Cultural Drift & Christian Response (Intro)

Red Skelton “All men make mistakes. Married men just find out about them sooner.”

Pastors find out out their mistakes pretty quick too, especially in this election season. And if some think that what we are about to talk about is a mistake, I’m sure I’ll hear about it. In fact, I already have been told by people outside our church that pastors should distance themselves from politics and worry about the ‘spiritual’ matters. But when politics interweave with morality, then I am COMPELLED to speak to it. And YOU should too.

I thought the last election was the most divisive ever, but 4 years later we’re in a deeper pile than ever before. We call our nation the United States of America, but it sure seems like we are the Divided States of America. Is it any wonder, as our culture continues to drift away from God, that it continues to drift away from what is good?

So what is the follower of Jesus to do? Today we start this teaching called “Cultural Drift & Christian Response”. It seems to me that we have 3 options in responding :

We could ISOLATE ourselves from our culture.

The culture wouldn’t pollute us, but neither would we influence people to follow Jesus. This seems pretty selfish and anti-Christian in light of how Christ lived.

We could COMPROMISE with our culture.

We can play church, cut free from biblical commands, and drift off with our culture. The end result? We might win some earthly friends while they - WE - face eternity without Christ. Why would they follow Jesus if WE don’t!? When the ship is in the ocean, everything is fine. When the ocean gets into the ship, you're in trouble. - Anonymous

Or we could chose to ENGAGE the culture.

We can live IN the culture, without allowing the culture to live in us. Instead of isolating or compromising, we will attempt to follow the example of Jesus & His disciples as we…

Engage Culture without being Entangled by Culture

Many secularists on the other hand, want Christians to stay out of politics or check their Biblical worldview at the door. Those who don’t live like God exists want US to buy into the false idea that Christians’ vote and voice must somehow dissect the sacred from the secular - that ancient texts like the Biblical Scriptures should never overrule modern contexts.

I always find it strange when the same people quote the Scriptures when they think it backs their worldview. BUT…when the Scriptures confront societal norms, then the Scriptures are considered antiquated - outdated.

And I don’t know if you hear it, but the beat of the drum is getting louder and louder, demeaning anyone who brings God into the politics; DEMANDING that people leave their spiritual beliefs & ‘bigotry’ at the door. “Don’t bring your religious ideas into our schools, courtrooms, or voting booths.”

BUT that presents a real problem, because that’s NOT what our Founding Fathers of this Democratic Republic thought, as evidenced by our 2 key founding documents.

First, the Declaration of Independence which explains WHY we exist as a nation & mentions God 4 times.

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

In short, the Declaration demonstrates that our American fathers believed human rights were determined by God & not by king or country.

The 2nd founding document is The Constitution of the United States.

While the Declaration explains WHY we exist, and the Constitution explains HOW we exist as a nation---how we are to function. The Constitution is built on the Declaration - so the 2 documents stand together. These laws don’t give instruction on HOW to worship God. In fact, The Constitution doesn’t mention God until the end of the contract where it unashamedly states:

“This was done in the Year of Our Lord 1787.”

Could they have simply written “1787”? Of course they could. Yet they didn’t. Instead, the Constitution is ratified in recognition that Jesus is Lord.

And 240 years later, the agenda to GUT the mention of God and His authority from our society steadily gains ground.

For example, Michael Newdow, the same activist attorney who tried to remove “under God” from the Pledge of Allegiance,

also argued in 2019 that “In God We Trust” on currency was a government endorsement of religion and a violation of the First Amendment and should be removed.

Thankfully, the Supreme Court refused to hear this foolishness. But our country continues to pander to those who want to remove God - the one whom our founders recognized is the One who gives us these rights.

The sad thing is, many of us feel like we have to stand idly by, believing we can’t make a difference. Others think that Christians shouldn’t be involved in politics at all. If so, then we leave our society to many who discount God’s authority and bow before the idol of mankind’s autonomy.

But we CAN make a difference and that’s why we MUST talk about The Cultural Drift & the Christian Response.

Today we will answer 3 questions:

Why Should a Christian vote? HOW should a Christian vote?How can Christians make a long-term difference?

PRAY

1) WHY should a Christian vote?

Exercise your right to decide the person & platform that represents us in government.

During New Testament times and beyond, Christians in the Roman Empire, were not able to vote for the next Emperor AKA - Caesar. If they could, I think many of them WOULD. But Roman citizens had tremendous rights.

And although the apostle Paul WAS Jewish, he was also a Roman citizen. And when he had a chance to exercise his rights, he did. After being beaten & imprisoned in Phillipi - a Roman province, Paul was going to be quietly released. Instead, look what Paul did.

Acts 16:37 (CSB) But Paul said to them, “They beat us in public without a trial, although we are Roman citizens, and threw us in jail. And now are they going to send us away secretly? Certainly not! On the contrary, let them come themselves and escort us out.”

