05.26.04
Culture Wars or Inner Transformation?
As the great Russian novelist, Leo Tolstoy, put it, “Everybody wants to change humanity, but nobody wants to change himself.” Christians can become so wrapped up in fighting culture wars and lobbying against “paganism” and “worldliness” that they forget the primary purpose of the faith: the glorification of God through the inner transformation of hearts.
This inner transformation does not occur by simply speaking out against what is wrong in the world. It happens through submission to the leading and guidance of the Spirit, allowing God to set the course and direction of one’s life. Problems creep in when Christians seek to change the world without first allowing God to transform their own hearts.
A genuine inner transformation generates a far greater impact than any political action. Matthew 5:14-16 says, “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” Our goal should not be to make the world look more “Christian,” but for the world to see our actions and the difference in our lives, leading them to praise the God we serve.
To this end, I plan to focus more of my blogging time on issues of the heart and of faith. In my blog, I tend to focus on the political and economic issues of the day because it is easy and quick to write on these topics. I believe this creates a shallow air that doesn’t truly represent my interests and personality. I want to spend more time plumbing the depths of the interaction between politics, economics and faith. The vision statement of this blog is “Faith, Free Markets, Free People.” I intend to spend more time emphasizing the first “F” as it is the only one with any eternal value.
Political action has its place, but this must not be the primary motivation for the Christian.
O Lord, change the world. Begin, I pray thee, with me.
For more on this topic, check out Are We on the Brink of Revival?.
Discoshaman said,
May 28, 2004 at 9:52 pm
I think it can be easy to go too far the other direction, and compartmentalize the work of the church into only “evangelism”. We’re certainly called to bring glory to God in all facets of life.
But I think things have gone way too far often among Christian conservatives. The best example is the one that Michael Horton used — they are more willing to swallow rank heresy from a politically conservative preacher than to accept political liberalism from a theologically sound one. . .
I also think MANY Christians are looking for government to solve problems that can only find resolution through the church. Which is ironic, since conservatives well know how incompetent government is to solve just about anything on its own.
Mark said,
June 2, 2004 at 9:46 pm
Jeff:
This is a well-put cautionary note for the Church. I feel that Christians get caught up with “culture wars” and political activism because of an unholy impatience. The transformation of hearts, minds, and wills is a gradual process that can only happen as the result of the Spirit’s work. We need to trust that God will use our prayers, service, and witnessing in Jesus’ Name to bring that transformation and not try to “play God” by forcing a pseudo-transformation on others through legislative coercion or social pressure!