Confront the World Courageously: Be Different!

1. In the world, not of the world

Today we face a changed reality, a changed world. For a very long time the Western world and American culture used to be nominally Christian. Even though many, even the majority, were nonbelievers, the West and American society were built on Christian values. Christian values and the Bible shaped, informed culture and behavior. So evangelical Christians found themselves in the mainstream, feeling comfortably at home in society. But this changed, and today we are living in a multi-cultural post-Christian society dominated by post-truth ideologies. Evangelical Christians now find themselves outside the mainstream, in the minority. We experience criticism, name calling, distrust, persecution.

No wonder so many of us are experiencing feelings of anxiety, fear, stress, anger, outrage, even hopelessness. What should we do? How should we respond? We cannot respond with anger, outrage, or violence. Then we are no different than the world.

God’s people live and work in the public square, in the market place, in society. We are called to missional constructive engagement with the world because this is God’s world — created, sustained, loved and redeemed by God. We are in the world.

But we are not of the world. We are called to courageous confrontation with the world. Because this world is in rebellion against God. Anti-God forces are at work in it. Satan exerts his rule over it. It is the playground of idols and evil.

How will we confront the world courageously? We are called to be holy, to be different.

2. Be holy! Be different!

We are called to be holy. We live and work in this world as saints, God’s holy people. To be holy means to be different, to be distinctive, to be peculiar. Our holiness comes from God’s holiness …

Lev. 18:1-5 — “The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘I am the Lord your God. You must not do as they do in Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you. Do not follow their practices. You must obey my laws and be careful to follow my decrees. I am the Lord your God. Keep my decrees and laws, for the person who obeys them will live by them. I am the Lord.”

We are called to be holy because God is holy. ‘The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the entire assembly of Israel and say to them: ‘Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy.’ (Lev. 19:1-2). Jesus calls us to be perfect, as our heavenly Father is perfect (Mt. 5:48).

When we look at chapters 18 and 19 in Leviticus, we see that the call to be holy covers all of life, not only the religious but our ordinary, personal, sexual, family, social, judicial, agricultural, commercial lives. No area is excluded from this call to be holy as God is holy, to be different from the world.

3. You are the salt & light!

We are called to be different because we are the salt and light of the world. Jesus said, “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. You are the light of the world. A town built 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 others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Mt 5:13-16)

What happens to meat if it is left alone without salt? It corrupts, becomes bad and rotten. What happens if there is no light in a house? It remains in darkness. What’s happening in the world is what happens when the world lives without God and his Word, without Jesus.

It’s easy to point fingers, and say, “See, the world is bad, evil!” But we should not blame the world. Where is the salt and the light? Where are the Christians? If we do not engage and confront the world as the salt and the light, how can they know, how can they see the light, and change?

We the saints, the holy ones, are the salt that should permeate the world, and prevent it from going bad. We the saints are called to live out God’s counterculture, the kingdom culture, the Jesus-way of life. We must live, work, and witness in the world, shining our light, the light of Jesus into the world.

4. Walk the talk!

To be holy and different, we must practice moral integrity in all areas of life. That means there must be no difference between my spiritual, my church life, and my life in the public square, in the world. It means we must do what we say we believe, practice what we preach. We must walk the talk!

It’s a sad fact that many Christians and churches live two-faced hypocritical lives and use double standards. This has contributed to the bad reputation and criticism of the Christian faith. Of course, not all Christians and churches are bad. But we must remember, the world is watching us! We are new creations, we are different. We are held to higher standards, both by God and the world.

Walking the talk, practicing moral integrity, means also that we must confront sin in all areas of life, and on all sides. It’s so easy to point fingers and judge others, especially when they are on the other side, when they disagree with us, or when they are different than us.

Jesus tells us, “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” (Mt. 7:1-6)

Jesus also says, “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” (Mt. 7:12) In everything, in all areas of life.

Before we can confront the evil and sin in the world, we must begin with ourselves. We must first confront and deal with the sin in our own lives, in our families, churches, workplaces, communities.

