When the rule of thumb for culture begets the tides of truth-bending anarchism, the exclusivity of cultural inclusiveness forms the status quo. The alarming rate by which the culturally inclusive cell cycle divides and multiplies leaves little room for the white blood cell of truth. Thus, the exclusivity of cultural inclusiveness reigns, simultaneously and systematically creating a cultural immunodeficiency where parasites wreak havoc among the warm bodies. So while the subtle differences from host to host may be present, each is infected, spreading the disease to future generations. The host of higher pay grade offers an antibiotic – but unfortunately, it is produced from last year’s strain and they’ve offed enough white blood cells to render it feeble against the foe.
The epidemic spreads, from the court houses to the single-family ones, from corporate to local, from teacher to student. Exclusive, anti-claims are made condemning exclusive claims to truth, liberty, sexuality, gender, diversity, the dignity and status of human life, ad nauseam. The only option held above the fray of the vitriolic, blind-firing “tolerant” one is the ever inclusive embrace of all things sinful. To be culturally inclusive, then, is the new exclusivity – and the broader Evangelical church seems to relish in it. Heck, they didn’t fall for it hook, line, and sinker; they jumped in the boat.
They must be non-conformist to traditional archaism, yet conform to the standards of their idealist pageantry. After all, one must drink deeply from the broken cistern to be relevant, righteous, and resplendent, lest you offend, lest you marginalize, lest you neglect sensitivities. For if you fail to uphold the self-proclaimed noble and altruistic virtues of the post-post-modernist, you belong in the Hell they don’t even believe in. Far be it from you, Christian, to make waves of exclusivity in unapologetic claims of divinely revealed truth, for your culture has defined this as the cardinal sin.
You see, this broader church loves to use the word “cultural” rather than “worldly,” for it is much softer on ears to hear we embrace the culture rather than the world. And no, I am not speaking of activities, possessions, music style preferences, craft beer, or any of the like that pertains to this physical creation and is to be enjoyed to the glory of God – but the consent to the organized system of beliefs this world sanctions in opposition to God. I am speaking to the ones who are afraid to say something is sin without dying the death of a thousand theological qualifications and subtleties, which explain away a firm position on black and white issues. I am speaking to the ones who boldly claim for themselves possession of the love of Christ – yet relegate the difficult work of perseverance to the self-righteous, as if obedience to the scriptures is contrary to a love of God. I’m speaking to the Christian publishing houses that publish solid, orthodox teaching alongside the heretical.
Long has the broader Evangelical church refused the antidote because they grew tired of manna and longed instead for quail. We all do it to some degree. I’ll be willing to admit that myself; sure, I’m willing to suffer in principle. But am I willing to suffer for the long haul? Would I move beyond ascension to the facts of scripture’s declaration of suffering, to be in part, sharing with Christ in His sufferings – and fully embrace that it would be good for me to remain in that constant state if the Lord so willed? I grow fatigued from boredom, which as Carl Truman puts it, “is the luxury-suffering of the overstimulated middle-class.” God forbid one take a hard look in the mirror and come away remembering what they looked like. We’d be uncomfortable, and no one likes to be uncomfortable in their own skin. It is far more pleasing to the sensibilities to ask for chastity, yet cry along with a carnally ruled Augustine, “But not yet!”
The point being: most have embraced some level of damned inconsistency, perhaps claiming of exclusivity, yet living inclusively with the world. We have to move beyond our level of comfort, fatigue, and boredom – which is likely the golden-clawed Cerberus among our mantel of idolatrous baubles and trinkets – and deal respectively with our longing looks back. You and I will not, if we persevere, look with regret upon our life for living too much for the gospel, losing too many friends who took offense over the gospel, not sowing our wild oats, reading the scriptures and praying too much, raising our children in the fear and admonition of the Lord, loving our wives as Christ loves the church, and so on.
To be Christian then, is growing in an increasingly lower comfort level with the sin we used to happily commit, and finding our present joy magnified in giving honor, praise, and glory to the One who deserves it. It is removing the idol and destroying it – not packing it away so others simply don’t see it and bringing it back out when the lights are out and no one is home. It is embracing a healthy level of guilt over sin, putting it to death, and being contented not playing Doctor Moreau in trying to create the antithetical hybrid of a sin-loving saint.
We all have sin we need to deal with and are oft to make excuses in letting it slide for too long, at the risk of lacking deeper fellowship with God. Thank the Lord that He is merciful and that we have a redeemer in Christ – yet thank Him even more so that to be culturally inclusive is really exclusive. Thank the Lord that such conundrums confound the culture wars, creating a broad divide exclusively to inclusiveness.
These are the two divides:
1. inclusive to the world, yet exclusive of Christ.
2. exclusive of the world, yet inclusive with Christ.
We can’t make love to the world and remain in the love of Christ.
We will persevere, in steadfast faith and continued repentance, fixing our eyes upon Christ – or – we will serve another with blind eyes affixed and let sin reign in our mortal bodies.
Image Credit: UNESCO World Heritage Site Krakow by Matthias Ripp; CC 2.0
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In