I have been hearing a lot lately of the church needing to be more “relevant” in sharing the gospel with the world. I think I understand that the sentiment is coming from the idea that people are just sitting around in their churches enjoying their pot lucks and not trying to share the gospel with other people they normally wouldn’t come across. I would partially agree with this thought, but it seems like it is becoming more of a mantra than a legitimate concern. Trust me, although I love to digest the meat of God’s Word, and hear verse-by-verse sermons, and enjoy reading books on doctrine and church history, I have a passion for obeying the Great Commission. I am a leader in my church’s evangelism efforts and have spent time on the streets “meeting people where they are at” to try and share the gospel. However, I have a couple of concerns about this push to be “relevant.”
My first issue is that the gospel is already relevant to every culture. There is no need to make any adjustments for the listener beyond speaking in the same language as they do; and as far as I can tell, the majority in the United States already knows English.
This video clip from a John Piper sermon explains better the point I am trying to make. We were all born sinners who offend God with everything we do, but God came to earth as a human to redeem us from our fallen condition by dying on the cross and rising from the grave. How is that not already relevant? Everyone in every culture is a sinner. Everyone in every culture can be saved.
Another thing that caught my attention with the push for relevancy is the language calling us to “change lives” or “have an impact on the culture.” We aren’t called simply to do these things, but to faithfully preach the Word of God and be living proof of transformation by God’s Holy Spirit, which as a result by God’s blessing will change lives and cultures. Noah preached for a hundred years and didn’t have any positive impact on the culture. Not one person responded positively to his preaching; but he was faithful. Many of the Old Testament prophets lost more followers because of their faithful preaching than they gained. Stephen wasn’t fortunate enough to see lives changed by his preaching when he was stoned to death from his refusal to preach the hard truth to a stiff-necked people. It doesn’t matter how “relevant” you are, there will always be hard-hearted people who hate you because of the message you carry.
My last concern is that in an effort to be relevant, we accommodate the culture more than expecting them to have their minds transformed. The church, instead of being a place of worship for people from every culture, becomes an evangelism tool focused on a sub-culture. We have “relevant music” that the target audience will be comfortable with. We preach “relevant sermons” that sound like self-help guides on how to love Jesus but still be cool. Our first goal of sermons should be to understand what is says, to whom it was written, why it was written, who wrote it, and how it compares to other scriptures. Our last step should be how it applies to my life, but the trend to be relevant seems to put the life application first in the steps of biblical interpretation. If we want to see lives changed, we need to preach God’s coming kingdom an alternative to the culture, not something to be added to an existing lifestyle.
How do we reach the culture with the message of repentance and faith in Jesus Christ? Go to work, meet some people, and tell them about Jesus as you evidence your faith by being a kind, dedicated employee. Go to the gym, meet some people, and tell them about Jesus as you evidence your faith by controlling your pride in taking part in a delightful competition. Go to the mall, meet some people, and tell them about Jesus as you evidence your faith by displaying your commitment to modesty and purity in the things you purchase. Go to the homeless shelter, meet some people, and tell them about Jesus as you evidence your faith by sacrificing your time and money to help a person in need. Go to your family gatherings, and tell them about Jesus as you evidence your faith by your love for them, joy in all situations, peace in your difficulties, patience through trials, gentleness with the truth, goodness in your deeds, faith in His promises, meekness in sharing, and self-control. We make too much of culture differences. There have always been separate sub-cultures, and the beauty of God’s Word is that it applies to all nations. So let’s get out there and share it with them.
I don’t mean to come across as overly critical or hateful in any manner. This is not an attack on anyone, but more of a plea for right understanding and right motives, and a request for guidance in my efforts. I have a passion for both a deep understanding of God’s Word and a desire to share Christ’s transformation of my life with everyone I have met and will meet; and I fall short on both of them way too often. As a newer believer (~4 years) I know I have a lot of growing to do and am willing to accept correction from wherever it may come, and I simply want to make sure my efforts and those of my own church are grounded in Scripture and solely for God’s glory. Please share with me any misunderstandings I may have presented or ideas we can use to be more effective at preaching the Word to a lost world and teaching new believers how to grow in Christ. Soli Deo Gloria!
