Assimilate or Abide?

Manuscript Template

Title:  Assimilate or Abide? / Evolve or Endure?

When should the church adapt to the changing culture and when should the church stand apart?

Focus Statement:  

We are called to critically adapt cultural forms that serve the church's missional purpose without compromising its core beliefs

We need to analyze and use cultural elements that do not contradict biblical teachings to help people within today’s culture understand the gospel message

Function Statement:  

Where have you ran away from God and toward culture that you need to repent of?

Tweetable Phrase:  

Main Text:  1 Corinthians 9:19-23

Supporting Text:  Numbers 22-24, Hosea 1-14

Redemptive Closure (point to Jesus):  Matthew 5:13-16

Benediction:  Matthew 7:13-14

Questions to Review

Is the bottom line clear? Main point should be able to be said in a single sentence.

What’s the opening line? Not hello, start with a question or something to grab attention.

Is the transition from the introduction to main point clear?

What’s my main point? Make it short and memorable

Does it matter? Is the topic relevant to the congregation?

Where is the power in the text? What word or phrase highlights the tension?

How am I moving toward application?

What is my main to-do (application)? Be specific.

What does it matter? The WHY creates urgency.

How am I closing? Have a plan.

WELCOME

Good morning!!! My name is Ryan Hanson and I have the honor of serving here at The Light KC as the lead pastor. I’m so glad you’re here with us.

‌Welcome to those joining us online. We hope you're doing well and hope to see you in person in the coming weeks.

And a special welcome to those joining us for the first time. We’re so glad you chose to be here and can’t wait to get to know you better.

ME/INTRO - Tension

I want to start today by saying THANK YOU.

THANK YOU to everyone who covered for me last week when I went back to Michigan to spend the week with family, celebrate the end of school for the kids, and celebrate my mother in law’s 75th birthday. A special thanks to Michael who delivered a fantastic message of God’s loving kindness that blessed me as I listened to it on Sunday. Thank you!!!

...

Well as you saw from today’s bumper, we’re starting a new series today, and I am very excited about it. We have been collecting your spiritual / faith questions for the last month or so and as the bumper said, over the next 6 weeks, we’re not going to hold any punches. We’re not editing any of the questions. We’re going to do our best to prayerfully answer each of the questions with unfiltered Biblical truth.

To be honest, each week the salsa on those nuggets is going to get hotter (Irma made sure of that!!!) and the questions are going to get more difficult. I promise to do my best to be as true to the Bible as I can be. I commit to prayerfully walking through this series, doing everything I can to remove any personal opinions from the messages and stick as close to the truth of God’s word as I can.

I know summers are hard to attend every week, but I hope you do everything you can to either attend or follow along online.

We just voted on our church values to spell the word FAMILY and the next 6 weeks will be our version of a FAMILY meeting, attacking hard topics head on, and being a community that doesn’t avoid uncomfortable conversations.

This is also a great series to invite someone in your life that doesn’t go to church, but has questions.

I’m excited and hope you join us for what God has for us.

WE - Tension

Here we go!!!

One of the most common questions I get asked is why there are so many different denominations within the protestant church. This isn’t the main question this week, but I think quickly answering this will lay the foundation for the main question we’re going to tackle.

Currently there are between 45,000 and 47,000 protestant denominations. To quickly answer the question of how we (as the Church) got to this point, I think we can follow our branch of the church’s family tree that leads to our denomination; the Wesleyan Church.

Catholic to Eastern Orthodox

When the church was formalized within the Roman Empire it was a single united church. There was only the Catholic church.

That all changed when the Eastern Orthodox split off due to a change in the wording within the Nicene Creed.

You may not be familiar with the Nicene Creed, but The Nicene Creed is a foundational statement of Christian faith, established in the 4th century, it articulates the Church’s belief in the Trinity and the nature of Christ.

In 1054, the Catholic church added a phrase to the Nicene Creed called the filioque. Along with the Pope claiming universal authority, the Catholic church split. The Eastern Orthodox church was birthed in what is called the Great Schism.

