The Strongest Weapon Against Demonic Religious Intolerance

Your Strongest Weapon

On the mission visit to Eastern Europe, we ministered inside a city in south-central Ukraine. This as being a major metro section of in regards to a million people, the church there hired us a person to chauffeur us around. Thus we met an old Soviet army colonel I'll call Sergei, using the intimidating appearance from the army officer he was previously. Beneath his tough exterior, however, lay a light heart of gold.

Sergei eagerly told us his story, and that I never tire of repeating it. In the army unit would be a youthful private, a Baptist Christian. Every day the boys arranged information to recite the pledge of allegiance towards the USSR. Based on his Christian conscience, this youthful private declined.

Clearly, this caused an issue for Sergei, who perceived it as being a menace to discipline within the ranks. Frustrated and getting no clue how to proceed, he made the decision to talk with the youthful private's pastor, and together they laboured out an answer. The non-public could recite the pledge to the part that violated his conscience, after which he could remain silent because everybody else could be facing forward at attention, nobody would notice. To date, so great, with the exception that Sergei now considered this youthful man to become a troublemaker.

To handle the issue, he started to assign this Baptist conscript all of the worst jobs, from cleaning toilets to shovelling dirt. It had not been lengthy, though, before he observed something he did not expect. Regardless of what he did for this youthful man, he never heard a complaint from him, no hint of rebellion or anger. He saw just the heart of the respectful servant.

Searching a little much deeper, he saw that whenever other people of his unit had problems, they switched for this Baptist private for counsel and solace. Sergei told us, "Which was the very first stop by the bucket toward me repenting and achieving a Christian."

As so frequently occurs when cultures deny God, crime and thievery run rampant-so it did within the culture from the Soviet army. Two times or even more each year, each commander needed to go prior to the "minister," because they known as the federal government representative, to take into account conditions under his command. No commander ever anticipated these conferences.

A Christian at this time, Sergei searched for the counsel of his pastor on how to lessen the crime rate in the unit prior to his next ending up in the Soviet minister. "Well, would you pray for the men?" the pastor queried. Sergei required his pastor's advice and started to wish.

In the next ending up in the federal government minister, he reported that crime in the unit had decreased to almost nothing. Actually, he earned up two occurrences that did not really happen, wishing to prevent an accusation he was laying concerning the crime rate. The minister accused him of laying anyway, insisting that this type of huge decrease in crime couldn't have happened. An analysis premiered that was discovered that Sergei had lied concerning the two occurrences to avoid being charged with laying concerning the decrease in crime.

After admonishing him not to lie again, the minister clearly mentioned the decrease in crime needed to be due to God otherwise it could have been impossible. Sergei's wife then grew to become a believer through her husband. She offered to be an aide towards the commander of some other unit. She too searched for her pastor's counsel by what she could do like a believer and started to wish. This brought towards the conversion of her unit's political officer.

Within the USSR a political officer was, essentially, the priest from the communist way billed with enforcing proper communist doctrine and holding the military rank of major. Talking with this type of person about Jesus, therefore, involved tremendous risk, as atheism was in the past the state Communist Party doctrine regarding religion. She obeyed God, however, not allowing the sunshine to become obscured by fear.

Hearing the reality in her own heart and her words, the main gave his existence to Jesus. Battling with how you can continue spouting communist doctrine incompatible together with his new found belief, the political officer also searched for out his pastor for advice, asking, "Exactly what do I actually do now?" His pastor told him he must tell his troops about God.

All of this came into being because one minor, no-name private within the army of the godless government declined to permit a gift basket to become placed over his light. Darkness collected around him, but light shines brightest in dark places. His simple witness and servant's heart were the pebble that began a landslide. He might have protested and reported injustice, but he chose to become a servant, strategically placed, who acted for each other and bore enormous fruit

Reflecting on the Names of Jesus

Long before there was a Baby in a manger, the prophet Isaiah depicted Him with some powerfully descriptive words. In Isaiah 9:6, we read that Jesus was to be called:

Wonderful 

Over time, we’ve watered down this word to just be a synonym for “good.” We use it to describe everything from tacos to tires to television shows. But something that is truly wonderful inspires wonder. It stops you in your tracks and makes you consider just how astonishing it is. It fringes on the borderline of disbelief. A God who loves so deeply that He would become one of us? That’s wonderful. Why do we not stop more often to wonder, to worship, to wait in amazement?

