The church at Antioch was born out of persecution (Acts 11:19), as are churches in many parts of the world today (eg. in communist or Islamic countries). Generally, where there is persecution there are fewer half-Christians! Conversely, where there is little persecution, and 'going to church' is a socially acceptable habit, nominalism becomes a deadly possibility. The greatest enemy of the church's health is not overt persecution, but affluence and apathy.
Culture is the sum total of a community's customs and values, which give it a sense of identity and continuity. These assumptions become embedded in a community's institutions, and also form its 'world view'. No human culture is totally bad or totally good: so we must challenge what is evil and affirm what is good in all cultures. As the Lausanne Covenant put it, culture must be tested and judged by scripture; because humans are God's creatures, some of their cultures will be rich in beauty and goodness; because they are fallen, all of it is tainted with sin and some is demonic.
A 'cult of culture' develops when religion validates culture and society without bringing them under judgment. A certain social order becomes 'right' and therefore 'Christian' and cultural values are divinised. The prophetic dimension of our Hebraic-Christian tradition is lost. Love of neighbour becomes voluntary and is divorced from justice. Members of congregations are spared the pain of ethical examination of how structures and systems may be the instruments of injustice. The preacher is told to 'steer clear of politics' - and still be biblical and prophetic! Such churches may claim they are 'neutral' and maintain the status quo: but there is no such thing as neutrality. Churches choosing to support what already exists may be supporting an ungodly system. Then, too, churches may contribute to the status quo by being preoccupied with their own internal affairs - administration, doctrine, buildings, finance, authority, liturgies etc.
When the church marries the spirit of this age, it will be widowed in the next. Jesus promised we would face trouble, because his kingdom's values were in conflict with those of the world. 'Do not be conformed to the world', Paul warned (Romans 12:2). We are to be 'faithful in the alien', as Luke 16:12 reads literally. This earth and its cultures are not our final home. But we are not to abandon the earth, but rather apply God's standards in it.
Further reading: Marvin K. Mayers, Christianity Confronts Culture, Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1974; Charles Kraft, Christianity in Culture, Maryknoll: Orbis Books, 1979; Richard H. Niebuhr, Christ and Culture, New York: Harper & Row, 1956; Leonard Griffith, Illusions of our Culture
Discuss: (1) Where do our culture's values and beliefs differ from Jesus' understanding of the Kingdom of God? (2) Stephen and his fellow-Christians were persecuted for confronting the powers-that-be by attacking their record of injustice. Would our church run any risk of persecution for this reason? (3) Apart from church-attending on Sundays, what distinguishes our church-members from people in the community who have no contact with the church? (4) If Jesus came back to our country, where would we find him, and what would he be doing - and saying?
Last year I talked with an Indian pastor who had been dragged many hundreds of metres through the streets of his town by militant Hindus, before being beaten with rods. 'What did you do?' I asked him. 'I blessed my persecutors in the name of the Lord' he said. 'And what happened?' 'The gospel fire was stoked up in my heart for these people!'
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