It seems to me that there has recently been a lot of national controversy regarding religious issues (or issues that the church has jumped into). From the proposed burning of the Qur’an, to the building of mosques, to the court battles over gay marriage, Christian leaders have been heavily engaged in the conversation and in the politics surrounding them. Over the last century, Christians have advocated on many national issues (war, alcohol, abortion, homosexuality), though often unsuccessfully. Unfortunately, this has contributed to Christians being more often known for what they are against than for what they are for (see Unchristian by David Kinnaman and Gabe Lyons).
Sometimes our message is right, sometimes it is wrong. But the bigger problem is that the issue we are fighting can overshadow more important things. Jesus yelled at the Scribes and Pharisees for a similar problem in Matthew 23:23. It is important for Christians to engage in their world and to exercise their right to vote, but we must not let these issues become our consuming focus. Nor should we focus all our power on fighting the “bad” that we don’t have time to do the “good” that we are also called to do.
In his response to Ted Wilson’s sermon at the General Conference, Sam Neves put it this way: “I would argue that the present generation would like this movement to be known: not only by what we eat, but by whom we feed.... not only by how we dress, but by whom we clothe… not only for being different, but for making a difference in the world around us.”
Are you too busy fighting against Satan to work for God?
Chad Hess
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