Tag: Witness

Categories
Clint Gospel Society Spiritual Growth

Sticking Out As A Christian

Nobody wants to stick out. People may want to lead or be on top, but generally speaking few of us like to stick out from the crowd. We certainly don’t like to stick out when there is no noticeable benefit. This is a proverb that exists in many cultures: The nail that sticks out will be struck down, or, The tall poppy will be cut off.

Christians feel this fear too. They don’t want to be left out and they prefer to fit in, even blend in. But that is where the problem lies. Christians will always stick out unless they are Christians in name only.

Sticking Out in the Right Way

One of the first temptations to deal with is the mistaken pursuit of being obnoxious. Christians can think that they need to be brash in order to be bold. They can mistake the negative responses by others as mini-persecutions when really they are just sick of a Christian’s bad manners. When Paul instructed Titus on the subject he said:

Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. 

Titus 3:1-2

I have wondered sometimes if pastors (as well as church members) need to take a rudimentary course in manners. To even say it sounds quaint and dated. But the fact is that in any culture the norms of courtesy express honour, respect, care and love.  These expressions are all the more important when you are in disagreement with someone else. Since they are not at home in this world, Christians are always in a state of disagreement with it. So we need to figure out how to stick out in the right way without being needlessly offensive.

Sticking Out for the Right Things

If Christians are meant to stick out, like a lamp on a stand or a city on a hill as Jesus described (Mat 5:14-16), then they must stick out for the right things. It ought to be clear that what Christians say and do expresses the imitation of Jesus Christ and the fruition of Jesus’ work in their lives. The right thing to stick out for is that you have been called “out of darkness into his marvellous light” (1 Pet 2:9).

Ultimately, Christians will stick out because they are following Jesus “outside the camp” in order to “bear the reproach he endured” (Heb 13:13). By following Jesus, they are sticking out for the right things. Other things, such as what we eat, drink, and wear shouldn’t be things that we are overly concerned about (cf. Matt 6:31). And they aren’t things that we should prioritize being different in. There is a certain self-forgetfulness that should apply to such things. We may fit in or we may not. But the key idea is that we stick out because we are following Jesus. 

Sticking Out and Ready to be Struck Down

In following Jesus, we know we will stick out. So we can expect the hammer. The world, under Satan’s sway, demands conformity (cf “the elementary principles of the world” Gal 4:3, Col 2:20).  When we realize how we are perceived because of our allegiance to Jesus, it will help us to understand what to expect. 

As believers follow Jesus, they will resemble the apostles who are “a spectacle to the world, to angels, and to men.” (1 Cor 4:9).  Paul’s experience was that “When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; when slandered, we entreat. We have become, and are still, like the scum of the world, the refuse of all things.” (1 Cor 4:12-13).  This is not a recipe for becoming cultural champions. 

So we need to be prepared to be struck down. Jesus reminds us that the reception of fierce opposition is part of our witness. In the sermon recorded in the fifth chapter of Matthew, Jesus said:

“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Matt 5:11-12

As we receive the blasts of opposition because we are sticking out in the right way for the right things, we join the gospel’s long line of witnesses or rather the “great cloud” of them (Hebrew 12:1).  Paul could say:

Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. 

Phil 2:14-16

If we stick out in this way, we bear witness that something is wrong with the world, and only in Christ can it be made right. 

unsplash-logoThe Joy of Film

Categories
Canada Clint Global Gospel Society Suffering & Trials

The Persecution Spectrum

Could it be that we misunderstand the persecutions which Christians face? On the one hand, we can think that only the imprisoned are persecuted. At the other hand, we can argue that every resistance from the world, the flesh and the devil is a species of persecution.

Degrees of Persecution

I think it’s better to think of persecution on a spectrum. When seen on a spectrum, persecution of Christians is not limited to the extremes of being either non-existent (we’re not persecuted in the West) or state co-ordinated (Stalinist, Maoist, etc). There are degrees. And each degree requires a measured response.

