Pastor Tullian Tchividjian has an excellent excerpt at his blog from his forthcoming book, Unfashionable: Making a Difference in the World by Being Different (Multnomah, 2009). Here's an excerpt of his excerpt:
If Christians care to make a difference in this world, it has less to do with gaining political power or electing the right officials and far more to do with actually living out our new life together in this new community--the church--before the watching world. Our best approach for reaching people in today’s world is not by going door to door and giving evangelistic presentations, passing out evangelistic tracts, or blanketing our cities with evangelistic crusades. Our best approach is living with the people we’re trying to reach and showing them what human life and community look like when the gospel is believed and embraced.
God’s great evangelistic tool is the church--this new, counter-cultural community in which the fellowship of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit comes to expression in the unity, community, and joy of God’s people. As we live our lives together in a way that’s consistent with who we’ve been remade to be, we become a blessing to the world by showing them how sweet life can be in a community of individuals who love one another, care for one another, defer to one another, are patient with one another, and serve one another. The world will take notice of a community of men and women who refreshingly and joyfully bear one another’s burdens and who actively look to lay down their lives for others in need because Jesus laid down his life for them. When the world sees that Christians want to help people because God has helped them, they’ll begin to ask what makes us so different. A faithful presentation of the gospel to our world, in other words, requires Christian community on full display.
Read the whole thing.
