“If chance be the Father of all flesh,
disaster is his rainbow in the sky…”
(Steve Turner)
Please share your insights by commenting below this post.
The darkness and chaos in our nation is a direct result of an ill-equipped and disengaged church.
I’m preaching to myself here as well.
In order understand how the church must respond to the spirit of the age (zeitgeist), we must understand what our culture worships. What is the creed of our nation?
British journalist and author, Steve Turner captures our American cultural moment with great precision and masterful wit. He diagnoses the problem. Read it and reflect on it…
“Creed” by Steve Turner
“We believe in Marxfreudanddarwin
We believe everything is OK
as long as you don’t hurt anyone
to the best of your definition of hurt,
and to the best of your knowledge.
We believe in sex before, during, and
after marriage.
We believe in the therapy of sin.
We believe that adultery is fun.
We believe that sodomy’s OK.
We believe that taboos are taboo.
We believe that everything’s getting better
despite evidence to the contrary.
The evidence must be investigated
and you can prove anything with evidence.
We believe there’s something in horoscopes
UFO’s and bent spoons.
Jesus was a good man just like Buddha,
Mohammed, and ourselves.
He was a good moral teacher though we think
His good morals were bad.
We believe that all religions are basically the same-
at least the one that we read was.
They all believe in love and goodness.
They only differ on matters of creation, sin, heaven, hell, God, and salvation.
We believe that after death comes the Nothing
Because when you ask the dead what happens they say nothing.
If death is not the end, if the dead have lied, then its compulsory heaven for all
excepting perhaps Hitler, Stalin, and Genghis Kahn
We believe in Masters and Johnson
What’s selected is average.
What’s average is normal.
What’s normal is good.
We believe in total disarmament.
We believe there are direct links between warfare and bloodshed.
Americans should beat their guns into tractors.
And the Russians would be sure to follow.
We believe that man is essentially good.
It’s only his behavior that lets him down.
This is the fault of society.
Society is the fault of conditions.
Conditions are the fault of society.
We believe that each man must find the truth that
is right for him. Reality will adapt accordingly.
The universe will readjust. History will alter.
We believe that there is no absolute truth excepting the truth
that there is no absolute truth.
We believe in the rejection of creeds,
and the flowering of individual thought.
If chance be the Father of all flesh,
disaster is his rainbow in the sky
and when you hear…..
State of Emergency!
Sniper Kills Ten!
Troops on Rampage!
Whites go Looting!
Bomb Blasts School!
It is but the sound of man worshipping his maker.”
Turner’s insights are staggering.
It has been said, “the church is the conscience of a nation.”
I would add the church is also the immune system of a nation. It is time for the Church to emerge from our tin-pot little kingdoms and shine like lights in a cruel, lost, and crooked generation. We are to be salt and light. We are to proclaim the good news of the Gospel of the Kingdom. Jesus died, was buried, and rose from the dead conquering sin and death, winning a people (a bride) of His own. He will return. Therefore, we command people of all nations to repent and believe, lest they remain under God’s wrath. Our private faith must be transformed into a public proclamation and public witness in every facet of life and every sphere of human activity. Because Christ is risen and He is Lord over all.
The Church must return to our ancient creeds. They are all founded on the powerful truth, “Jesus Christ is Lord.”
Nicene Creed
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-begotten Son of God, begotten of His Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made; Who, for us men and for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge both the living and the dead; Whose kingdom shall have no end.
And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of Life; who proceeds from the Father and the Son; who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified; who spoke by the prophets. And we believe in one holy catholic (1) and apostolic church. We acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; and we look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.
(1) The word “catholic” refers to the universal church.
He who has ears, let him hear!
Please share your insights by commenting below this post.
Now more than ever, worldview training is essential. It is not a Christian elective. I launched the Forge Room Foundation in order to equip Christians to understand our cultural moment and respond with a biblical worldview perspective.
Lance,
I once talked with Bilkas Sheik, a Christian refuge from Pakistan who wrote “I Dared to Call Him Father” We had a friend whose sister was converting to Islam and I asked Bilkas Sheik why would an American convert to Islam? Her answer was short: “Because Christians don’t live what they claim to believe.”
Bob, thanks for sharing this story. That is very interesting. I agree with Mr. Sheik, Christians do not live according to a biblical worldview, particularly in America. One thing can be said for the the majority of Muslims, they live according to their beliefs. Islam is a life system and comprehensive worldview and they live according to it, making them distinct. That does not mean to say their religion is right. But, this begs the question, “What if American Christians lived according to our profession, convictions, and biblical worldview like the Muslims live according to their’s?” I believe we would be a different nation indeed. Thank you for sharing your thought-provoking insights.
Blessings!