Very quickly if you haven’t heard the Nicene Creed, it is worth at least being exposed to it. I’ve highlighted the Filioque that split the church in 1054.

We believe in one God,

   the Father almighty,

   maker of heaven and earth,

   of all things visible and invisible.

And in one Lord Jesus Christ,

   the only Son of God,

   begotten from the Father before all ages,

      God from God,

      Light from Light,

      true God from true God,

   begotten, not made;

   of the same essence as the Father.

   Through him all things were made.

   For us and for our salvation

      he came down from heaven;

      he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary,

      and was made human.

      He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate;

      he suffered and was buried.

      The third day he rose again, according to the Scriptures.

      He ascended to heaven

      and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

      He will come again with glory

      to judge the living and the dead.

      His kingdom will never end.

And we believe in the Holy Spirit,

   the Lord, the giver of life.

   He proceeds from the Father and the Son,

   and with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified.

   He spoke through the prophets.

   We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church.

   We affirm one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.

   We look forward to the resurrection of the dead,

   and to life in the world to come. Amen.

The Catholic Church split 700 years after it was formed because of three words, and the theological dispute surrounding the Holy Spirit.

But… this wasn’t the only split the Catholic Church has endured.

Catholic to Lutheran

In 1517, Martin Luther had some issues with the Catholic church and posted them very publicly on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenburg. These issues have become known as the 95 Thesis.

These 95 Thesis can be summed up within 5 broad categories

Indulgences are not a guaranteed path to salvation

The Pope does not have the authority to forgive sins

True repentance is a process of contrition and faith

The Bible is the ultimate authority in Christian faith

Sins are forgiven through faith in Christ alone

At that time the Catholic church has started adopting beliefs and practices that were not found in the Bible. The church stated selling indulgences. Essentially the church was allowing people to pay the church to reduce the punishment for the sins they committed. The church also guaranteed salvation for anyone who fought and died in the crusades, along with anyone who financially supported that crusader.

Not believing that buying salvation or paying for the reduction of punishment for sins was biblical, the Lutheran Church was birthed. This was another split in the church based on a theological dispute.

But not all splits in the church were based on theological disputes.

Catholic to Anglican

In 1527, England’s King Henry VIII requested an annulment of his marriage, but Pope Clement VII refused. In response, the English Parliament passed laws abolishing papal authority in England, declared Henry VIII to be head of the Church of England, and the Anglican Church was born.

The split here was not driven by a theological dispute, but by changes in societal values. In this case the topic of divorce.

But...less than 200 years later, the Anglican church split.

Anglican to Methodist

In the 1700’s, John Wesley founded the Methodist movement within the Anglican Church. His intention was to reform the areas of the Anglican Church that he felt strayed from the teachings within the Bible.

He preached an evangelical message, emphasizing personal salvation and a call to personal holiness and living our your faith.

He never intended to split from the Anglican church, but reform it.

After Wesley's death, some English Methodists, facing limitations from the Anglican Church’s structure and practices, began to establish their own independent congregations, and the Methodist church was formed.

This was another split in the church due to a Theological Dispute.

Is faith something you believe or is faith something you live?

But...the Methodist church only lasted 150 years before it split.

Methodist to Wesleyan

The Wesleyan Church split from the Methodist Church in 1843, primarily due to differences in views on slavery and power of bishops within the church. The Wesleyan Church opposed slavery, while the bishops within the Methodist Church initially tolerated it.

The split here was not driven by a theological dispute, but by changes in societal values. In this case it was how to handle the political topic of slavery within the United States.

United Methodist to Global Methodist

The splits within the church continue to this day.

We’re in the middle of a significant increase in church splits due to the current cultural topic of same sex marriage.

After the United Methodist Church voted to affirm LGBTQ values, allow gay pastors and conduct same sex marriages, the church split in 2024. 7500 churches have left the denomination, many joining together to form the Global Methodist Church, standing firm to the belief that marriage is between 1 man and 1 woman.

The split here, again, was not driven by a theological dispute, but by changes in societal values. In this case it was how to handle the changing societal values surrounding same sex relationships.