Counsellor

That’s not just a take-it-or-leave-it advice giver. He’s a confidant and friend. He guides us and walks beside us in our darkest of times. He is trustworthy, and He knows the answer. When we don’t know what to do, He does—and always has. His counsel is steadfast and wise and pure. It is wholeheartedly in our best interest. Why do we not immediately go to Him with every decision, every concern, every thought—to learn His counsel?

Mighty God

How do you wrap the Creator of the universe in swaddling clothes? How do you fit Omnipotence itself into a manger? Jesus is the Almighty God, with the power to do anything—even to fit His deity into a tiny human embryo. Even to conquer death and the grave. Even to redeem a race that is too far gone. Why do we not plug into that power daily?

Everlasting Father

We should address Him as “Sir.” We should call Him “Your Highness.” We should refer to Him as “Your Honor.” But He invites us to call Him “Father.” He is a loving and caring and providing Dad who knows us intimately as sons and daughters—and loves us anyway. He has been since the beginning, and He shall always be, a Daddy who rejoices in a relationship with His kids. Why do we not spend every spare moment in the presence of our kind and loving Father?

Prince of Peace 

Our lives are fraught with conflict and combat. With competition and contention and collision. Even our deepest and most intimate relationships have their times of tension and strife. Our lives are filled with howling winds and raging seas. But we are in the presence of the One who can proclaim ‘Peace, be still” and put all of our anxieties at rest. He has not only the power to calm the storm, but the patience to walk through the storm with us. Why do we not give rule and reign to the Prince of Peace in the circumstances of our lives?

I hope you are finding time this season to reflect on the indescribable gift we have been given in Jesus Christ! God bless you.



By
Arnie Cole
BackToTheBible

The truth about this scam is fascinating

The truth about this scam is fascinating.
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La verdad sobre esta estafa es fascinante.
Crédito: bydgraceofgod.com/

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10 Bible Verses help you out of depression

Our Victory in Christ

What do we think of when we hear the word victory? For the serviceman, it means winning a war, often with bloodshed as a trophy. For the addict, it means conquering the desire to hurt themselves physically, morally, and spiritually. For the policeman, it means that a crime has been solved and the criminal is punished. For the fireman, it means that the flames are extinguished and lives are saved.

But, as noble and important as these things are, to those of us who are convicted of our sins and desire peace with God, victory is when we surrender to the Lordship of Jesus Christ and death, hell, and the grave hold no place for us for eternity.

We are made free from the grip of the devil and have an ever-present Friend who will guide and protect us from the wiles of the enemy. Romans 10: 9-10 says: “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”(KJV) We can ask Him to save, cleanse, and forgive us by the blood He shed on our behalf on the cross.


We can sing with the redeemed the old hymn:

“Oh Victory in Jesus, my Savior forever, He sought me and bought me with His redeeming blood. He loved me ere I knew Him, and all my love is due Him. He plunged me to victory, beneath the cleansing flood.” (Public Domain)

Victory for the child of God is based upon the fact of salvation found only in Christ.

-Jesus is promised victory over death, hell, and the grave (Isaiah 53:12)

-Through Jesus, we overcome the world and all its sins (John 16:33)

-Jesus will deliver the kingdom to the Father at the end of time, with His work of redemption concluded (1 Corinthians 15:24)

-Jesus has victory over the events of the world and will bring all things under His rule (Revelation 5:5)

-He will be victorious over the evil of the world and usher in a time of peace for all time (Isaiah 9:6-7; 11:1-10).


When we see the terrible things happening on the earth and within the souls of people, we can get discouraged and somewhat frightened for our lives. We see that the clock is ticking and the forces of Antichrist are soon coming upon this world, enveloping all who take his mark into a future of absolute hell on earth and eternal hell forever.

This is why, against all the odds, we must continue to be faithful and effective witnesses for Jesus. Our loved one’s lives are in the balance. God’s calendar does not need to be corrected or hurried. Even in this seemingly chaotic world, everything is going according to His plan, even if we can’t see the “big picture”.

Remember, we are victorious in Christ and we have become one of His children by trusting Him for salvation. He will have the last word and nothing will stop Him from accomplishing His triumphal mission. Remember that when you feel overwhelmed or discouraged. It’s going to be all right. We are on the winning side! Amen!




