Followers of Jesus Christ were to be agents of change, not imitators of the culture.
IT’S WORTH CONSIDERING
Recently I was struck by a great irony. Islam is doing what the Church
should be doing in America. Now that I have your attention, let me explain. The Church has been given the mandate to go into all the world to make disciples, starting at home and going to the farthest reaches of the globe. This means rubbing shoulders, getting involved, and investing yourself in the lives of others. Followers of Christ were to export the faith…through their lives…both at home and abroad. They were to engage the culture with their radically life-changing faith wherever they went.
In Jesus’ day, the culture certainly needed changing. Immorality was rampant; cult prostitutes were commonplace; and dishonoring the value of human life was the norm. Believers were sent into the culture to show a better way, not by preaching to them as outsiders, but by engaging the culture with better practices that produced better and longer lasting results. Believers were to aspire to positions of influence. They were expected to be in the world, while not being of the world. They were to be agents of change.
Fast forward to today. How would you say the Church is doing as an agent of change? I’d say not so well. Today’s church seems content to hide within its walls, insulated from all the evil influences outside, engaging in the weekly holy huddle. Praise God that exceptions do exist, and they are having a great impact. The norm, however, is an unengaged church with little or no impact on the culture.
AS I SEE IT
Here’s how Islam is doing what the church should have done. It has infiltrated every area of our culture through a carefully and well-executed strategy. For the past twenty years or so, it has engaged in a strategy which the Muslim Brotherhood has termed “jihad by sabotage.” It has worked its way into positions of great influence in our government, education, and religion. It has used its position and influence to change the way the culture views Islam.
This is, of course, where the comparison breaks down. While the Church was to influence the culture for its own good and for the Kingdom of God, Islam is doing so to destroy the culture and to institute servitude to Islam. I believe that had the Church done what it was supposed to do, the culture would have been able to recognize Islam for what it is instead of what it pretends to be. Had the Church done its job, our nation wouldn’t be in the mess it’s in.
The only hope for our nation is an awakened church. Jesus said He
Gate of Hell
Banias
would build His Church and the gates of hell would not prevail against it. Well, I’d say it’s time for the real Church to come to life. It’s time for transformed lives to start impacting the culture around us. We must believe that it’s never too late. A little repentance and humbling goes a long way, and we’ve got a long way to go, so let’s get started!
ON THE LIGHTER SIDE
A dentist and a manicurist married. They fought tooth and nail.
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