"Gospel-Centered" vs "Culture War"?
- last year
We're frequently told that Christians and churches ought to be "gospel centered" rather than worrying about or getting engaged in the "culture war."
This, however, misunderstands a host of things, including:
* The gospel, which is not simply a narrow message of forgiveness of sins, but the announcement that the risen Jesus is King of kings and Lord of lords.
* Culture, which is the lived expression of human belief, in every area of life, such as the arts, politics, business, social structures, and so on.
* The actual source of the culture war. It is God who formalized it in the Garden, when he told the serpent, "I will place enmity between you and the woman, and between her seed and your seed."
While the weapons of our warfare are not fleshly (as Paul says), we are in a conflict to which Jesus calls us, and if we are not on the side of his Lordship, we have allied ourselves with the serpent.
This, however, misunderstands a host of things, including:
* The gospel, which is not simply a narrow message of forgiveness of sins, but the announcement that the risen Jesus is King of kings and Lord of lords.
* Culture, which is the lived expression of human belief, in every area of life, such as the arts, politics, business, social structures, and so on.
* The actual source of the culture war. It is God who formalized it in the Garden, when he told the serpent, "I will place enmity between you and the woman, and between her seed and your seed."
While the weapons of our warfare are not fleshly (as Paul says), we are in a conflict to which Jesus calls us, and if we are not on the side of his Lordship, we have allied ourselves with the serpent.