By Dr Donald Whitchard

United Nation's Immigration Compact – Bad news for Canada

United Nation's Building

A Christian educator in Canada is outraged that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has signed on to a U.N. compact that the educator says puts Canadian sovereignty in "great jeopardy."

More than 160 countries recently gathered in Marrakesh, Morocco, to formally agree upon the U.N. Global Compact for Migration, which had been drafted under the auspices of the United Nations General Assembly back in July. A number of countries have opted out, including the United States, Israel, Japan, Australia, and 11 European countries.

However, one of the countries that did not opt out was Canada. OneNewsNow spoke with Dr. Charles McVety, president of Canada Christian College & School of Graduate Theological Studies in Toronto.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

"[This would allow Canada] to bring in 245 million migrants by 2030 [from] across the countries that have signed it," he explains. "Now thankfully your president [Trump] has not signed it, but our prime minister has – and this puts Canada in great jeopardy going forward."


According to McVety, Prime Minister Trudeau supports the Compact's goal to control the media.

"Trudeau just promised our media outlets $595 million so he can stop allocation of public funding or material support to media outlets that systematically promote intolerance, xenophobia, racism, and other forms of discrimination towards migrants," says the Christian educator. "That is code ... for silencing the opposition."

And that, he adds, means those who speak against the Compact will be cut off from any government benefits.



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Baptist church Female youth worker accused of statutory rape

A 35-year-old Tennessee woman is behind bars for allegedly having sex with a 16-year-old boy she met at church.

Courtney Bingham photo courtesy of Loudon County Sheriff’s Office

Courtney Michelle Bingham was arrested on Dec. 4 after allegedly sending nude photos to the teen she met at Bethany Baptist Church in Loudon, Tennessee, where she served as a youth leader.

“She chaperoned him at several church events,” Detective Sgt. Jason Smith of the Loudon County Sheriff’s Office told the Knoxville News-Sentinel. “She was actively involved with the youth.”

Bingham faces charges of aggravated statutory rape and soliciting sexual exploitation of a minor. She is being held at the Loudon County Jail in Lenoir City, Tennessee, in lieu of bond totalling $57,500 for both counts. Her next court appearance is scheduled April 3.

According to local media, both Bingham and the boy told police they had sex but disagreed about how many times. Authorities believe the pair began communicating over the summer but that nothing inappropriate happened until November.

The News-Herald in Lenoir City said Bingham served the past four years as family activities coordinator at Bethany Baptist Church.

“You just don’t think about this kind of thing going on in your Christian church family and certainly we loved her and considered her a special part of what we did here,” Pastor Rick Harrell told the newspaper. “She was faithful to the church, always had a bubbly attitude. The young people loved her, were drawn to her.”

News of the arrest coincides with an investigative report by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram documenting hundreds of sex abuse allegations involving independent fundamental Baptist churches around the country.

Bethany Baptist Church is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention, a separate Baptist movement with abuse problems of its own.

This summer the SBC passed a resolution acknowledging “an obligation to implement policies and practices that protect against and confront any form of abuse” after a string of denominational leaders left jobs under suspicion of sexual misconduct.

Two studies – one commissioned by SBC President J.D. Greear and the other by the International Mission Board – are looking into ways to help the denomination better respond to abuse allegations. They come on the heels of the arrest of a former missionary who slipped through the cracks after being fired to continue his ministry in Southern Baptist churches and a Baptist state convention and the firing of a seminary president accused of mishandling rape allegations.

In August Greear, pastor of The Summit Church in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina, promised “bold steps” to address abuse in Southern Baptist life after a Pennsylvania grand jury released a 900-page report finding evidence of widespread sexual abuse by Catholic priests in the Keystone State.

Mark Aderholt, who resigned in June as associate executive director of the South Carolina Baptist Convention, was arrested July 3 for allegedly sexually abusing a 16-year-old girl while serving as her youth minister in the 1990s. His case is expected to go soon before a grand jury in Texas, where he faces possible felony indictments.

Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, recently appointed its first “women’s support coordinator” to handle matters involving sexual harassment, assault or disrespect toward women on campus.

“This appointment makes certain that female students and staff have someone to whom they can express any concerns — without fear of having to discuss matters inappropriately with a male administrator or member of the faculty,” seminary president Albert Mohler said. “It just makes sense that we would provide this kind of support for all the women on this campus.”

