According to some people, the church is losing the culture wars.
Today it’s because of (fill in the blank), tomorrow it will be something else.
Each issue is presented as “The Most Important Issue of Our Time!” Until the next time. Many Christians get drawn into these endless debates with two primary responses: we whine and/or we fight back.
I’d like to propose a third option.
Rise above it by being undeniable.
How Jesus Responded to His Culture
Quit whining. And quit being drawn into someone else’s fight.
When we do either of those things, we’re operating in reactive mode. When we’re on defense we’re letting others set the agenda for us.
Jesus never did that. He never allowed others to pull him into their debate.
When his enemies tried to bait him with an impossible question about taxation, he didn’t descend to their level. He raised the conversation to his level and gave us a new way to think about the church and the state. (Luke 20:20-26)
Debate over.
When his disciples saw a man born blind, they wanted Jesus to pick sides in a theological debate about original sin and our responsibility to help the needy. Instead, he healed the blind man. (John 9)
Debate over.
Jesus was undeniable in his actions and words.
He has called us to be undeniable as well.
Stick With Jesus’ Agenda
Every minute I spend being drawn into the agenda of others is a minute I’m not spending on Christ’s agenda.
Is the culture heading in a direction you think is bad? (No doubt it is, in many ways). Don’t become just another whining or angry voice in the mess. And don’t ignore it, either. Rise above it. Stick to the agenda Jesus gave us instead of being drawn into endless arguments, debates and unwinnable wars of words.
Be undeniable.
How? By doing what Jesus told us to do. His instructions haven’t changed. It’s still supposed to be about the Great Commandment and the Great Commission.
Love God, love others, and make disciples.
No matter how much you’re tempted to divert from that mandate, remember that Jesus gave those commands to people living in the moral cesspool of Roman corruption and persecution.
They worked then, they’ll work today.
The Undeniability of Following Jesus
The world isn’t looking for someone to win the latest debate in the culture war. They’re looking for an alternative to the whole mess.
They’re looking for Jesus. Even if they don’t know it yet.
Don’t follow the crowd, follow Jesus.
Don’t win the debate, change the conversation.
Be proactive.
Be Christlike.
Be undeniable.
(Photo by European Environment Agency | Flickr)
