly aware of how unspeakably wonderful God is, and our worship should grow in that direction.

But loyalty is more than a mere attitude. It is not just a show we put on for God. Loyalty must translate to solid action to be real.

Israel’s Flagging Loyalty

Israel played at loyalty only to end up sniffing after every idol that trotted down the road before them. Their chief commandment—to have no other gods—was too much for them; they couldn’t muster the loyalty in their actions. When Paul says, “the thing I do is the thing I do not want,”(Romans 7: 15-16), he reveals that the desire to be loyal and loyalty itself are naturally disconnected. But Jesus’ promise through the Holy Spirit is also one of our empowerment. Where are heart is, so shall our treasure be. It is never wrong to start with the heart.

Active Humility

Loyalty is one way we see humility-in-action, for whenever one exercises loyalty—be it toward God, country, company, spouse or ideal—the relationship is one of service to someone or something greater than oneself. To be loyal is to necessarily be less than the one served. In this sense, every disciple of Jesus is called to loyalty. Loyalty to The Lord first and foremost, but also to neighbor. Other loyalties, while glorious in themselves, are much lower on the ladder. We do well not to confuse these loyalties! There is a great difference between love of family and love of the Lord. (Luke 14:26), just as there is between love of one’s country, political party, football team, or personal ideal. As we learned from Israel, there are many forces that would like us to bow down and be loyal, but there is only One worthy of that honor.

Jesus Christ is Utterly Loyal

Jesus washed the Disciples’ feet as a loyal servant. But this was only the prelude; the ultimate expression of loyalty is God’s loyalty to us in following through with the promised Messiah, which means death on the cross—loyalty in the extreme. We see it in Jesus; we do our best to the degree we do likewise. †