A CALL TO CULTURAL ENGAGEMENT
A RECAP OF USCAL MIDWEST REGION 6 ROUNDTABLE —By Mark Pfeifer
We started off with a story…
👉🏻 There was a missionary who visited a foreign nation. A young, beautiful girl was converted in one of his meetings. For weeks, she attended the meetings and seemed to be falling deeper and deeper in love with Jesus.
Before leaving, the missionary prayed for her and encouraged her to continue walking with the Lord.
A couple years later, the missionary returned to that nation. He asked about the young girl. The people said she was now a prostitute working on the streets.
💔 Heartbroken, the missionary went to into town looking for her. When he found her, she took one look at him and dropped her head in shame.
He approached her and asked, “How did you end up here? You loved Jesus so much! You were born again! What happened?”
“I still love Jesus,” she said. “However, they threatened me. And then my family. They finally kidnapped my brother and said they would harm him if I did not comply. I had no choice.”
“Why didn’t you go to the police?” He asked.
“Who do you think ‘they’ are?” she replied!
That’s when it occurred to the missionary…
…changing a person’s heart is not enough!
🔐 Christians must also confront the corrupt systems that keep people locked away in poverty, hopelessness, and sinful behaviors with no apparent way out.
● THE GOSPEL OF SALVATION AND THE GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM ●
At this point, we discussed the possible difference between the Gospel (Good News) of Salvation and the Gospel (Good News) of the Kingdom of God.
⚖️ One offers hope to individuals – the other offers hope to society.
⚖️ One confronts personal sin – the other confronts cultural systems.
⚖️ One brings personal change – the other brings cultural change.
The church not only has a responsibility to help individuals live better lives but also has the responsibility to make society better.
It was suggested that perhaps this was the difference between Mark’s and Matthew’s version of the Great Commission…
🔥 The Gospel of Salvation is expressed in Mark 16:15-16 where Jesus said, “And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.”
🔥 The Gospel of the Kingdom is expressed in Matthew 28:19-20 where Jesus said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
● THE INDIVIDUAL, THE FAMILY, THE CHURCH, AND THE CULTURE ●
The INDIVIDUAL Christian is the locus of the Kingdom of God. 🎯 Salvation is offered to all of us on a personal basis. Jesus said in Luke 17:21, “For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you.”
From there, the Kingdom of God expands into HOMES & FAMILIES. 🎯 This is why the Bible teaches that marriage and life are sacred.
From there, the Kingdom of God expands to include the CHURCH. 🎯 Individuals and families organize themselves into a corporate unit according to the Biblical pattern.
This was the earliest example set by the apostles in Jerusalem in Acts 2:47, “And the Lord adding to the church daily those who were being saved.”
According to the example in the Book of Acts, the church then becomes a force for good in society, confronting social ills and corrupt systems en masse. 👍🏻
But how did the church of the New Testament do this?
By force? By Protesting? By Rioting? By demanding change?
No!
The enemies of the church did that!
The New Testament Church changed the Roman world without passing any new laws or invoking their will on the masses. They did so by offering people a superior lifestyle within an alternative community that established an alternative culture.
Someone likened how the church changes the world to the oxygen masks that drop down on airplanes ✈️ in the case of cabin decompression. We are always told to put our mask on first before trying to help others.
Likewise, the church must get its act together, first, before becoming the catalyst for change in our world.
The church must be more than a gathering of people who are entertained once a week.
We must become a true alternative culture 🌎 with an alternative government, becoming an alternative family, that has an alternative worldview, who live in an alternative reality, operating in an alternative economy, establishing alternative social systems that are superior to those in the world.
This is the seed Jesus described in Matthew 13:31-32 as being a mustard seed · that grows into a tree 🌳 where birds build their nests. 🪺
● THE NECESSITY OF THE CHURCH ●
To confront and overturn corrupt and harmful cultural systems – to impact and change society – individual believers must unite and become the church. This was the obsession of the First Century Apostles.