I go through all this to make the point. Some denominations were formed because the church had followed the changing cultural values and strayed from the biblical teaching and people left to form new denominations to say true to the bible. Other denominations are formed because the church is staying true to the bible and people left to follow those changing societal values.

That is the scenic way to get to today’s HOT ONE’s QUESTION.

When should the church adapt to the changing culture and when should the church stand apart?

I’m calling this sermon “Assimilate or Abide?” because that is really the question we all have to answer every day.

Are we going to assimilate to what culture currently values?

Or, are we going to abide in the teachings given to us by God through the Bible and the promptings of the Holy Spirit independent of what culture determines to be acceptable?

Or, is there a place for both, depending on the situation?

To answer this week’s question, please turn with me to [1 Corinthians 9:19-23]

We’ll have the scripture on the screen, but if you have a Bible with you, or Bible app on your phone, I’d encourage you to turn to the passage and follow along. There is nothing that replaces having God’s word in your hand.

AND...if you don’t have a Bible, we have Bibles under the seats. If you don’t have a bible and would like one, please come see me after the service and I’ll get you one you can keep.

Let’s dive in.

GOD - Text

Paul - I become all things to all people to win those to belief in Jesus

I want to start to answer the question of when to conform to the changes within society and when to hold fast with a passage from 1 Corinthians 9. In it, Paul describes his philosophy of evangelism.

1 Corinthians 9:19–23 NIV

19 Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 20 To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. 21 To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. 23 I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.

It is easy to read this and think Paul had a “ends justify the means” philosophy of evangelism. It sounds a lot like “I do whatever it takes as long as I win people to Jesus”.

Reading all the commentaries on this verse, I don’t think that is what is going on here. Paul is adjusting how he acts depending on what is culturally acceptable wherever he happens to be. That being said, as you read through all the writing of Paul, he never wavered from following God’s law.

Paul held true to the non-negotiables of the Biblical values, but was very open to adjusting how he acted within a given culture when it came to the negotiable cultural value.

Paul didn’t sin to bring people to faith, he just adjusted his presentation to ensure that it was as impactful as possible to those he was preaching to.

What do you need to change about what you do to reach the people within your sphere’s of influence who don’t know Jesus?

Balaam - No matter how strong the pull is, we cannot disobey God’s direction, commands

I think we have to be honest, that sometimes it is not easy to discern between the non-negotiable biblical values and the negotiable culture values.

Sometimes it feels like you’re walking a find line and it’s hard to know what side of the line you’re on.

I think that is where I find great comfort in the story of Balaam.

If you’re not familiar with the story, Balaam was a prophet who was asked to curse the Israelite people for the king of Moab.

Let’s pick up the story in Numbers 22:8.

Numbers 22:8–20 NIV

8 “Spend the night here,” Balaam said to them, “and I will report back to you with the answer the Lord gives me.” So the Moabite officials stayed with him. 9 God came to Balaam and asked, “Who are these men with you?” 10 Balaam said to God, “Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab, sent me this message: 11 ‘A people that has come out of Egypt covers the face of the land. Now come and put a curse on them for me. Perhaps then I will be able to fight them and drive them away.’ ” 12 But God said to Balaam, “Do not go with them. You must not put a curse on those people, because they are blessed.” 13 The next morning Balaam got up and said to Balak’s officials, “Go back to your own country, for the Lord has refused to let me go with you.” 14 So the Moabite officials returned to Balak and said, “Balaam refused to come with us.” 15 Then Balak sent other officials, more numerous and more distinguished than the first. 16 They came to Balaam and said: “This is what Balak son of Zippor says: Do not let anything keep you from coming to me, 17 because I will reward you handsomely and do whatever you say. Come and put a curse on these people for me.” 18 But Balaam answered them, “Even if Balak gave me all the silver and gold in his palace, I could not do anything great or small to go beyond the command of the Lord my God. 19 Now spend the night here so that I can find out what else the Lord will tell me.” 20 That night God came to Balaam and said, “Since these men have come to summon you, go with them, but do only what I tell you.”

Who can relate to Balaam in this story?