Persecution in the West

In the West, the spectrum of persecution applies. It is not like the overt political co-ordination of other countries, but it is moving along the spectrum in that direction.

Part of what is happening is that there is a vast shift which removes the cultural elites of the past and replaces them with others. Christians are not in the cultural elite anymore. In fact, they are viewed with suspicion. The result is that Christians won’t get preferential treatment. When they enter grey areas, Christians won’t get the benefit of the doubt. Christians were in the habit of feeling they ought to have their voice heard, as much or more so than other citizens. Now when their voice enters the public square, many people are looking for a way to turn off the microphone. It’s not always state co-ordinated. But it is social, informal and real.

Denunciation as Persecution

I was reminded of this when our church posted an announcement on social media about an upcoming conference on biblical sexuality. The comments were hostile. When I tried to be winsome and persuasive, I was accused of being arrogant and not secular enough in my reply.

From this exchange I realized something. The person who was so incensed by our conference did not want to dialogue with me. They wanted to denounce me. Denunciation has been a form of persecution made popular in the twentieth century, particularly in communist countries. There is no physical effect. There is not even a legal component. But denunciation is a more aggressive form of opposition than mere disagreement.

Distorted Views of Persecution

Now if you agree with me that persecution is on a spectrum, the temptation will be to distort the proportions of the persecution that you might feel. It can be easy to dramatize our psychological injuries into massive systemic plots. In fact, across society, this is already happening as people will claim that others are expressing micro-aggressions against them. If we make a co-worker’s denunciation of us into a basis for a rights crusade, we will have lost the battle completely.

Our Adversary

Instead, we have to consider how the early Christians faced varying degrees of persecution. In the first century when Peter wrote to the “elect exiles” in the region of modern Turkey, he reminded them that the first persecutor was the devil. He called him the “adversary” and likened him to a prowling lion “seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8).

According to Peter’s logic, a Christian who reads his first letter needs to be watchful for this persecutor, the devil. In fact, Peter instructs:

Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world

1 Peter 5:9

Unless you are going to interpret the passage in a way that limits Satan’s activity only to the work of governments, you will broaden the application. Persecution is on a spectrum. If we don’t recognize the spectrum, we will be “ignorant of his designs” (2 Cor 2:11) and fail to resist the devil when he works in ways other than government-sanctioned persecution.

Not Bitter and Fuzzy

We ought to beware of letting our happy, yet clear witness turn bitter and fuzzy. If we give our best energies to fighting for a cultural seat at the table, we will have little energy left to be faithful ambassadors of another kingdom. If we lobby only for societal rights, we’ll be fuzzy about the superior summons to belief in the gospel. If we are shrill in our replies to sinners who are “without God and without hope in the world” (Eph 2:12), then our bitter witness will only communicate that our gospel is powerless to change hatred to love. The gospel even creates love for enemies (Mt 5:44).

Practice Joyfully Clear Witness

Our gospel witness muscles can practice responding to persecution in the less intense end of the spectrum. That practice will prepare us for more intense sufferings. At least Christians will stop being surprised by the spectrum of persecution. Peter says we shouldn’t be surprised (1 Peter 4:12). We know that it is coming. If we respond with joyful clarity about the truth of the gospel, we can have confidence that we share in some degree with the “same kinds of suffering… experienced by [our] brotherhood throughout the world” (5:9).

Above all, we need to remember that we “share Christ’s sufferings”, with the goal that we “may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed”. (4:13). Let us embrace our joyfully clear witness. This witness is both our duty and our joy across the entire spectrum of persecution.

unsplash-logoJace & Afsoon

Categories
Canada Church Clint Society Theology

Fortify Your Faith Today

In an article by David French, he looked at the deconversions of prominent figures in the Christian world. First was Josh Harris the former megachurch pastor. Now is Marty Sampson, a songwriter with Hillsong. French made the point that the problem wasn’t catechesis but fortification. 