Consider what Paul did at the end of his first missionary journey. In Acts 14:23. It says, “So when they had appointed elders in every church, and prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed.”
Even though still suffering from the stoning he had experienced only days earlier, Paul was intent on creating a structured church before he left.
Or consider the instruction Paul gave Titus when he sent him to Create. Titus 1:5 says, “For this reason I left you in Crete, that you should set in order the things that are lacking, and appoint elders in every city as I commanded you.”
Paul commissioned Timothy to do the same – with further instructions on appointing deacons alongside elders in the church – in I Timothy 1:3ff, 3:10ff & 5:17ff).
Paul wanted an organized and unified church in every city.
The concern for organization of the church was not just a Pauline preoccupation. Peter also revealed his concern that governing structures be set in the church when in I Peter 5:1-4 he gave explicit instructions for those leading local churches.
Creating a consistent and stable government in the church was paramount on the minds of the First Century Apostles because they understood the importance of creating an alternative culture with alternative systems within the pressures of contemporary society.
Only an organized group of people could pull this off!
They knew that establishing strong local churches was the first step in cultural engagement and, ultimately, cultural change.
Afterall, they had seen it modeled firsthand for 400 years.
● THE JEWS OF THE DIASPORA ●
By the time the church was born, the Jewish people were living prosperously across the expanse of the Roman Empire. They had been done this since the time of the Babylonian Exile in 586 BC.
Peter must have had this in mind when he addressed the church is diasporic language in I Peter 1:1, “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the pilgrims of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia.”
Even today, 2,000 years later, Jewish people have incredibly preserved their ethnic identity and cultural distinctives in almost every nation in the world. A remarkable feat considering they didn’t even have a homeland for much of that time.
What gave them the ability to preserve their identity for hundreds of generations? Here are four main reasons that might shed some light on that astonishing accomplishment.
✅ TORAH. They have their Bible as a central document for personal and communal life.
✅ SYNAGOGUE. They have a respected cultural hub for their community that is sacrosanct.
✅ RABBI. They respect their religious leaders and the governing structures they represent.
✅ SABBATH. They ordered their week around the Sabbath. Some Jews attribute this as the main reason they have been preserved as a people. One popular saying is, “We keep the Sabbath, and the Sabbath keeps us.”
This seems to be the model for the church as Paul and other First Century Apostles created it as an alternative for both Jewish and Gentile believers.
● YOU DON’T HAVE TO GO LOOKING FOR TROUBLE ●
The conversation then shifted to the cultural conflicts the church finds itself in today.
It was concluded that if a person or a church is doing the work of the Kingdom of God, you don’t have to go looking for trouble. That’s unwise. Because trouble will come looking for you!
With God and the church behind them, the First Century Apostles engaged the culture and addressed systematic issues in the normal execution of the Great Commission.
People were invited to switch allegiances and citizenry from one kingdom to another. They were instructed in a new way of life that often changed their behavior from what it was before.
This often led to conflict.
When Paul was in Lystra, for instance, he and Barnabas were mistakenly identified as Zeus and Hermes. They refused the adoration and confronted the people’s idolatry.
When jealous Jews came to Lystra from Antioch and Iconium, they influenced the multitude against the apostles. As a consequence, Paul was dragged out of the city, violently stoned, and left for dead.
▶︎ Systematic idolatry was confronted, and a conflict ensued.
When Paul was in Philippi, a young slave girl who told fortunes was set free by the power of God. Her owners were enraged and had Paul and Silas arrested, beaten, and put in prison.
▶︎ Systematic slavery was confronted, and a conflict ensued.
When Paul was in Corinth, so many Jewish converts left the synagogue to join the church that they took him to court and accused him of being a troublemaker.
▶︎ Systematic tribalism was confronted, and a conflict ensued.