5. #Stand Up, Speak Out (#SUSO)

We are different by standing up and speaking out, both in words and deeds against sin, evil, corruption, injustice. Let’s look at what Peter is saying.

“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. … Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. For, ‘Whoever would love life and see good days must keep their tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech. They must turn from evil and do good; they must seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.’ Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear their threats; do not be frightened.” But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. For it is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.” (1 Pet 2:9-12; 3:8-17)

One of the reasons why we are now in a post-Christian, post-truth society is that for too long too many Christians and churches have been too quiet. It’s dangerous to stand up and speak out. It’s unpopular. It’s inconvenient. It’s uncomfortable.

Our our goal is not to judge and condemn people, to punish or destroy others. No, our goal is repentance, reform, reconciliation, and redemption. We speak out not only to help people run away from sin, but to run toward the Lord Jesus Christ. We must not back down from biblical truths and our beliefs. But with humble courage we can be civil and speak the truth in love and respect in our discussions, debates, and interactions with others, especially on social media.

How do we stand up and speak out? First, reject the majority myth. This is the belief that we can change society only when we have the majority. We think the tide is overwhelmingly against us. So we become silent. We remove ourselves from the public square. Instead of swimming against the tide, we go and hide, sit and sulk in our churches and homes. We think we have lost the battle. So we look to other powers, like politics, the White House, the Supreme Court to save and protect us.

Have we forgotten our Lord? Have we forgotten that he already won the war? Have we forgotten that the all-powerful, sovereign Lord is in control, and that history is moving to its ordained purpose?

In the leadership of change we talk about the law of diffusion of innovation. At what point will the majority of a group accept, buy, or use a new product, a new practice, or a new innovation? When 13.4 percent have accepted it. That’s the tipping point.

A scientific study done in 2011 discovered that, “When just 10 percent of the population holds an unshakable belief, their belief will always be adopted by the majority of the society.” 10 percent!

So we must stand up, and speak out. We must learn to say and do what is right in God’s eyes, not what is popular, not what the majority believes. Our concern, our priority, should be the glory and will of God, not personal safety, security, comfort or convenience.

Sometimes it is necessary to stand alone in order to stand for God. But if “you are on God’s side, you’re on the winning side, and that is the only thing that matters. Just as with Daniel, David, Gideon, the apostles, most of the Bible characters, and many in the history of Christianity, there are often times in the lives of Christ-followers when we must do what is right (not necessarily popular at the time), in order to get others to follow our lead. But more than this: even if others do not follow, we must follow God and do what is right, regardless of the consequences.”

As Christian businessmen or women we will not be driven and controlled by greed and materialism. We will not participate in business practices that are unfair, unjust, that exploit, oppress, and prevent others from also participating in free trade, even if it means my profit will be smaller.

As Christian politicians or public servants we will not resort to lying, name calling, slander, insults. We will not accept or give bribes. We will remain focused on the issues. We will love others, treat them with dignity and respect, even our enemies. We will be gentle, kind, patient, while we stand up and speak out and work for justice, peace, and freedom for all people.

As Christians we will receive and host with love refugees who are fleeing horrible situations of oppression, violence, injustice, and poverty, just like our ancestors did. We will help them to begin a new life of freedom and opportunity. But not only that, we will increase our missional involvement in other countries to bring about change there, so that those people do not have to flee their homelands.

Lastly, Do not freak out! The world and God’s people have face difficult challenges before. Love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, gentleness, kindness, faithfulness, hope, faith, humility, and humble courage always won the day. Do what is right, and leave the consequences to God. Freaking out, fear, anxiety, worry, are all the opposites of walking by faith, relying on and trusting in God. Of hope.

We must put on the armor of God so that we can stand up and stand strong. We must build our faith by lifting our Bibles. When we get the Word of God into us, the life of Christ will grow in us to go out from us into the world. So, when you feel fear and anxiety coming on, read your Bible, pray, and stop worrying. When we obey God in the little things we will find that obeying him in the big areas of life will be much easier.

What do you need to do or change to be different? How will you #SUSO?