Skip to main content

Christians and Culture

My view on Christians and culture is fairly straightforward. Christians should not deliberately set out to change their society. Christians should deliberately set out to live out Christ in any place, discipline, vocation or society he has placed them.

I believe if this is done, it would please the Holy Spirit to transform society. He is already working restraining the ushering in of the man of lawlessness on our behalf. He is already giving gifts to men as the gospel spreads. He is willing and more than able to do more for His children that we can ask for, if we humble ourselves and come to him afresh.

It baffles me that there are few Christians thinking through the global economic crisis from a Christian perspective, but we have 20000 posts on Obama and his agendas. It baffles me that Christians are not writing about Syria, but many writing on youth programmes! Same with the arts, music, technology and other pressing issues.

There are forces reshaping our world and many evangelical Christians are sleeping walking! Too obsessed with single issues! Too many not thinking through the world in all it's works through biblical lenses!

When I read the letters in the new testament or Acts, or work of the early church fathers, I see a church dealing and addressing the pressing issues of the day, from idolatry, role of government, Greek thought, persecution, etc. They spoke to all of life.

Where is the church of our day? Where are the people speaking to the many aspects of our lives? We have come to believe Sunday worship is the Christian life! It is surely not!

Sometimes I think the reason we build churches is because we don't want to look outside to a dying world. Though it is also possible we are simply scared that world will laugh even more at our hypocrisy on many things - if the walls came down!

The time has come for the church of Jesus Christ to speak fully to life as we know it. The bride must stride out in confidence knowing her bridal price was paid for on the cross! No turning back!

Don't settle for mediocrity! Don't let the world set the agenda!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

I am what I am by Gloria Gaynor

Beverly Knight closed the opening ceremony of the Paralympics with what has been dubbed the signature tune of the Paralympics. I had no idea Ms Knight is still in the singing business. And clearly going by the raving reviews she will continue to be around. One media source says her performance was so electric that "there wasn’t a dry eye to be seen as she sang the lyrics to the song and people even watching at home felt the passion in her words" . The song was Gloria Gaynor's I am what I am . Clearly not written by Gloria Gaynor but certainly musically owned and popularized by her. It opens triumphantly: I am what I am / I am my own special creation / So come take a look / Give me the hook or the ovation / It's my world that I want to have a little pride in / My world and it's not a place I have to hide in / Life's not worth a damn till you can say I am what I am The words “I am what I am” echo over ten times in the song. A bold declaration that she

The Humility of Newton

Thou hast honoured me. Thou hast given me a tongue and a pen, many friends; (Thou] hast made me extensively known among thy people and I have reason to hope, useful to many by my preaching and writings... It is of thine own that I can serve thee. And if others speak well of me, I have no cause to speak or think well of myself. They see only my outward walk; to thee I appear as I am. In thy sight I am a poor, unworthy, unfaithful inconsistent creature. And I may well wonder that Thou hast not long ago taken thy word utterly out of my mouth and forbidden me to make mention of thy Name any more! JOHN NEWTON ( Source : Wise Counsel) Newton wrote these words addressed to God in his diary in 1789. In that year, Newton’s fame had grown significantly because of his publishing ‘ Thoughts upon the African Slave Trade’ and his appearance before Her Majesty’s Privy Council appointed to investigate the slave trade.  I find Newton’s words quite challenging. The words reveal a heart truly shaped by t

Preaching to the Conscience

Preaching to the conscience means something concrete. It means explaining the listeners’  obligations to God, their failure to meet those obligations, their impotence to make up for that failure, the eternal consequences of that failure, and God’s astounding grace offered to all who will humble themselves, repent, and believe the good news.  In other words, preaching to the conscience is provocative. It seeks to disturb the comfortable and to comfort the disturbed…. The great obstacle to this kind of preaching is when  the conscience is awakened, people react. The humble repent, rejoice, and enter God’s kingdom. The proud become angry: “Who are you to tell me I am a sinner?” or “This is not the God I learned about in Sunday school.”  Men dominated by the fear of man will not preach to the conscience. If you’re seeking a reward from men as you preach the gospel, you may get it, but that’s all—you won’t get anything from God.  The world needs pastors who fear God, love sinners, and under