In August the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma settled a lawsuit over the rape of a 13-year-old girl attending church camp at Falls Creek Baptist Conference Center in 2016.

In recent days a volunteer at NewSpring Church in South Carolina was arrested after allegedly molesting numerous preschool boys left in his care while their parents attended worship. The suspect, 28-year-old Jake Hazlett, had previously attended other multi-site SBC churches that don’t use “Baptist” in their name, where he also had access to children.

A decade ago Southern Baptist leaders recommended against establishing a database of convicted, confessed or credibly accused sexual predators and an independent review board to receive and evaluate abuse allegations, saying the denomination lacks authority to hold churches accountable for whom they call as a minister.




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Why Are Millennials Leaving Church?

Why Are Millennials Leaving Church? Millennials Explain

\Nearly one year ago, Sam Eaton, a millennial from Minneapolis, wrote a blog post detailing "12 reasons millennials are over the church." Since then, he has received thousands of hateful and angry comments. But what he wants Christians to know is that that was his love letter to the American church.

"I got a lot of hate for this," said Eaton, an elementary school music teacher and founder of a suicide prevention ministry called Recklessly Alive. "I love the church like Christ loved the church. I want to see it prospering and I look around and I see my generation has left."

Eaton was joined this week by two other millennials to discuss his controversial blog post on "The Table" podcast, hosted by Dr Darrell Bock, executive director for Cultural Engagement at the Hendricks Center at Dallas Theological Seminary.
Bock invited them to try to better understand what millennials are thinking and why so many are leaving the church.

For one, millennials want to be mentored, not preached at.

"Preaching just doesn't reach our generation like our parents and grandparents. See millennial church attendance. We have millions of podcasts and Youtube videos of pastors the world over at our fingertips," Eaton wrote on his 2016 blog.

"Millennials crave a relationship, to have someone walking beside them through the muck. We are the generation with the highest ever percentage of fatherless homes. We're looking for mentors who are authentically invested in our lives and our future. If we don't have real people who actually care about us, why not just listen to a sermon from the couch?"

Eaton clarified on the podcast that he's not advising churches to stop preaching the Gospel to the younger generation.

"But if you're relying on that to drive millennials into your church, it's just not going to work because if I'm struggling with fear today, I can sit at home with my sweatpants and find 50 sermons by Francis Chan about fear," he explained. "Yes, keep preaching but also come around us … teach me how to live these things out."

Millennials not only want to be mentored but they also want to be heard and valued for who they are in a world that says they're not good enough.

Another reason millennials are "over the church" is that they're sick of hearing about values and mission statements.

"Stop wasting time on the religious mambo jumbo and get back to the heart of the gospel," Eaton wrote.

Expanding on that, Eaton said this week that though churchgoers need a common mission, they're not impressed when the church spends more time talking about the mission statement than putting it into action.

Kat L. Armstrong, executive director of Polished, a ministry for young professional women, believes integrity is a big issue among millennials.

"I think millennials are serious about integrity in a way we've never seen before," she said on the podcast. "Let's have some integrity behind our words."

Part of that includes serving the "least of these," Eaton noted.

While many churches schedule countless "church-type activities" such as Bible studies, social functions and planning meetings, very little time is being devoted to helping the poor or least fortunate, Eaton argued.

"I'm not saying we shouldn't be studying the Word of God; we should be studying that every single day. You should be in a Bible study … [or] in a small group but if that's it, you're kinda missing the point of this book (Bible)," he explained.

"I just don't know how you can read James or Matthew 25, the least of these, and just go back to your normal American life and not live it out."

Millennials are also tired of the church blaming the culture for everything, Eaton noted.

Nika Spaulding, director of Women's Equipping and Curriculum at Watermark Church in Dallas, said the young adult generation needs help interpreting the culture.

"Rather than hearing it's evil and dangerous, help us interpret it," she said on the podcast. "That kind of teaching requires nuance … to help you navigate this world that is utterly broken and yet has redemptive value throughout it that we can find."

The church also needs to start addressing controversial issues rather than avoiding it.

Issues include career, education, relationships, marriage, sex, finances, children, purpose, chemicals and body image.

"We don't like how the world is telling us to live, but we never hear from our church either," Eaton, who once struggled with suicidal thoughts, lamented.

"Tell us what the Bible says about these issues and then give us some space to wrestle with it ourselves and let us talk to God about what the Bible says," he said.

