Beyond Ideologies

Michael Craven Michael Craven's weblog
Published Oct 24, 2005

There are days when the troubles of this world can be utterly overwhelming. Almost everyday I am confronted by the latest glaring evidence of our cultural descent, the growing lack of civility, the celebration of immorality, the increasing indifference or outright cruelty with which we view human life, and the general apathy toward neighbor, community and society. Admittedly these conditions can cause one to become angry toward those who willingly contribute to this current of contemporary thinking.

In addition there is the apparently ever-expanding influence of every form of philosophy and ideology that opposes the Christian life and world view while the Church seems to be more and more inwardly focused. I grieve as I read or hear about the endless personal suffering both here and around the world. Almost daily I meet someone who is personally struggling with this or that or suffering from severe loss and devastating heartbreak. In general the world is groaning and I have to stop and reflect upon what I am doing. Does my work matter? Of course, when I ask this question I do so from a purely selfish standpoint and this is when I have to pause and reflect upon precisely what it is that I am doing and for whom?

One of the unfortunate risks associated with speaking apologetically is that you can begin think that the Kingdom of God will advance on the weight of intellectual arguments. Scripture clearly teaches that we are to "be prepared to give answer for the hope that lies within us" however, I must continually be reminded of Christ's commandment to love my neighbor. If this genuine love of neighbor is not at the heart of my apologetic efforts then I am nothing more than a "clanging cymbal" - basically nothing more than an animated noise maker!

I have to look beyond the ideology or philosophy to see the person - a person made in the image of God; a person for whom Christ died; a person, who from the Christian perspective is utterly lost. I confess that I do not always do this well and I sometimes err on the side of argument and not love.

As I speak to Christian audiences around the country I am often asked for "effective arguments" that may refute this particular philosophy or that mindset which stands in opposition to the reception of the Gospel. These are well-intended Christians who are earnestly trying to equip themselves in order to present the most effective testimony. However, I sometimes sense that we may be more interested in merely winning arguments and this I do not want to contribute to.

The beginning of our apologetic arguments and philosophical discourse must include an equal, if not greater, commitment to forming and/or preserving a sincere and meaningful relationship with that person. Granted this is not always easy; it can be very difficult to be in real relationship with a person who opposes everything that you believe but this, nonetheless, is what we are called to do. This is the measure of one's love for his or her neighbor; are we [am I] willing to endeavor through all of the challenges, disagreements and difficulties for the sake of an immortal soul? Doesn't this require that I stop thinking of myself and instead think of others, allowing Christ His proper position in my life as Lord and King? Aren't we called to present our bodies, the entirety of our being, as living sacrifices? Yes, I am. Let's face it this is where it gets tough to follow Christ - into those places and among those people that may not readily accept what we believe or what we say.

Beyond every ideology, every world view is a person who ultimately desires the same thing that we all desire - to be accepted and loved. This is the great tragedy that flows from sin: broken fellowship - broken fellowship with God and with each other. In fact, it may be possible to attribute every aspect of human suffering in the world to broken fellowship. We suffer from our severed relationship with God and this has eternal consequences but we also suffer temporally as a result of imperfect and broken fellowship with our parents, children, friends and neighbors. So much suffering in the world can be traced to a lack of love for one another.

It is this condition that Christ came to remedy and thus to restore us to proper fellowship with God as well as each other. It is this reconciliation of humanity to God and humanity to each other that Christians must demonstrate to the world. This means that we genuinely seek to love people unreservedly and without conditions. Unfortunately, I think too often Christians confuse acceptance with approval and therefore avoid altogether those with whom they disagree both in and outside of the Church.

My dear friend, Dr. John Armstrong of Reformation & Revival Ministries recently wrote a compelling article that offers tremendous clarity in this area. John writes, "For some time I have thought that we Christians confuse giving approval to people, and their mistaken religious notions and ungodly lifestyles, with freely loving and accepting people as our neighbors and friends." John recalls for us the Pharisees who "were very conservative in both their doctrinal beliefs and their practice." But as John points out, "Their response to others is plainly pictured in the parable of the Good Samaritan, where they passed by a beaten and dying man without getting involved, lest they approve his lifestyle and religion." John comments that, "The problem with the Pharisees is one all too common among many conservative Christians today. The desire to stand for the truth, to reject ungodliness in both religious doctrine and practice, leads them to confuse the acceptance of people with the approval of their beliefs and actions." How tragic.

I will continue to seek knowledge and understanding in an effort to grow in my relationship with the Lord and to be a compelling witness for the Gospel, but above all I pray that my desire for knowledge never exceeds my desire to demonstrate the love of Christ to my neighbor. It is with the overwhelming love of Christ that we must engage the culture and look beyond ideologies to first see the person that God in His providence has placed in our path. May we love those people in the way that Christ first loved us and let this be what motivates our desire to "give an answer." This is the best cultural apologetic!

S. Michael Craven is the vice president for religion & culture at the National Coalition for the Protection of Children & Families and leads the work and ministry of Cultural Apologetics. The Cultural Apologetics ministry works to equip the Church to assert and defend biblical morality and ethics in a manner that is rational, relevant and persuasive in order to recapture the relevance of Christianity to all of life by demonstrating its complete correspondence to reality. For more information on Cultural Apologetics, additional resources and other works by S. Michael Craven visit: www.CulturalApologetics.org

Michael lives in the Dallas area with his wife Carol and their three children.

Send feedback to: mc@nationalcoalition.org