The Post Modern Scare
(Reaching a post-modern world without post-modern methods)
This is the new buzz word among evangelicals, “post-modernism.” It has developed a certain shock value as its usage has picked up momentum over the past couple years. This term has come up so often, I’m convinced it’s Satan’s latest weapon in his attempts to stifle the churches evangelistic potential. It’s a spiritual stop sign, calculated to threaten the attempts of traditional soul-winning evangelists. Just hearing the term can bring fatigue and discouragement to any Christian who has allowed it to threaten them.
I believe in every age the church will be tempted to question the effectiveness of biblical evangelism based on an erroneous assumption that “modern society” cannot respond to “traditional dogma”. I also believe the only way to approach a “post-modern” society is to intensify the message we preach. When the philosophers and spin doctors of this age try to push us back, the answer is not to retreat, but to push harder against their resistance!
Sadly, many have allowed post-modern come-backs such as “I don’t believe the bible” to scare them away from the battlefield. When an unbeliever says “I don’t believe the Bible”, what else were we expecting? Did we set out to convert them because we thought they already believed it? Of course they don’t believe it, that’s why we’ve been called to preach and persuade them. And all the more reason to get out there! It makes no sense whatsoever to withdraw and find “other methods” simply because they don’t bow at the utterance of our first efforts. Jesus likened soul-winning to fishing because it requires patience and persistence to get them into the boat. The gospel was the power of God unto salvation in every age, and it is still the power of God unto salvation today… period! If people are not seeing its effectiveness in society, it's only because they are not preaching it in society. Either we believe God and do it His way, or we do like the children ofIsrael
I believe it's a result of confusion that some are now suggesting we need “a new kind of Christianity,” a new approach to reach this hardened society. Their message is laced with suggestions that we should tone down our declarations of truth in a world that has abandoned absolutes. Did they ever stop to think that society’s relativistic, post-modern mentality is a direct result of the churches neglect of duty in the first place?
Replacing gospel truth with relational demonstrations of kindness and charity is partly what got us here in the first place. So how will repeating the mistake make things any better? Though I wholeheartedly believe we must show the love of Christ through authentic acts of kindness, we must never abandon the preaching of truth in the process. The two must go hand-in-hand.
Unfortunately, some have decided to simply reach out with good works while leaving any offensive gospel preaching in the dust. The trend is to offer inclusive acceptance rather than be forthright. By doing so, we risk losing converts by seeking the friendship and approval of the 'post-modern minded." We tuck truth under the table for fear we’ll scare them off, but in the end we do them more harm than good. We might have them in our church, but does God have them in His Kingdom?
One of our greatest examples of Christian charity is the Salvation Army. But listen to the words of William Booth, “Put your ear down to the Bible, and hear Him bid you ‘go and pull sinners out of the fire of sin.’ Put your ear down to the burdened, agonized heart of humanity, and listen to its pitiful wail for help. Go stand by the gates of hell, and hear the damned entreat you to go to their father's house and bid their brothers and sisters and servants and masters not to come there.” Obviously, he was not referring to just feeding the poor. How would such utterances be received by the church today? No doubt, William Booth faced a society much like ours. He did not bow to the threatenings of a callous and base-minded society by changing the method of reaching them. If we are going to reach this post-modern world, we must do it the same way Jesus instructed us to do it 2000 years ago... preach the gospel! It was Jesus who said, "unless ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish." By today's standards, Jesus would be considered a radical for saying such things. So while we follow His example of charity, let us follow His admonition to preach the gospel in its entirety. To deviate from the blueprint is to build a crooked house on sinking sand.
The current “Post-modern” scare is no doubt the latest Goliath in a sequence of hurdles faced by the church and her soul-winning efforts. The term has caused many to retreat and re-think their evangelism strategy, or in some cases, abandon evangelism altogether. Once again we find ourselves questioning the churches relevance and effectiveness in society. It’s another one of Satan’s greatest wiles for those who have a habit of letting their mind get in the way of their faith. He loves to get us questioning whether or not the Bible and all its ancient gospel terminology can harness enough power to bring this giant down.