What is Paul doing? He is exercising his rights as a Roman citizen.

Paul demanded - as a Roman citizen who had been unjustly punished - that his accusers apologize officially before releasing him (Acts 16:37–39); and they did!

Later Paul was once again in a tough situation, where many of his own Jewish people wanted to kill him in Jerusalem. The Roman authorities swooped down to quiet the riot, got Paul out and took him to interrogate him. And to make sure they got the truth from this Jew who likely wouldn’t tell them the truth, the Romans decided to whip Paul to explain why his own people wanted him dead.

Acts 22:25 As they stretched him out for the lash, Paul said to the centurion standing by, “Is it legal for you to scourge a man who is a Roman citizen and is uncondemned?”

When the commander found this out, there was great concern that they had treated a Roman citizen so poorly.

Acts 22:29 So those who were about to examine him withdrew from him immediately. The commander too was alarmed when he realized Paul was a Roman citizen and he had bound him.

What’s that have to do with a Christian Response to our nation’s cultural drift?

Paul didn’t just push away from the table, throw his hands in the air, & give up. He appreciated & applied the rights God had given him as a Roman citizen. And I think we should do the same…as citizens of the United States of America.

You see, unlike the early Christians, we have the privilege & responsibility to vote for the leaders who will represent us. And as citizens of the United States of America, Christians have the same freedom & privilege as those with opposing views, to determine the direction of our society.

Some Christians in our society are voting for the Democratic candidate & platform and some for the Republican candidate & platform.

Some Christians might choose to vote for a 3rd party candidate who has no reasonable chance to win, OR choose not to vote at all. YOU and you alone are responsible for how you vote. But if you choose NOT to vote, then please don’t complain about presidential policies enacted during the next 4 years.

While there are a lot of reasons why you should vote in this election, one concern seems to tower above many others: the continued possibility of more Supreme Court justices to be appointed by whoever becomes President.

Can you remember when the Supreme Court override states rights in a little legal battle called ROE V. WADE in 1973? The vote was 7-2 to allow human children to be killed in their mother’s wombs. We will talk about the abomination of abortion next week, so be prepared. Parents of young children should be prepared as we will show a brief video to describe what abortion really is.

And then you might remember how the Supreme Court, in June 2015, voted 5 to 4 to recognize same-sex marriage federally? 1 VOTE made the difference. At that time, the White House celebrated the decision and now we have to deal with all the mess that has followed and what will come in the future. We will talk about how Christians should respond to the LGBTQ+ agenda on Nov 15.

What’s next? I think it’s the 1st amendment, at least for those who stand voice their opposition to the cultural drift.

Amendment I

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Sadly, the Supreme Court now has virtually unchecked authority to determine the direction of our nation, so it is VITAL that these justices uphold constitutional & moral law. That will become more important in a the teachings to follow in the future weeks.

Why should a Christian vote? Exercise your right to decide the person & platform that represents us in government. That is our right in this great country, given to us by God.

2) HOW should a Christian vote?

What should be the deciding factor in how we vote?

CANDIDATE’S CHARACTER

Voting for a biblical CHRISTIAN would be wonderful, we don’t have that option with either candidates. Both candidates are, by my estimation, seriously lacking in character & integrity, and I’m not going to give any examples to demonstrate that because I think you’ve seen it on both sides. Certainly, neither has proven to be a mature Christian. Both these men have several strengths and glaring weaknesses. If you want to know their views go read their websites: JoeBiden.com or DonaldTrump.com PARTY’S

PARTY’S PLATFORM

Here’s what is sad - very few people have ever read what these political parties point to as being most important to them. Many people are IGNORANT of the party they so strongly support.

WE have copies of what we posted on Facebook yesterday

- a brief of some of the differences between the 2 major parties and what the candidates (Presidential) stand for and against. The differences seem clear. Further, go read the Democratic Platform - it’s 91 pages & Republican Platform is 54 pages, this paper helps contrast the differences.

Years ago TJ Green & I visited with an older gentleman who claimed to be a follower of Jesus. It was obvious that he was voting a different direction than we were voting. So I asked him a couple of questions that we will deal with in future weeks: “What do you think about abortion?” And “What do you think about homosexuality?” After hearing his response, I told him that that party he was voting for supported that. He thought I was lying! He was voting for the party he had always voted for, not realizing they left his moral standards in the dust long ago.

I challenge you to STOP WATCHING THE ADS AND YOUR FAVORITE NEWS AGENCY until AFTER you have READ BOTH PARTY PLATFORMS.

