Few biblical truths are as self-evident as Jesus’ statement, “In this world you will have trouble” (John 16.33). At some point, you will face discouragement. It may be something as simple as a rift in a relationship or as serious as harassment for expressing your faith. Regardless, you will be opposed by the devil, by the forces of this present darkness that work to sabotage God’s agenda.
There is no denying that there is a war going on. It is bigger than the war on drugs and more divisive than the war on terror. It is a culture war, and we are engaged in it.
What will win such a war? It won’t be violent rhetoric or legislating a Christian agenda. It won’t be telling the other side how and why they’re wrong and we’re right. In fact, those who have engaged society with an arrogant attitude like this have done more harm than good. The only way to win a culture war is by embodying the sacrificial love of Jesus.
We tend to view our enemies with suspicion, to hide from them or attempt to impose our will on them. We do not want our enemies to know our weaknesses. In fact, truth be told, we hate our enemies. We pray that God will hold them accountable for the atrocities they’ve committed.
But God’s wartime strategy is remarkably different. Think of it like this: The people in the world (including us) were enemies of God (Rom 5.10). We were at war with God (a futile notion if ever there was one!). And what was God’s plan for ending that war? He sought us out, wooing us with His love, giving us freedom to embrace or reject His message. He became weak in our presence, humbling Himself to the point of death. Out of His great love for us, He asked that we not be held accountable for the things we had done.
In short, God was willing to go to unbelievable lengths to win us back. Not to win the war, but to win the warriors, even as they continued acting out their hostility and aggression toward Him.
What would it look like for us to engage in the current culture war with the same depth of love for those on the other side as God demonstrated toward us?
How do you win the culture war? Love the other side.
Don’t embrace their beliefs, values or behaviours. But love them. Seek their best. Serve them. Forgive them. Show them hospitality and courtesy. Use whatever you’ve been given to meet the needs of others (1 Pet 4.7-11). In other words, treat them the way Jesus has treated you. Then, whether you change their minds or not, you will know that God is shaping you, transforming you from within into the kind of person you were created to be.
Prayer
Lord God, it takes little faith to realize that trouble in this fallen world is unavoidable. And now that I have come to faith in Jesus Christ, I know that opposition and tribulation may well increase, especially when I seek to be Your ambassador of reconciliation in the lives of people I meet. When I encounter personal adversity or hostility and when I consider the broader adversity and hostility to the gospel in this world, may I choose to respond in love and not in fear or hatred. May I remember that people are not the enemy; they are victims of the enemy. Give me the grace to embody love for others in spite of what they say or do, and to express the sacrificial love of Jesus by treating others in the way Jesus treated me. My confidence is in You, and I will steadfastly hold fast to You rather than wringing my hands over the evils in this generation.
In Jesus’s name, Amen
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