replies: jesus vs. the moral majority (and other sinking ships)
Alex From Montreal asked some great questions in the comments section of a recent post. I’d like to answer some of them more fully, and hopefully continue to round out the idea of Christians as a people who see Christ as Lord of everything.
Us Vs. Them
First, as I briefly mentioned in my reply in the comments, we must always remember that we are proclaiming the lordship of Christ, and not an ideological nuance, a politician, or even a certain moral agenda. Proclamation of morality says, “The world is wrong because of your [corporate greed, abortion, injustice].” Proclamation of Christ says, “The world is saved because of Christ’s [generosity, life, justice].” Proclamation of morality says “Mankind has no hope unless your [corporate greed, abortion, injustice] is stopped.” Proclamation of Christ says “Mankind has no hope unless Christ’s [generosity, life, justice] is found.” In this way, the Christian witness transcends politics and apathy.
Us Vs. Us
Second, it is my sincere belief that every Christian is called to continually proclaim of the kingship of Jesus. This constant shining of God’s glory is buried deep in the essence of what it means to be God’s people in the earth (see Matt 5:15-16 or Eph 1:23, for instance). And this calling doesn’t exist in a vacuum — biblically, men and women who truly understand God’s wonderful nature through Christ will naturally desire to see how He is the fulfillment of every desire, the answer to every problem on the earth (I look to verses like Rom 12:1-2; Psa 42:1-2; 73:24-25 for this). As G.K. Chesterton famously said, “If Christianity should happen to be true — then defending it may mean talking about everything.” So being a Christian and being a proclaimer of Christ-over-all are really one and the same thing.
I mention this not to be nit-picky, but rather because it is quite tempting in our 21st century context to talk about our spokespeople and their responsibilities. I would rather we talk about ourselves as speaking people and our responsibilities. So the real question we must ask is, “What are the everyday circumstances that God has placed me in so that I can live and speak in such a way that lifts up Christ?”
Them Vs. Us
Finally, a thought on sound bites: We will not win the sound bite war. The ship of societally normative Christianity is sinking in the west — focusing on our sound bites is bailing water with a dixie cup.
The true antidote to public slander is the humility of Christ. In 50 years Christianity will not have a new name in the world if it advances its repartee. It will have a new name if it sacrifices itself in love for the world to bring fame to Christ.
I don’t know about you, but for me that gives me tremendous hope. Because who really wants to have to babysit Mike Doria?
Us Vs. Them: absolutely, the problem is not “[corporate greed, abortion, injustice]” but deeper, the sin-nature in us, and the solution is in Christ transforming us and then giving us the Holy Spirit to exercise “[generosity, life, justice]“. Yes, this transcends politics and apathy because it’s outside the box of conventional categories. I remember hearing John Piper talk about the Gospel transcending the normal categories of human thinking, and how reporters who’d interview pastors would ask what their churches were doing for the poor, for battered women, and for social justice. Those reporters were missing the point because they couldn’t see outside of those typical-church categories. I think people, even in our solid evangelical churches, rarely see how the Gospel addresses the heart of all the issues by it addressing our hearts… Hmmm…
Us Vs. Us: well, what I said last time was wrong and you’re right to point it out - we are a people who must pick up our responsibilities and speak out when the opportunity comes. Leaving all the lifting/witnessing to spokespeople/preachers really isn’t biblical since we all have opportunities to witness. Preachers can and do equip us to speak, and they’re the ones I look to for help in thinking through the moral issues of our day, but I have a responsibility to integrate what I hear and read from them into my life to then defend and proclaim Christ to those around me, through the everyday discussions of those moral issues. Does all that make sense?
Them Vs. Us: I like the last point. Sound bites and witty repartee are secondary elements to humble, sacrificial living. Because really, if there’s no meat to who we are, why point to our spices? …That’s probably not the best metaphor…
Having said all that and thought about our calling as Christians, and the great work in front of us, and the necessary sacrifices and discipline, I feel a great need for more of God’s grace.
You and me both. Thanks for the replies Alex.