GOD’S GLORY

Christians should be much more committed to Jesus than any CANDIDATE & any PARTY. Are you best known as a Biden supporter, a Trump supporter, a Democrat, Republican, or Independent…OR are you known as a FOLLOWER OF JESUS? Our ultimate goal should be to honor the God who made us. LONG AFTER this election is over, and outside of unforeseen circumstances, 1 of these 2 be our President…but that man WON’T be our KING! If you claim to follow Jesus, everything you do, say, & think - including how you vote, should be for GOD’s GLORY.

And that leads us to our last question of the day…

3) How Can Christians Make a Real Difference?

Christians are called to make a MUCH greater difference than showing up to the ballot box every 4 years.

Jesus has called us to be salt and light in our culture, to influence others with our integrity to…

ENGAGE CULTURE WITHOUT BEING ENTANGLED BY CULTURE.

This is what Jesus did. He didn’t dodge people and ISOLATE Himself from people in the culture. He certainly didn’t COMPROMISE by applauding or participating in sin. He ENGAGED culture, treating many like Prisoners of War instead of enemies. He called those people to follow Him. And he did the same for us, saying…

John 8:12 [Jesus] …“I am the light of the world. Anyone who follows Me will never walk in the darkness but will have the light of life.”

WHAT! Jesus claims to be the light of the world! And those who follow Him, will never walk in darkness (sin, purposelessness), but in light (purity, purpose, & in HIM)!

Jesus calls His disciples to follow His lead, not to ISOLATE or COMPROMISE, but to ENGAGE and influence culture.

Matthew 5:13 You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt should lose its taste [lost its influence], how can it be made salty? It’s no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.

Salt influences what it touches. You wouldn’t put salt on your food if it made no difference. If you pour a pile of salt and it doesn't change the flavor you either have a medical problem OR it’s not really salt. It is said that it is scientifically impossible for salt to become flavorless. But it seems that the ancient world often mixed impure substances with salt to make it go further, and diluted it’s influence. is that what we are doing? Compromising? And diluting our influence?

Adrian Rogers “The problem is not with Hollywood, the pornographers, the liquor dealers, the politicians and the theological liberals. The problem in this auditorium today -

saltless Christians.”

Are we being the INFLUENCE that Jesus wants us to be OR have we have ISOLATED ourselves from culture? Or maybe we have COMPROMISED with culture and have nothing to offer them. If there’s no difference, you won’t make a difference.

Jesus expected His disciples to influence the culture rather than compromise with the culture. They were to think differently, act differently, & REact differently. They were to…

ENGAGE CULTURE WITHOUT BEING ENTANGLED BY CULTURE.

Teenagers - how are you influencing your peers, your siblings?

Adults - how are you influencing your spouse, children, grandchildren, co-workers?

Is there anything that DILUTES your influence? (Language, impurity, treatment of others?)

Jesus isn’t done. The One who called Himself the “Light of the world” calls His followers to take HIM to the culture.

Matthew 5:14–16 14 “You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house.

16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

Don’t ISOLATE yourself.

YOU ARE THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD. We are the plan God has to influence our culture.

ENGAGE CULTURE WITHOUT BEING ENTANGLED BY CULTURE.

This is what many of the 2nd generation Christians did, with no right to vote, and often severely persecuted. Yet over several generations, the Roman Empire was deeply impacted by the message of Jesus. You might remember as we have mentioned how…

In A.D. 112 Pliny, a Roman governor, wrote to Emperor Trajan to see how to deal with the Christians (2nd generation of Christians) in his region. Pliny noticed that the Christian influence caused many of the pagan temples to become nearly deserted, severely impacting businesses that profited from selling idols and sacrifices, influencing the culture to turn from false gods to the one true God, Pliny writes:

"They (the Christians) were in the habit of meeting on a certain fixed day before it was light, when they sang in alternate verses a hymn to Christ, as to a god, and bound themselves by a solemn oath, not to any wicked deeds, but never to commit any fraud, theft or adultery, never to falsify their word, nor deny a trust when they should be called upon to deliver it up.”

Can you imagine US making those promises to one another before we leave this place to go to care for and influence our culture for Jesus!

The early Christians didn’t leave their faith in their homes, even when facing persecution, and we shouldn’t either. They were engaging and permeating their culture.

Oh that WE would see the same thing happen in our country, that Jesus would permeate our culture...THROUGH US. Oh that His Presence would be obvious in among our churches, our homes, our work environments, and our community involvement.

“YOU are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world.”

Turn to someone and remind them. WE are God’s plan to influence our culture. And LONG after this election is over…followers of Jesus are to continue to do what Jesus did…

ENGAGE CULTURE WITHOUT BEING ENTANGLED BY CULTURE.

PRAY God, what do YOU want me to do with what I heard today?

Do you need to talk to someone?

STAFF &

DEACONS #s

Please remember to give us your nominations for DEACONS & Church Council. Leave them here on the corner of the stage.

Trunk or Treat this Saturday 6=8. Cars be here by 5:15.

Christmas shoeboxes are due by November 1