So we go around the mountain one more time… abandoning the battlefield, hiding in our tents, thinking up ways to conquer this giant without having to make any fatal sacrifice. Some say we should befriend the giant and develop a relationship with him, perhaps over time he’ll come to like us and refrain from hurting us. Some say we should study the giants way of thinking and adapt accordingly by relating to him with a kinder, gentler, more tolerant approach, offering charity, and wooing him with promises of blessing in exchange for joining our army. We’ll do anything as long as we can avoid a confrontation with this mighty beast. Certainly, a loving God wouldn’t expect us to put ourselves in harms way by actually attacking him! Oh brother, God wouldn’t want you to get insulted and have your feelings hurt would He? Didn’t all that radical soul-saving gospel preaching die out with Jonathan Edwards? Isn’t this the age of peace and prosperity, political correctness, and tolerance? Would God actually expect His children to preach the whole gospel, warning sinners of their way, using the law to bring consciousness of guilt, and mentioning hell to inform sinners of God’s justice? Can’t we get ridiculed for that? Wouldn’t that bring discomfort and persecution our way? God forbid!
I suppose if I were David’s brothers I might do the same. I’d rather have a barbeque with Goliath than challenge him in battle with my sling shot. That’s what I see some churches doing today. We’ve put down our slingshots and invited the giant to lunch, thinking that by befriending him we can win him over. All the while criticizing those who continue to use such archaic methods as preaching or witnessing. And likewise, David was spurned by his brothers and the armies ofIsrael
David had no need of their approval. He had God’s approval and trusted God’s ability. He did it God’s way. And so must we if we truly want to see this nation saved.
Let us stop courting the giant with charitable gestures! Do it God’s way! Put down your philosophers books and pick up your Bibles, then GO, and preach the gospel, warn them of the coming judgment and awaken their conscience by the law which is a schoolmaster to bring them to Christ. Preach the truth in all its glory, for it's truth that sets men free!
2 Corinthians5:11 - "Therefore, knowing the terror of the Lord, we persuade men"
(Reaching a post-modern world without post-modern methods)
This is the new buzz word among evangelicals, “post-modernism.” It has developed a certain shock value as its usage has picked up momentum over the past couple years. This term has come up so often, I’m convinced it’s Satan’s latest weapon in his attempts to stifle the churches evangelistic potential. It’s a spiritual stop sign, calculated to threaten the attempts of traditional soul-winning evangelists. Just hearing the term can bring fatigue and discouragement to any Christian who has allowed it to threaten them.
I believe in every age the church will be tempted to question the effectiveness of biblical evangelism based on an erroneous assumption that “modern society” cannot respond to “traditional dogma”. I also believe the only way to approach a “post-modern” society is to intensify the message we preach. When the philosophers and spin doctors of this age try to push us back, the answer is not to retreat, but to push harder against their resistance!
Sadly, many have allowed post-modern come-backs such as “I don’t believe the bible” to scare them away from the battlefield. When an unbeliever says “I don’t believe the Bible”, what else were we expecting? Did we set out to convert them because we thought they already believed it? Of course they don’t believe it, that’s why we’ve been called to preach and persuade them. And all the more reason to get out there! It makes no sense whatsoever to withdraw and find “other methods” simply because they don’t bow at the utterance of our first efforts. Jesus likened soul-winning to fishing because it requires patience and persistence to get them into the boat. The gospel was the power of God unto salvation in every age, and it is still the power of God unto salvation today… period! If people are not seeing its effectiveness in society, it's only because they are not preaching it in society. Either we believe God and do it His way, or we do like the children of
I believe it's a result of confusion that some are now suggesting we need “a new kind of Christianity,” a new approach to reach this hardened society. Their message is laced with suggestions that we should tone down our declarations of truth in a world that has abandoned absolutes. Did they ever stop to think that society’s relativistic, post-modern mentality is a direct result of the churches neglect of duty in the first place?