What he meant was that people like these two men were informed about the Christian faith to a large extent (although I don’t think Hillsong’s Oneness Pentecostalism is orthodox). They had been taught lots, but they had not been tested that much. French said that they lacked the moral courage to withstand the cultural resistance all around them. 

I think French is exactly right. And I’d like to expand on what this means for churches. I’m going to suggest three ways that churches can cultivate moral courage, not just checked boxes.

Fortify by Returning to Prayer 

The first thing we can do is return to prayer. This is not to pit spirituality against doctrine. Instead, it is to cause our theology to have its end goal: doxology. I suggest that a return to prayer is the focal point because it includes worship, but has no danger of being co-opted by entertainment like so much of our worship currently is. 

Prayer is pure supernaturalism because it is predicated on faith in the unseen. It is not a leap, because there is so much evidence God has revealed to us that we can rely upon (Rom 1:19-20; . Yet we “walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Cor 5:7). We are all used to visible affirmations in the form of likes and retweets. But if we are to gain moral courage, we will have to grow stronger in faith that doesn’t need social oxygen to breathe. Instead, faith respirates on the unseen promises, unseen character, and ultimately the unseen, yet true and living God. Prayer is the means for helping us gain that well-oxygenated courage. 

Fortify by Reminding of Heaven

Part of this pursuit of the unseen God requires reminders about the day when we will see him. In other words, Christians require reminders of heaven. Such reminders feed our prayers. We can pray and be reminded once again that while we are groaning, we are “longing to put on the heavenly dwelling” (2 Cor 5:2). 

Theologian Michael Allen follows James K.A. Smith and others in pointing out how ‘this-world’ oriented we’ve become. He calls even Reformed orientations, “Augustinian naturalism”.  The Catholic philosopher Charles Murray said that our lenses are set within “an immanent frame”. The possible consequence for many people is that heaven lacks definition and recedes to a fuzzy background.  

No one can dispute that we live in a world of immediacy. Fast food. Push notifications. Livestreaming. God calls us to resist this form of worldliness by setting our minds on things above where Christ is (Col 3:2), and to be “longing to put on our heavenly dwelling” (2 Cor 5:2). 

Churches should remind themselves that they are sojourners travelling toward a heavenly city “whose designer and builder is God” (Heb 11:10). By reminding ourselves that we are “strangers and exiles on the earth (v.13), we can enjoy a narrowed focus upon heaven and the special presence of God. When our focus is narrowed to heaven, we will be far more resilient when the world demands that we cling to it. 

Although we may ‘seek the peace of the city’ (Jer 29:7) as exiles on the earth, we need to remember that a different city is the one that God has prepared for us where God is not ashamed to be called our God (Heb 11:16). 

Fortify by Repeating the Witness

Few things stir fear in Christians than sharing the gospel. They are embarrassed, scared, timid,  and insecure. But bearing witness reflects the heart of being a disciple of Jesus Christ. So are we doomed to consign witnessing to the category of perpetual guilt inducement? 

Maybe we should work on repeating our witness in both simple and complex ways. Too many Christians think that they have to be experts on apologetics, worldviews, world religions and so on. What they need to be experts on is the simple gospel. Following a basic pattern of God-Man-Sin-Christ-Response, or similar, Christians can learn to bear witness to the simple gospel. 

Repeating our witness to the gospel in simple ways strengthens us to bear witness in complex situations. Sharing the gospel develops spiritual strength like repeated exercise creates muscle memory. Then when we are crowded onto lonely platforms, our spiritual reflexes can take over. 

Of course, Jesus promised this. He knew that his disciples would be put on the spot. When they were, Jesus knew that the Holy Spirit would provide for them spiritual agility to remain steady in the face of crosswinds. He said:

And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not be anxious about how you should defend yourself or what you should say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.” Luke 12:11-12

These three emphases can help us fortify ourselves against the growing tide of opposition. If we ignore the wave and trust in our well-run programs or nuanced notions, then we shouldn’t be surprised when many people in our churches get swept out with the tide. 

unsplash-logoEvgeny Nelmin

***affiliate links