Our Fears, Our World, and Our God

The news is in and the church is going to hell in a hand-basket…

At least that is what you’d think if you took a long look at social media, the news, and, let’s be honest, that whisper in the back of many of our minds. Things look dreary out there about the church…like a wasteland of disappointments, lies, confusion, hate, and anger. Yep, all of that and just from one quick swipe through Twitter. I wonder how the early church would have responded if society then was able to keep instant reports on every event and cultural shift?

I think it might look something like:

A man named Peter preached at a Christian celebration called Pentecost and approximately 3,000 people were added to his group. But according to our statistics, only 1 percent of the city’s population was in attendance. Therefore, if we want to calculate the religious affiliations throughout the world, there’s minimal, non-sustainable growth. Additionally, some reports indicate that the leaders of this event were actually heavily intoxicated at the time of this celebration, calling into question the legitimacy of the Christian movement.

Tongue-in-cheek aside, as I observe social media, it is apparent that we live in a fearful society. We are a fearful church. Within the church, we are afraid that:

“They” (whoever you envision “they” being) will take over and [fill in the blank] will leave or are already leaving and [fill in the blank] will persecute us.

We are afraid to associate with certain groups of other Christians because they could poison “our” gospel. We are afraid that our racial divide could be the end of the story for the American church. And while there is a chance that this could happen, God’s Word gives us a better word about his church and why we can stand secure in him.

But first, ponder how amazing it is that God’s Word has endured these thousands of years. The Bible is one of the most loved, hated, and misused books ever to be written. Throughout the history of the world, there are great reasons for it to have been completely destroyed. Within its pages are words like, “I am the way the truth and the life”, “you may not have any other gods besides me”, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” etc. These words indicate that a true believer would proclaim Christ as the only way to salvation. Sure, this book has been banned and outlawed in places throughout history, and yet the words of God in its pages continue to live on.

And then there’s the Church. Jesus died for the Church and says that even the gates of hell cannot prevail over the Church (Matt: 16:18). As Bible-believing Christians, we want to stand for truth and address errors we see, but we need not worry about the Church as if it will completely die and be wiped out. It won’t. It can’t. Even if every Christian is forced underground, the Church will continue to prevail. Why? Because it’s not up to us. We aren’t in control. We aren’t the ones who are sustaining the Church. We have a sovereign, mighty God who loves the lost. He gave his son for the lost. He will not tarry—he’s on a mission and we have the privilege to be involved. And this all-powerful, faithful, and loving God has promised that His Church will never be overcome.

Do Good

Don’t grow weary in doing good, if indeed you are doing good. Don’t grow faint because of fear. Don’t lose heart. The world today does indeed look grim. But there is reason for great hope. It isn’t hope in you or me and our strength; no, it’s hope in the faithfulness and power of Christ. Lift your weak knees, unless they are bowed down in prayer to the One who saves. God isn’t asleep—he’s awake and active in our midst. If every person leaves the Church and we divide in every way possible, we still have a great mission to go and make disciples of all nations. If every social issue that seems to smack Christian ethics in its face becomes law—we continue to preach the truth in love and serve our neighbors. If a radical religious group begins to persecute the Church—we say with faith, you can kill the body but you can’t kill the soul. And we continue to fight racial injustice and prejudice confident in God and not us.

Let’s fight this fear with faith that only God can give us. And let’s lay down our fears and remember who God is and what he has promised to his people.

RELATED CONTENT