When Paul was in Athens, he addressed the polytheism of the Athenians at Mars Hill. Many philosophers mocked him for believing in the resurrection of Jesus.
▶︎ Systematic superstitions were confronted, and a conflict ensued.
When Paul was in Ephesus, the economic system of the city was challenged as Christians burned their witchcraft paraphernalia and stopped purchasing the statues of Diana. A silversmith named Demetrius led a mob against Paul and the church.
▶︎ Systematic witchcraft was confronted, and a conflict ensued.
When Paul was arrested in Jerusalem, he spent years in the legal system defending himself and refusing to admit guilt, pay bribes, and compromise the truth. In the end, the Jews plotted to kill him.
▶︎ Systematic injustice was confronted, and a conflict ensued.
Revelation 11:15 predicts what will happen at the end of this age. It says, “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ.”
If we believe this verse (or any other) can be fulfilled without cultural engagement and conflict, we are probably drawing our worldview and interpretation of the Bible in the relative safety and religious freedom of the United States.
But not everyone has that luxury!
● SLAVERY IN AMERICA – A CASE STUDY IN CULTURAL ENGAGEMENT ●
At the Roundtable, we briefly turned our attention to the example of cultural engagement set before us by many historically black churches in the United States.
African slaves were first brought to American shores in 1619. It quickly became an important part in the economic system of the colonies.
By the time the United States was organized into an independent nation, slavery was considered by many to be an indispensable part of the nation’s economy.
A century later with 650,000 deaths in a bloody Civil War, slaves were legally free. However, the systems that kept them in bondage were still very much in place.
Another century passed before the Civil Rights movement addressed many of those unrighteous systems.
Historically black churches and the Christians who attend them understood that even though a person’s heart can be liberated from personal sin, the systems that undergird and support immoral behavior can still exist in the culture.
Like the young girl forced into prostitution by the unjust systems of her society, people are never fully free to experience Kingdom life until these cultural systems are confronted and replaced.
This is why we need the Gospel of Salvation AND the Gospel of the Kingdom!
Which brought us to our final point…
● CULTURAL ENGAGEMENT LOOKS LIKE THE CHURCH SERVING ITS CITY ●
Moving into the Second Century, the church was thriving in the Roman Empire. Despite persecutions, false accusations, doctrinal disagreements, moral issues and heresies, people were turning to Christ and organizing churches in multiple urban centers.
This quickly gave them social clout and power to effect change. How did they use this power?
🎁 They served their cities!
For instance, early on, the church cared for widows. Paul addresses it in I Timothy 5:3-16.
History tells us that one of the tasks given to these widows was to care for the orphans. Widows would regularly walk the streets of Roman cities, gathering discarded babies to care for them.
🙌🏻 Some of the first orphanages in the world were created by the church serving its city.
Through the centuries, when plagues swept through the Roman world, the elite citizens would flee. But not the Christians! They would stay and care for the sick.
🙌🏻 Some of the first hospitals in the world were created by the church serving its city.
In 410, Alaric led the Visigoths into Rome, sacking the city and destroying its civil government. The only organization left standing was the church. The invaders didn’t destroy the church because they had been Christianized by early missionaries in previous centuries.
The result was that the church was the only governmental infrastructure left in the city of Rome. This essentially saved the citizens of Rome and gave the church a seat at the head of the table. This essentially was the beginning of the Roman Catholic Church as it exists in the West.
How the church handled this privilege and responsibility is a debate worth having. For our purposes at the Roundtable, however, we simply concluded that hard times in society call for the church to step up and serve the needs of the city wherever we can.
In serving our cities and solving its problems, the church earns its seat at the table and a voice in the conversation. Wisdom and compassion are leveraged to open the hearts and minds of people who need to hear the Gospel of Salvation…
…by seeing it first as the Gospel of the Kingdom!
The two work symbiotically to offer a superior model of living for individuals, families, cities, and nations!
It’s our job to show them!
THE END