Setting a Godly Example for the Culture

Historically, Christianity has been at its purest and most powerful in times of crisis. It’s in the margins of society where God seeks and finds people through the power of His Gospel.

Throughout history, the Gospel has been countercultural for its revolutionary message about the human heart. The Gospel isn’t a moral handbook or a handy roadmap for successful living. It’s a pronouncement about the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ that gives us ultimate victory over suffering and death. That’s what gives Christianity its power: it changes lives.

Some argue that Christianity has been sanitized of that revolutionary spirit in recent years. Christians are indistinguishable from the culture to the point that their faith has no impact on it.

If all of that is true, what can God’s people do to ignite a revolution in the culture?

Joining me on our Focus on the Family Broadcast “Setting a Godly Example for the Culture” is Pastor Brady Boyd, the senior pastor of New Life Church in Colorado Springs. Listen on your local radio station, online, on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or on our free phone app.

Pastor Boyd defines three basic practices of a Christian life that influence people for Christ:

Acceptance. God accepts people where they are, and so should we. God doesn’t leave them there, but He understands that broken people do broken things. My friend and mentor, the late Chuck Colson used to say, “You don’t get angry at a blind man for stepping on your foot.”
Kindness. What we say and how we say it may plant a seed toward someone’s salvation. It is God’s kindness that leads people to salvation (Romans 2:4). People are looking for a witness of God’s kindness in Christians’ lives.
Forgiveness. The way of the world is an eye for an eye. Vengeance for vengeance. Anger for anger. But the way of Christ is forgiveness. Forgiveness separates the Christian faith from every other force on the planet.

Only when Christianity changes lives can it change the culture.

Brady Boyd’s book is called Remarkable: Living a Faith Worth Talking About. I’d like to offer you a copy for a gift of any amount. Visit our website or give us a call at 1-800-A-FAMILY (232-6459). If you can’t afford it, we’ll find a way to get it to you.

I’d also like to remind you that October is Pastor Appreciation Month. Take some time to encourage your pastor. We have some great ideas for how to do that on our website.

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