We try to do what is right, but life keeps poking at us. The temptations of life and culture just keep coming.

Balaam messed up. Instead of just sending them off the second time, he said he would go back to God and try to get God to reconsider His original answer.

Who are we giving your attention to that we should have already sent away?

What are we asking God for permission to do that He has already said “no” to?

The saddest part of this passage for me is that God let Balaam go with the Moabites. God let Balaam do what he clearly wanted to do. Balaam kept listening to the Moabites, God let him walk a dangerous path?

What dangerous paths are we walking right now?

The story continues with Balaam riding his donkey following the Moabites. God was not at all pleased that Balaam actually went with the Moabites and sent an Angel to block his path. Balaam’s donkey saw the angel and kept walking off the path. Mad at the donkey Balaam beat it to get it to continue down the path.

Let’s pick up the story in Numbers 22:31.

Numbers 22:31–32 NIV

31 Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell facedown. 32 The angel of the Lord asked him, “Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? I have come here to oppose you because your path is a reckless one before me.

Isn’t this our nature though?

We want to walk right up the line just to make sure we aren’t missing anything good.

But the Bible clearly states in multiple places that we are to “flee from temptations”. We are called to run from anything that can even tempt us to sin, not see how close we can get to the line without crossing it.

So, I ask you, is the path you’re walking in your life reckless?

Where in your life do you need to follow the lead of Balaam’s donkey and flee from the path you’re walking?

In the end, Balaam continued to follow the Moabites, three times asked God if he could curse the Israelites, but listened to God and never did. He blessed them instead.

The story ends in Numbers 24.

Numbers 24:13 NIV

13 ‘Even if Balak gave me all the silver and gold in his palace, I could not do anything of my own accord, good or bad, to go beyond the command of the Lord—and I must say only what the Lord says’?

In the end Balaam, did the right thing, but walked a very dangerous road.

When we’re faced with the decision between doing what culture is tempting us to do and staying true to the biblical values, we need to be careful. Even when it is unclear if the cultural pull is wrong or not, it is always better to error on the side of caution and stick to the biblical teachings.

Hosea / Gomer - God doesn’t give up on us. He loves us and when we get off course, He lovingly guides us back

I think we have to acknowledge that we won’t be perfect at discerning what is a non-negotiable biblical value and what is a negotiable cultural value.

At times we will make mistakes. We’ll think we’re following Paul’s example, adjusting how we present the gospel to reach someone for Jesus, but really compromising more than we should and walking into sin.

I think the story of Hosea and Gomer can provide some guidance for us.

Michael mentioned this story last week and I thought it may serve us well within the context of this week’s question to dive a little deeper into this story.

The book of Hosea is a 14 chapter book that details the life of Hosea.

Hosea was a prophet that God asked to marry and have children with an unfaithful woman who would leave him and cheat on him multiple times. God would call Hosea to go after her and love her well, even though she left and cheated on him.

God uses Hosea’s life to parallel the relationship between Himself and Israel. Israel being the wife that leaves, cheats, and continues to be unfaithful to God.

God describes Israel in Hosea 6:4.

Hosea 6:4 NIV

“What can I do with you, Ephraim? What can I do with you, Judah? Your love is like the morning mist, like the early dew that disappears.

This is a terribly sad way for God to describe His people, but...

How often do we do the same thing?

How often do we feel the conviction of the Holy Spirit to do something for someone else or to change something about ourselves, only to get distracted and never follow through on that conviction?

Can your love for God be described as a morning mist that quickly disappears?

I don’t know how it is for you, but for me, the problem typically comes down to pride.

Hosea 10:13 NIV

But you have planted wickedness, you have reaped evil, you have eaten the fruit of deception. Because you have depended on your own strength and on your many warriors,

Just like the Israelites, I default to “I’ll figure it out” mode. I depend on my strength far too often and dig holes far deeper than I need to, before I can accept that I need help.

Anyone with me?

I don’t seek God’s guidance early enough when trying to find the balance between God and culture.

I think it has to do with a faulty understanding of who God is.

God describes himself in Hosea 11. He says.

