Holiness and Evangelism

"Christians need to be in the world, not of the world."

"Preach the Gospel, and if necessary, use words."

"We have to be culturally relevant."

We've all probably heard or used one, if not all, of these quotes before.  And they're good, true statements.  But I think sometimes we take them too far and use them as excuses.  Excuses not to take the uncomfortable step to share our faith, or to compromise our moral standards to watch a certain movie or TV show because lots of other people are, or to conform our behavior and speech to that of the people around us.  So what is often the result is that we end up not really appearing any different than the rest of the world around us, and the message of life change that we preach is not backed up with evidence in our lives.  I've certainly been guilty of these things before.

You may have heard me speak about the book unChristian, by David Kinnaman and Gabe Lyons, and the findings of their research.  One of those findings is that people outside the church largely think Christians are hypocritical and judgmental.  I want to be a person, and for Cru to be a ministry, that helps to change those perceptions by not making some of the same mistakes the church has made in the past, and seeking fresh, new ways of sharing the Gospel.  We want to present a different and more Christlike picture of Christianity, while not altering or compromising the message of the Gospel.  This is why I bring up the subject of holiness.

One reason people see us as hypocritical and judgmental is because there is a disconnect between what we say and what we do.  Christians say that they are set apart and have a different moral standard, but our actions often fail to show it.  Here's some stats from the book:

• 84 percent of young people outside the church say they know at least one committed Christian, but only 15 percent thought the lifestyles of those Christians were significantly different from the norm (unChristian, pg. 48)
• According to countless surveys, born again Christians are just as likely as non-Christians to: gamble, visit a pornographic website, visit a psychic or medium, steal, get drunk, use illegal drugs, lie, take revenge, and talk bad about someone behind their back (unChristian, pg. 47)
• Christian adults identify "lifestyle" (being good, not sinning, doing the right thing) as the main priority of their faith (unChristian, pg. 48-49)

Taking those 3 results together, it's easy to see why those outside the church label us "hypocritical".  Morality is stated as a priority, but not actually pursued in practice.

I've been reading 2 Kings lately, and a number of times reference is made to the fact that Israel "walked in the customs of the nations whom the LORD drove out before the people of Israel" (2 Kings 17:8), and "followed the nations that were around them, concerning whom the LORD had commanded them that they should not do like them" (2 Kings 17:15).  God had called Israel to be set apart and different from the rest of the nations, worshipping Him alone and not engaging in the idolatry and wicked practices of the nations around them.  In this way they were to represent Him to those nations.  But they consistently failed, entering into idolatry and the very same wickedness and moral failure of the nations around them.

Do you see the parallel?  Christians are called to represent Christ to the people around us, living holy, set apart, changed lives.  But according to evidence that's not true of the church in general.  Just like in Israel, there are some who are living obediently, but apparently most are not.  And so our representation of Christ is poor.

That's why the call to holiness is so important.  If we are going to effectively reach people and reach culture for Christ, we must be living lives that are indeed different, transformed and set apart.  The New Testament repeatedly calls Christ-followers to be set apart, to put off the old self and put on the new.  As an example, look at this passage from Colossians:

"Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived.  But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.  Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.

Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity."   (Colossians 3:5-14)

Similar passages can be found in Ephesians 4:1-3, Ephesians 5:1-21, Galatians 5:16-26, and Romans 7:14-8:17, to name a few.  I strongly encourage you to take a look at these passages and spend some time thinking about them.

I'm not advocating the type of holiness that is just an outward action stuck on the exterior of our lives - that's not authentic life change.  Jesus spoke against that very trait of the Pharisees.  What we need is real holiness, authentic heart transformation, the kind performed by the Holy Spirit deep down in our hearts.  We ought to pray for it and seek it diligently, asking Jesus to remind us of inconsistent areas and places of sin, and praying for the power and discipline to escape those areas.  We need to surrender to the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives - He is the one who sanctifies and changes us.  He convicts us of sin so we can confess and repent of it, and He produces the fruit of self-control, love, kindness, goodness, etc. in us.  And when those transformations are happening (because we'll never be perfect, our sanctification is ongoing), imagine how much more effective our evangelism will be!  Not because we pridefully pat ourselves on the back and say "look how moral and good I am", but demonstrating real work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, and the deep joy and satisfaction that life change brings.

Without this type of holiness, our hope of being "in the world, but not of the world", or of "preaching the Gospel without using words" will be nullified.  I pray that I can only practice what I preach!

Jason