Another big issue millennials have with churches is distrust and misallocation of resources.

"Over and over we've been told to 'tithe' and give 10% of our incomes to the church but where does that money actually go? Millennials, more than any other generation, don't trust institutions for we have witnessed over and over how corrupt and self-serving they can be," Eaton wrote.

What millennials want is "painstaking transparency" - such as a document on the church website tracking every dollar, he suggested.

Spaulding noted, "We're being lectured all the time, 'you're living beyond your means' and then you look at this $5 million debt of a [church] building."

She said her church has a rule "where if my budget went on the front of the Dallas Morning News, would I be comfortable with that?"

"I think that holds me to a different level of accountability," she noted. "Would I feel comfortable telling the 20-year-old who gave 10 per cent of their $12,000 salary and the 60-year-old who … also gave me 10 per cent of their $150,000 salary, am I valuing their contributions?"

According to a 2013 Barna survey, 59 per cent of millennials (born between 1984 through 2002) who grew up in the church have dropped out at some point. Over a third said they left because of the church's irrelevance, hypocrisy and moral failures of its leaders. Meanwhile, two out of 10 said they feel God is missing in church.

Armstrong said she hopes that churches can put "some defenses down" and "take some ownership on this" as they try to bring millennials back to church.

Bock agreed that change is needed.

"How can we preach and teach transformation and then not be willing to change? That doesn't make sense at all," he said. "So to be challenged to do better is not something that should threaten the church, it's something the church should welcome."




Cred: Christian Post

Resting in His Omniscience

Today's Scripture: Ecclesiastes 8 (KJV)

Ecclesiastes 8 (KJV)
1 Who is as the wise man? and who knoweth the interpretation of a thing? a man's wisdom maketh his face to shine, and the boldness of his face shall be changed.

2 I counsel thee to keep the king's commandment, and that in regard of the oath of God.

3 Be not hasty to go out of his sight: stand not in an evil thing; for he doeth whatsoever pleaseth him.

4 Where the word of a king is, there is power: and who may say unto him, What doest thou?

5 Whoso keepeth the commandment shall feel no evil thing: and a wise man's heart discerneth both time and judgment.

6 Because to every purpose there is time and judgment, therefore the misery of man is great upon him.

7 For he knoweth not that which shall be: for who can tell him when it shall be?

8 There is no man that hath power over the spirit to retain the spirit; neither hath he power in the day of death: and there is no discharge in that war; neither shall wickedness deliver those that are given to it.

9 All this have I seen, and applied my heart unto every work that is done under the sun: there is a time wherein one man ruleth over another to his own hurt.

10 And so I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone from the place of the holy, and they were forgotten in the city where they had so done: this is also vanity.

11 Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.

12 Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him:

13 But it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong his days, which are as a shadow; because he feareth not before God.

14 There is a vanity which is done upon the earth; that there be just men, unto whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked; again, there be wicked men, to whom it happeneth according to the work of the righteous: I said that this also is vanity.

15 Then I commended mirth, because a man hath no better thing under the sun, than to eat, and to drink, and to be merry: for that shall abide with him of his labour the days of his life, which God giveth him under the sun.

16 When I applied mine heart to know wisdom, and to see the business that is done upon the earth: (for also there is that neither day nor night seeth sleep with his eyes:)

17 Then I beheld all the work of God, that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because though a man labour to seek it out, yet he shall not find it; yea farther; though a wise man think to know it, yet shall he not be able to find it.

Scripture Meaning

(1-5) Commendations of wisdom; (6-8) To prepare for sudden evils and death;  (9-13);It shall be well with the righteous, and ill with the wicked. (14-17) Mysteries of Providence.

Verses 1-5 
None of the rich, the powerful, the honourable, or the accomplished of the sons of men, are so excellent, useful, or happy, as the wise man. Who else can interpret the words of God, or teach aright from his truths and dispensations? What madness must it be for weak and dependent creatures to rebel against the Almighty! What numbers form wrong judgments, and bring misery on themselves, in this life and that to come!

Verses 6-8
God has, in wisdom, kept away from us the knowledge of future events, that we may be always ready for changes. We must all die, no flight or hiding-place can save us, nor are there any weapons of effectual resistance. Ninety thousand die every day, upwards of sixty every minute, and one every moment. How solemn the thought! Oh that men were wise, that they understood these things, that they would consider their latter end! The believer alone is prepared to meet the solemn summons. Wickedness, by which men often escape human justice, cannot secure from death.

