“What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which one can say, ‘Look! This is something new’? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time. No one remembers the former generations, and even those yet to come will not be remembered by those who follow them.” (Ecclesiastes 1:9-11 NIV)
There is always a challenge in ministry to make the Gospel relevant to the culture. However, the danger is always overestimating the value of the latest trends at the expense of the value of eternal truth. I think we tend to get caught up in trying to be cool.
It has been interesting to observe over the past few years a lot of believers embracing the alcohol culture. Posts on Facebook and Instagram contain pictures of the latest craft beer or mixed drink. I’ve heard of Bible studies being held at bars, not to talk with patrons about the Gospel, but so as to indulge in some drinks while discussing the Scriptures. I think the reason is the cool factor. Whereas most believers once shunned alcohol consumption or drank in moderation in the privacy of their homes, now folks are trying to shun stereotypes, trying to show how progressive and free Christians can be and promoting it for all to see.
Another trend is to have cool church services, which often include pastors wearing cool glasses and cool clothes. Add to that a cool worship band playing cool music and you are bound to draw attention and a crowd.
And that is really the problem. The motivation is to draw attention to ourselves. We want people to think we are cool and cutting edge. It’s about us. What we forget is the wisdom of Solomon, that there really is nothing new. It may look a little different but the essence is still the same. Trends and fashions come and go, most to be forgotten except in history books, but it is the desire to be trendy or fashionable which remains consistent. And Solomon says this desire is meaningless. It leads us from the solid path of truth into the weeds of triviality.
We are not wrong in trying to be relevant to the culture in which we live, if indeed the goal is to make God known, the Gospel understandable and the Scriptures more meaningful. But often most of the energy seems to be put into being relevant as if relevancy is an end in itself, and the attention being sought is for ourselves rather than for the Lord. The only end worth pursuing is gaining attention and glory for God. Everything else, in the long run, is meaningless.
Today, know there are and will be plenty of trends you can latch onto to be cool. But being cool is always an endless endeavor because it is bound to the trends and fashions of the moment. Your time is much better spent being grounded and living in the truth. Exchanging meaningless pursuits for meaningful ones? Now God finds that very cool!
© Jim Musser 2014
1 comment:
Jim,
I agree with your overall premise ... the desire to be seen as relevant to those who's approval we seek drives a lot of disadvantageous behavior.
One point with which I would disagree is your statement that historically most Christians refrained from consuming alcohol. Christians in Europe do and have always consumed wine. German Christians do and have always consumed beer. American Christians consumed both beer and wine before the misnamed temperance movement that led up to the misguided period of prohibition on the US.
Paul suggested that Timothy consume a little medicinal wine ... and we know from scripture that Jesus made great wine (the wedding feast and the site of his first miracle). We also know from scripture that John the Baptist was a teetotaler while Jesus was not. A paraphrase is "John the Baptist came neither eating meat or drinking wine and you called him a lunatic, the son of man came eating meat and drinking wine and you called him a drunkard and a glutton."
So, I agree with you that we shouldn't do anything to be "cool" if that means that we are seeking man's approval. On the other hand, I've known plenty of people that don't consume alcohol and in the process come across as judgemental (and in fact some are judgemental) of their brothers and sisters who consume alcohol with a clear conscience following the historical norms of the church and Jesus's example. They also can come across as "Holier than thou" to their unregenerated friends and neighbors.
So, if one is drinking to be cool without a clear conscience, that is sin because they would be violating their own conscience. However, if one can enjoy an alcoholic beverage with a clear conscience with gratitude (as I am doing as I write this) I don't think one is sinning. But I think it is hypocritical for someone to make a big deal to not drink in public but consume when no one is looking.
Just my two cents.
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