Throughout church history, for the most part it was clear in society that when trouble came, the church was where you would find the answers for hope. When 9/11/2001 hit, the nation’s response was to get to church and to cry for help. But that repentance was short lived. The organized, visible church has been made nearly completely irrelevant to the culture of our nation today. There are two main reasons for this that I can think of. 1) The American church has, as a whole, so embraced teaching that is comfortable and seeking prosperity that whether it comes in the form of Prosperity Gospel or “Christian Nationalism,” the purpose of faith is not seeking what God wants but seeking what makes life easier. 2) The apologists of our faith have become so academic and intellectual that we chase away those who need truth and light because they were consumed by the lies of the world. I’ll be up front that I am just as guilty on these issues as anyone else, especially on the 2nd problem. So, I’m pointing to myself here too.
I ended last year on a 20-post series on apologetics and how/why we should be defending the faith. We absolutely must defend the faith. It’s a command, not a suggestion. We must bring the light to a world that knows nothing but darkness. In the Bible, light is a symbol of truth. It even describes God. As physical light enables us to see around us and what is going on, it is the truth that enables us to understand the times, the circumstances, and the arguments that we face. And much to the dismay of many, truth is exclusive. In a world that hates absolute truth, you will not make many friends by proclaiming the unadulterated truth.
Jesus said that we are the light of the world. Paul said the Church’s role is to be a pillar of truth. We are to stand out, be unique, and give answers to a world lost in darkness. Yes, we have answers, and we need not be ashamed of them. Yet, the intellectual world has given us post-modernism that denies any truth and any single source from having the final say about reality. Many have so embraced post-modernism that to break free of it and rebuke it will turn many who claim to be Christians against you. It’s like in Hezekiah’s day or Jeremiah’s day when Hezekiah and Josiah cleaned out all the idols from the land. The people were so entrenched in idolatry, thinking they were worshiping God that they thought Hezekiah went apostate. They ultimately rejected Jeremiah’s advice proudly declaring they would go back to worshiping their idols because when they worshiped their idols, they thought they had success. Yet the judgment that came upon them was due to their idolatry, not due to their abandoning their idols.
In 2018, my last of six times at the Colorado Christian Writers Conference, Tim Shoemaker made the closing keynote titled “Shooting Higher.” The context was for Christian writers to shoot higher with their writing. Go for the best standards, go proclaim the truth, and don’t hold back. He made this very quotable remark: “Where do we get the idea that we can reach darkness with more darkness?” How is it possible that we, who have the light, have been duped into thinking that in order to reach the world, we have to look like the world, sound like the world, and act like the world? This is how seeker-sensitive churches operate. In order to attract those in the world, we offer what the world wants, and the world does not want to hear sin-piercing, soul-penetrating, soul-saving truth of the gospel. Instead, they want to hear what makes them feel good and makes them acceptable in their sin. As a result, churches who do this cease being a church and become nothing more than a Sunday Social Club for the heathen. And that’s putting it nicely. This argument is what I have heard MANY Old Earth Creationists use, too. One even said, “You won’t reach the scientific community with these arguments.” My response was that if you are seeking their approval, you aren’t getting God’s approval. Since when did the church ever have to cater to the opinions of the lost?
We are to be light, and darkness hates light. We have to understand this. If we are going to present the unadulterated truth, those who are of the world will hate us. They will strive to silence us, mock us, or even kill us. Why? Because our message convicts them of their sin and reminds them of the judgment that is due to them unless they repent. But how can people be saved unless they see the light? Christianity is not meant to be a place where you learn your doctrines and your catechisms and then just sit comfortably in the pews. The church is meant to arm and equip the saints for going out there and being the light to people who have no light otherwise. At my job as a public school teacher, I may be the only Christian influence the students get. I’m not “allowed” to share my faith as part of my lectures in the classroom, and while it is an extreme battle to get kids to do it, I seek to teach my kids how to think independently of what they are being fed. I am also working on getting involved with Fellowship of Christian Athletes now that we are back on campus.
The underground church understands what it means to be the light, but they also know what happens when they do so. Light is not just visible to those who want to be able to see and to get answers.; it’s also visible to those who hate the light and don’t want anyone else to receive it either. There is a cost to being a Christian and especially to being a light in this world. I’ll save that in more detail for my next post, but today’s youth raised in church seems to think that all you need is to wear a Christian T-shirt or wear a cross on a necklace and that’s all you need to showcase your faith. You can certainly use those as witnessing tools, but if you are going to be the light in this world, expect to be ostracized and singled out. You will be the “weird one.” But those who count the cost, and have paid the cost, have reaped countless benefits and rewards.
Do you want to be the light of the world? You should, but you need to know what it comes with. Jesus was up front about what it meant to be His follower. Most walked away, unwilling to pay the price to get there. There is a cost to being a Christian. We’ll see what that is next week.
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