Hosea 11:1–4 NIV

1 “When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son. 2 But the more they were called, the more they went away from me. They sacrificed to the Baals and they burned incense to images. 3 It was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by the arms; but they did not realize it was I who healed them. 4 I led them with cords of human kindness, with ties of love. To them I was like one who lifts a little child to the cheek, and I bent down to feed them.

Like an obstinate child, I want to do everything myself and take credit for things I have nothing to do with.

But it is God who was there for me all along.

How many of us don’t slow down and take the time to realize that it is God who loves us, guides us, helps us, and forgives us when we get off course?

So, when we have a decision to make between assimilating to culture to win someone for Jesus, or abiding in the teaching of the bible, living contrary to the direction culture is going, we need to do everything we can to discern God’s will, listening to His voice, and do what He directs. When we get off course, we need to repent, turn back to the path God points us to, and seek His forgiveness.

YOU - Takeaway

So, who in your life has God placed there for you to witness to? How do you need to adjust your presentation to better communicate the love of Jesus, while staying true to the teachings and values within the bible?

Where have you allowed yourself to get tempted to the draw of culture, walking right up to the line of sin like Balaam? What do you need to flee from today?

Where have you been like Gomer or Israel and given into the lies of culture, compromising the biblical values you’ve chosen to live by, seduced by the promises of more, forgetting that all along it was God providing all the blessings you’ve enjoyed? What do you need to repent of today?

WE / JESUS - Redemptive Close - Call to Action

The balance between assimilating to culture to better communicate the gospel and standing against culture when it conflicts with God’s values, is hard to find.

Jesus gives us the balance when He teaches that we are called to be salt and light

Matthew 5:13–16 NIV

13 “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. 14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 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. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

We are to be salt. Just like salt is added to food to draw out the best flavor, we are called to be in culture to draw out God honoring aspects of it.

We are to be light. Just like a lighthouse warns ships of the dangers of the rocks and points them to safety, we are to warn non-believers of the dangers of living a life without God and point them to the best life, a life following Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

If I was to answer the question, “When should the church adapt to the changing culture and when should the church stand apart?” as succinctly as I can, I would do so as follows.

We need to evaluate and use cultural elements that do not contradict biblical teachings to help people within today’s culture understand the gospel message

PRAYER 

Will you join me in prayer...

SONG 

As we enter into our final song, I want to open the steps up front as an altar to anyone who needs God this week. The steps are open for you to pray to the God who is with you, who loves you, you wants to give you His peace.

‌

You may feel a hand on your shoulder as I or one of the elders join you in prayer.

BENEDICTION 

Matthew 7:13–14 NIV

13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

This week...let’s engage with culture like Paul did. Evaluating and using the changing cultural values to spread the good news of Jesus as effectively as we can. But...let’s be careful not to walk right up to the line of sin like Balaam. Instead, when we feel the convicting voice of the Holy Spirit warning us, let’s flee from sin as quickly as we can. But if we mess up, let’s remember (like Hosea and Gomer) that God loves us, chases after us, and wants to forgive us.

Let’s go out this week and be salt, drawing out the God honoring aspects of culture.

Let’s go out this week and be light, warning others of the danger of sin, and pointing them to the only one who can truly save; Jesus.

Quick reminder...

Rooted starts this Wednesday at 6:00 PM in the cafe. I encourage you all to come. I’ve heard many of you ask for more discipleship opportunities. This is a great one. It is also a great opportunity to invite friends who may be open to the gospel, but not to coming to a Sunday service.

Time Change July 6th to 10 AM

If you’re new, please stop by our info desk, or see me. We’d love to say “hi” and get you know you a bit better.

I hope you have a great week.

Go in peace.

You are dismissed.

DISCIPLESHIP QUESTIONS (download into APP)

How can we discern between cultural values and biblical teachings in our everyday lives?

In what ways can you be salt and light to your friends while staying true to your faith?

What specific changes do you need to make in your life to better reflect the teachings of the Bible?

Are there influences in your life that you need to distance yourself from to maintain your spiritual integrity?

What does it mean for you personally to repent of cultural influences that lead you away from God?