Category Archives: Culture

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Resisting the Spirit of the World at Our Cultural Intersection

Paul wrote to the Colossians, “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ” (Colossians 2:8). This is not a blanket condemnation of philosophy, but rather philosophy based on human reason alone. Ideas can captivate and capture us if we are not careful. Furthermore, we must “no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming” (Ephesians 4:14). Our adversary is clever, and he brings the battle to us in different ways in different generations. As Francis Schaefer prophetically reminds us, “The Christian must resist the spirit of the world in the form it takes in his own generation.”

There are idea systems today that are neutralizing the effectiveness of the church. Two of the most corrosive idea systems being perpetuated by the world system are naturalism and hedonism. If the physical universe is all there is, there is no room for God. Christianity is then false by definition. If humans exist only to satisfy their desires and live only for their own pleasure, then life with God becomes practically impossible. Who will passionately engage with the gospel if we are conditioned to think that the supernatural is for fairy tales and that all of our time, energy, money, and resources are devoted to the pursuit of more stuff? Our cultural intersection requires a specific response, and Christians need to be equipped to resist the spirit of the world system as we engage the world God loves.

Here is a place to start preparing to engage well:

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Moral Relativism Leads to Absurd Conclusions

Moral relativism leaves us in the frustrating position of not being able to say that there is a moral difference between Adolph Hitler and Mother Teresa. The only way to do so would be to appeal to an external standard of morality. Yet, this is precisely what moral relativism denies. But surely such a conclusion is absurd. Mother Teresa lived to save lives; Hitler lived to destroy them. There are many reasons to reject moral relativism, but this is one of the most persuasive.

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Let’s Talk About Reality…Not Religion

Recently I had the honor and pleasure of speaking to the students at Summit Ministries worldview camp in TN. It was a blast! First it was so encouraging to meet young men and women excited about understanding, defending, and living out the Christian worldview. Second, this experience fires me up to keep doing what I am doing–the next generation needs to be encouraged and equipped to Think Christianly! (2 Tim. 2:2; Jude 3). They ARE the future.

In today’s post I want to share a conversation I had with some of the sharp young men during lunch. It had to do with how we talk about Christianity with our friends, family, and coworkers. Most of the time, well meaning Christians talk about Christianity in the context of religion…not reality. Is that a problem? Yes, and here’s why. Religion is understood as a personal and private feeling that is not accessible by everyone else. You can’t question, challenge, or investigate it; you must simply be tolerant of it (and by tolerant, I am using the modern misunderstanding of tolerance which believes that all religious views are equally valid simply because a person sincerely believes them). That’s why having a conversation about Christianity as a religion is a dead end. It’s a non-starter.

That’s why I encouraged these students to talk about Christianity in the context of reality where terms like truth, knowledge, reason, and evidence apply. Any claim about reality is either true or false (it can’t be both). If Christianity is not the kind of thing that can be true or false…the battle has already been lost and the Gospel cannot be seriously considered. We need to talk about Christianity in the same way we talk about having a prescription filled at the pharmacy or receiving instruction from a Doctor.

In today’s society, religion is a fuzzy (i.e., socially constructed or psychologically projected) category that makes little difference in everyday life. But if Christianity is true, then it speaks to ALL of life. It makes a comprehensive claim on reality. Jesus didn’t intend to merely address two hours of our week. As Christians we need to have more conversations about reality and less about religion.

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Knowledge isn’t that important…is it?

“People perish for lack of knowledge, because only knowledge permits assured access to reality; and reality does not adjust itself to accommodate our false beliefs, errors, or hesitations in action. Life demands a steady hand for good, and only knowledge supplies this. This is as true in the spiritual life as elsewhere.” – Dallas Willard

Not only is it critical to be able to ask and argue if Christianity is true but even more important is whether it can be known to be true.

Here’s a good place to start your search and learn how to make the case for the Christian worldview.

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Why Intellectual Virtues Are Important

One of the ways that we can increase the chances of forming true beliefs and arriving at knowledge is by pursuing intellectual virtues. An intellectual virtue is “a characteristic of a person who acts in a praise-worthy manner in the process of forming beliefs.” For example, James Beilby and David Clark describe the intellectual virtues of honesty and courage: “Being intellectually honest means making a fair appraisal of the evidence at hand, dedicating effort to reach valid conclusions, admitting personal biases that affect beliefs, and seeking to reduce those biases. In an intellectual context, courage involves, among other things, being willing to take the minority position when the evidence points in that direction. It also means investigating personally held beliefs with rigor” (Why Bother With Truth?). These virtues do not happen by accident, they are the result of forming healthy intellectual habits over time.

But the goal of knowledge is not just to accumulate data. The acquisition of knowledge should help us along the path of becoming virtuous people and flourishing as followers of Jesus Christ. Knowledge, over time and with effort, becomes understanding. Understanding then describes the growing integration of our fragmented knowledge into an increasingly coherent picture of God and our world. And as we grow in understanding, we have the opportunity to grow in wisdom as well, which is the skillful application of knowledge and understanding to life.

Solomon speaks of the blessing that accompanies this dynamic pursuit: “Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gains understanding” (Prov. 3:13; cf. 2:6). Knowledge is the crucial first step in this process. And as Christ-followers, we should remember that our actions flow out of what we truly believe (cf. Rom. 12:1–2).

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