Oct 10
31
Jesus came to conquer
American Vision – October 28, 2010
The Great Cultural Commission
By Eric Rauch
In my own experience, I have found that many Christians do not understand the “hows” and the “whys” of cultural engagement, even to the point of wondering why Christians should be concerned in the first place. Cultural critic Ken Myers states the issue well when he writes: “It might seem an extreme assertion at first, but I believe that the challenge of living with popular culture may well be as serious for modern Christians as persecution and plagues were for the saints of earlier centuries…Enemies that come loudly and visibly are usually much easier to fight than those that are undetectable…the erosion of character, the spoiling of innocent pleasures, and the cheapening of life itself that often accompany modern popular culture can occur so subtly that we believe nothing has happened.”[1] If Myers’ assertion is correct, and I believe it is, should it serve as an alarm to retreat, or as a call to advance? …
If more Christians began to see their daily activities as an extension of worship, we would also begin to see a cultural shift. Stellman seems to be more than willing to hand the world over to contemporary culture because, “as pilgrims, we will always be outsiders in this passing evil age…After all, we are not the nucleus of a Christian society whose aim is to conquer, but an alien colony whose aim is to ‘endure to the end’ (Matt. 10:22).”[6] If this is what is being taught to Christians on Sunday – the day when their “peculiarity and distinctiveness” should be most evident – is it really any wonder that we are making little to no impact on the culture the other six days of the week? Stellman seems to be content to wait for the world to come to us on Sunday to see how radical and countercultural we are, but Jesus had a different concept in mind. His final command to His disciples was not one of enduring, but of conquering: “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you…” (Matt. 28:18-20). There is little in the Great Commission to indicate that Jesus had anything less than victory on His mind – and neither should we. The Gospel of Jesus redeems souls, lives, and cultures. And it does this because all authority and power has been given to Him.