Verses 9-13
Solomon observed, that many a time one man rules over another to his hurt, and that prosperity hardens them in their wickedness. Sinners herein deceive themselves. Vengeance comes slowly, but it comes surely. A good man's days have some substance; he lives to a good purpose: a wicked man's days are all as a shadow, empty and worthless. Let us pray that we may view eternal things as near, real, and all-important.

Verses 14-17 
Faith alone can establish the heart in this mixed scene, where the righteous often suffer, and the wicked prosper. Solomon commended joy, and holy security of mind, arising from confidence in God, because a man has no better thing under the sun, though a good man has much better things above the sun, than soberly and thankfully to use the things of this life according to his rank. He would not have us try to give a reason for what God does.
But, leaving the Lord to clear up all difficulties in his own time, we may cheerfully enjoy the comforts, and bear up under the trials of life; while peace of conscience and joy in the Holy Ghost will abide in us through all outward changes, and when flesh and heart shall fail.

Scripture Application

Each day we walk through the Bible chapter by chapter making an application of our text to help us grow in the Lord. Many applications can be made from each day's text. Today we continue in the Book of Ecclesiastes with Chapter 8. In our text today we see Solomon ask the question, "who is as the wise man?" bringing up the fact that the wisest person will not know everything and this causes many to question God and not experience the joy of the Lord because they cannot understand everything about our Lord.

In making application we see that our relationship with our Lord is and eternal one. We will understand everything one day but for today we need to be Saved, Trust the Lord, Obey the Lord, and rest in His Omniscience. Don't let the enemy steal your joy because you cannot comprehend everything about our Lord here on Earth. How about you? Do you question God? Let us learn from our text today to remember that our Lord know all, He has given us Salvation,  and he wants us to experience His Joy as we rest in His Omniscience.




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Not of the world, though in the world

My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. -John 17:15-16

How are God’s people supposed to engage the broader culture around them? There is much confusion about the topic of cultural engagement. Whereas some Christians choose to ignore culture, others rail against it. And others are seduced by it.

The Bible calls us to engage the broader society while retaining a distinctive Christian identity and purpose. We need to think deeply and clearly about what it means to engage secular, pluralistic culture, especially in our work.

Many Christians are confused about how and to what extent they should engage the world. For this reason, discussing cultural engagement requires humility and submission to God. We need to realize that if we do not think carefully about how to engage the culture, we may succumb to the ways of the culture that are not pleasing to God when we decide to engage it. Pastor and theologian Tim Keller explain:

“The reality is that if the church does not think much about culture - about what parts are good, bad, or indifferent according to the Bible - its members will begin to uncritically imbibe the values of the culture. They will become assimilated to culture, despite intentions to the contrary. Culture is complex, subtle, and inescapable…. And if we are not deliberately thinking about our culture, we will simply be conformed to it without ever knowing it is happening.”

Keller then reviews four different models of cultural engagement:

-Being relevant to the culture to live winsomely (joyfully)
-Transforming culture into the decrees of Christ when possible
-Living counter-culturally to shine the light of Christ
-Recognizing that there are two kingdoms- the kingdom of the world and the kingdom of God

According to Keller, each of these four Christian approaches to cultural engagement can help us discern how to engage the world in a fruitful and faithful way. There is not one uniform approach that should dictate how a Christian engages the world. Rather, there is a need for significant spiritual discernment in the difficult balance of being in the world, but not of it.

Every day we are faced with decisions about how we should engage the world in our work. For example, many of us have to make decisions about which clients to take on, whose lead to follow and what causes to stand for. And our decision-making inevitably entails all sorts of trade-offs, compromises and ambiguity. We often find ourselves living and working in gray areas, questioning how intentional or effective we are with respect to engaging the world distinctly as Christian.

How do we know where we can and should be flexible for the sake of a greater good? How far is too far before we lose our distinctiveness as Christians? The answers to questions like these will need to be considered case by case, with the wisdom of Scripture and other Christians. But the four approaches provided by Keller above are a good starting point. We must realize, with humility, that different situations require different approaches. Nevertheless, as Christ’s disciples we are called to engage the world so that we might win some to Christ and see his kingdom advance on earth.

How can you engage culture distinctly as a Christian in your day-to-day life?




Cred: Bible Connection News