Replacing gospel truth with relational demonstrations of kindness and charity is partly what got us here in the first place. So how will repeating the mistake make things any better? Though I wholeheartedly believe we must show the love of Christ through authentic acts of kindness, we must never abandon the preaching of truth in the process. The two must go hand-in-hand.
Unfortunately, some have decided to simply reach out with good works while leaving any offensive gospel preaching in the dust. The trend is to offer inclusive acceptance rather than be forthright. By doing so, we risk losing converts by seeking the friendship and approval of the 'post-modern minded." We tuck truth under the table for fear we’ll scare them off, but in the end we do them more harm than good. We might have them in our church, but does God have them in His Kingdom?
One of our greatest examples of Christian charity is the Salvation Army. But listen to the words of William Booth, “Put your ear down to the Bible, and hear Him bid you ‘go and pull sinners out of the fire of sin.’ Put your ear down to the burdened, agonized heart of humanity, and listen to its pitiful wail for help. Go stand by the gates of hell, and hear the damned entreat you to go to their father's house and bid their brothers and sisters and servants and masters not to come there.” Obviously, he was not referring to just feeding the poor. How would such utterances be received by the church today? No doubt, William Booth faced a society much like ours. He did not bow to the threatenings of a callous and base-minded society by changing the method of reaching them. If we are going to reach this post-modern world, we must do it the same way Jesus instructed us to do it 2000 years ago... preach the gospel! It was Jesus who said, "unless ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish." By today's standards, Jesus would be considered a radical for saying such things. So while we follow His example of charity, let us follow His admonition to preach the gospel in its entirety. To deviate from the blueprint is to build a crooked house on sinking sand.
The current “Post-modern” scare is no doubt the latest Goliath in a sequence of hurdles faced by the church and her soul-winning efforts. The term has caused many to retreat and re-think their evangelism strategy, or in some cases, abandon evangelism altogether. Once again we find ourselves questioning the churches relevance and effectiveness in society. It’s another one of Satan’s greatest wiles for those who have a habit of letting their mind get in the way of their faith. He loves to get us questioning whether or not the Bible and all its ancient gospel terminology can harness enough power to bring this giant down.
So we go around the mountain one more time… abandoning the battlefield, hiding in our tents, thinking up ways to conquer this giant without having to make any fatal sacrifice. Some say we should befriend the giant and develop a relationship with him, perhaps over time he’ll come to like us and refrain from hurting us. Some say we should study the giants way of thinking and adapt accordingly by relating to him with a kinder, gentler, more tolerant approach, offering charity, and wooing him with promises of blessing in exchange for joining our army. We’ll do anything as long as we can avoid a confrontation with this mighty beast. Certainly, a loving God wouldn’t expect us to put ourselves in harms way by actually attacking him! Oh brother, God wouldn’t want you to get insulted and have your feelings hurt would He? Didn’t all that radical soul-saving gospel preaching die out with Jonathan Edwards? Isn’t this the age of peace and prosperity, political correctness, and tolerance? Would God actually expect His children to preach the whole gospel, warning sinners of their way, using the law to bring consciousness of guilt, and mentioning hell to inform sinners of God’s justice? Can’t we get ridiculed for that? Wouldn’t that bring discomfort and persecution our way? God forbid!
I suppose if I were David’s brothers I might do the same. I’d rather have a barbeque with Goliath than challenge him in battle with my sling shot. That’s what I see some churches doing today. We’ve put down our slingshots and invited the giant to lunch, thinking that by befriending him we can win him over. All the while criticizing those who continue to use such archaic methods as preaching or witnessing. And likewise, David was spurned by his brothers and the armies of
David had no need of their approval. He had God’s approval and trusted God’s ability. He did it God’s way. And so must we if we truly want to see this nation saved.
Let us stop courting the giant with charitable gestures! Do it God’s way! Put down your philosophers books and pick up your Bibles, then GO, and preach the gospel, warn them of the coming judgment and awaken their conscience by the law which is a schoolmaster to bring them to Christ. Preach the truth in all its glory, for it's truth that sets men free!
2 Corinthians
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