By: Dale Weckbacher
Romans 6:4
Therefore we were
buried with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was
raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too may walk
in newness[a] of life.
(CSB)
Jesus Christ is the source of the 4E’s of discipleship. His death on the cross opens the gate of
evangelism and a restored relationship with our creator (Ephesians
2:8). He then ascended to be at the
right hand of God the father to establish us in our faith through provision of apostles,
prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers (Ephesians
4:11-12). God has provided His Word
for encouragement and the Holy Spirit for empowerment. This post will focus on establishment in one’s
Christian faith.
The world is currently experiencing a major cultural
shift. Countries like the United States
where the culture once considered Christianity a beneficial contributor is transforming
to a post-Christian culture. The recent
contentious confirmation hearings of Justice Kavanaugh brought this to the
forefront. During these hearings we
witnessed the moral decline of the culture as what should have been a job
interview on the qualifications of judge Kavanaugh to become a Supreme Court Justice
turned into a reality show. This reality
show hearing became a discussion of woman’s rights as legislators and the media
asked the public to believe unsubstantiated claims of a woman with no
collaborating evidence over the often investigated and collaborated claims of
Judge Kavanaugh. Liberals and feminists
asked the public to believe the woman simply because she was a woman.
The Kavanaugh hearings also illustrated the contentious
political and cultural divide in the nation.
So ingrained is this divide that the hearings ignored the qualifications
of Judge Kavanaugh and instead voted based upon their political and cultural
views. It did not matter who President
Trump nominated for the position of Supreme Court Justice for the vote would
have been the same because President Trump was the president making the
nomination. The contentiousness in the
media and social media illustrate that this divisiveness is more than just
political but also cultural in nature.
The combination of this lack of morality and contentiousness
is becoming violent. Violent protesters
are taking to the streets of Portland dragging people from their vehicles. (1) Instead of arresting and resisting these
lawless protestors, law enforcement in Portland allow these lawless rioters to block
streets. (2) The contentiousness has led to childish
behavior with protestors knocking and clawing at the door of the supreme court
in some effort to prevent the swearing in of Judge Kavanaugh as a Supreme Court
justice. (3)
Establishment of one as a disciple of Christ is no longer
socially acceptable in such an immoral, contentious, and potentially violent culture. The church therefore must do more to
establish, encourage, and empower disciples for Christ in this shifting
culture. Establishment of strong
disciples of Christ in this culture involves,
1)
Practice of saving faith (James
2:14) – James
2:14 appears to question whether someone claiming belief in Jesus who does
not express that belief in good works has a faith that saves them. While it appears James is questioning Romans
3:28 and Justification apart from works.
While Ephesians
2:8 teaches that our salvation from sin has nothing to do with our good
works and is totally due to the finished work of Jesus on the cross, one having
a genuine belief in Jesus as their savior will demonstrate good works out of love. In a post-Christian world, Christians must
make an effort to standout from the secular world through their good works
becoming beacons of God’s light and love.
The early church understood this and turned their world upside down (Acts
17:6)
2)
Daily practice of spiritual disciplines (Acts
2:42) – Not only did the early church establish itself through its good
works, it was also established through the practice of spiritual disciplines. It was a church devoted to the teachings of
the Apostles, the Bible of their time. It
was a church devoted to prayer and fellowship.
Even though the early church was a persecuted church operating in an
oppressive culture, the church remained spiritually disciplined and flourished.
3)
Stronger Christian communities (Acts
2:42) – Not only was the early church disciplined in practicing saving
faith, its members also maintained connection with others through fellowship
and breaking of bread. When one holds to
a belief that is contrary to mainstream culture, one can feel isolation through
rejection by those holding to mainstream beliefs. Add the instantaneous nature of social media,
and these feelings of isolation can go viral with those disagreeing with our
beliefs not only unfriending or unfollowing them but also adding vicious
comments. However, through regular
connection with like-minded people, these feelings of isolation disappear (Hebrews
10:25).
Establishment of one in their Christian faith requires
moving beyond simply professing Jesus as savior to spiritually disciplined
living, practice of saving faith through good works, and regular connection
with the Christian community. This
establishment of faith carries not only the reward of eternal life but the
reward of a life of joy in the middle of the turmoil of struggle and an
anti-Christian culture (James
1:2-4). Establishment in faith is
also an ongoing process of service, spiritual discipline, and connection with
fellow believers. However, even the most
established Christian can become discouraged when living in a post-Christian
culture and need encouragement which is the topic of next Wednesday’s
posting.
1. Sang, Lucia I. Suarez. www.foxnews.com. Portland
Antifa protesters caught on video bullying elderly motorist, woman in
wheelchair. [Online] Fox News, October 11, 2018. [Cited: October 14, 2018.]
https://www.foxnews.com/us/portland-antifa-protesters-caught-on-video-bullying-elderly-motorist-woman-in-wheelchair.
2. Fox News.
Portland Journalist: Police Allowed Antifa Protesters to Block Off Streets,
Confront Drivers. www.insider.foxnews.com. [Online] Fox News, October
10, 2018. [Cited: October 14, 2018.]
http://insider.foxnews.com/2018/10/10/portland-antifa-protest-over-police-shooting-journalist-describes-situation-tucker.
3. Youtube.
Anti-Kavanaugh protesters bang on the doors of the Supreme Court. www.youtube.com.
[Online] Youtube. [Cited: October 14, 2018.]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRnmnxVtDqg.
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