Church in the Shades of Gray: Culture

For the last two weeks I have taken this moment to discuss some of the issues related to the Pulse Nightclub Islamic Terrorist attack.  Today, I want to return to the subject of the church in Shades of Gray, specifically, the interface between faith and culture.  This is apropos in view of the terror attack.  The church more than ever seems to need to define its place in the culture proactively, rather than have its place defined for it by the culture, or worse yet, assume a place in culture without giving it any thought. 

The church finds itself in shades of gray when it must establish itself on a continuum between two opposites or nearly opposite points.  We have earlier looked at the difference between Seeker Driven worship as opposed to worship as the act of a Covenant People.  This is not a matter of Right verses Wrong, but where is it wise for the church to position itself; much like the balance of buying a car.  Should we buy a car with the highest fuel mileage or opt for maximum comfort and safety?  While this may not be a moral decision, it can have a profound impact on a congregation.  The mature church leader looks at the continuum and tries to lead the congregation to the place that is a prudent balance. 

At the same time that the church has been shaping its culture, it has been shaped by its culture. That is why the continuum of culture and its impact on the church and vise versa is so important for our consideration. The question is to what degree should the church be a part of the cultural norm.  On either extreme of the continuum there lays folly, but where in the broad middle should we position ourselves?

Cultural relevance/Embracing the culture
On one side, we might say that the church needs to embrace the culture in which it finds itself in order to be able to bear witness to that culture. Paul says, "I have become all things to all men, so that I may by all means save some."  (I Cor. 9:22)  When we evangelize cross-culturally, we are very aware of the host culture, and the need to communicate the gospel in a way that is germane in that culture.  It can be argued that that is true when we evangelize within our own culture. The church needs to remove from its practice the barriers of communication with its own culture and should do so by embracing the culture's arts, style, methods and norms. Some would say that these barriers can include steeples, crosses, and big book Bibles-this list can be endless.  Carried to an extreme, the church becomes identical to the culture so that the non-Christian community loses the message of the Gospel in the background noise of its own culture.

Counter culture/ Intentionally distinct
On the other half of the continuum, we might say, that the church rejects the world, the flesh, and the Devil, at every level.   By its pursuit of holiness and godliness, the church offers a distinctly different cultural norm becoming truly counter-cultural.  I Peter 1:15-16 tells us: "but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, "YOU SHALL BE HOLY, FOR I AM HOLY." To the degree that the church adapts itself to the world it separates itself from God and it loses its witness and real power. It is the responsibility of the church to be distinct from the world. Carried to an extreme the church becomes a legalistic body more concerned with keeping rules of its own sub-culture rather than serving the Lord and reaching the lost.

The reality is that we must be, live, and minister in a culture that has shaped us.  Often we are so shaped by our culture that we fail to realize it is there. Like the atmosphere that is around us, we are so accustomed to our culture we are unaware of its presence.  Without a Biblically mandated directive there is no distinctive Christian culture to which we can run. So we must be the salt of the earth while not being “in the world”.  This requires careful deliberation for our own choices and grace toward others.

Questions:

At the intersection of politics and faith, we often find the unique challenge of faith and culture.  How has this intersection been difficult for you personally or within your congregation?

In what ways do you see the subculture of the church getting in the way of the spread of the Gospel?

It has been said there is nothing wrong with a boat being in the water; rather, the problem comes when the water gets in the boat.  In what ways do you feel the waters of our culture have gotten in the boat of the 21^st century church?

The arts are another cultural crossroads of faith and culture.  What are some reasonable steps to engage artistic creativity while maintaining a Christ-like holiness?