Hey friends,

As I have been thinking about this "repentance" topic I wrote about last week, it's got me thinking even more about our public witness.

On social media a few weeks ago, someone angrily commented that my posts were a "cop out," because, in their words, I was "telling Christians not to take a stand for Jesus."

The posts they were referring to were all about Christ's message of turning the other cheek, going the extra mile, loving our enemies, and praying for those who persecute us. Honestly, every single time I post on that topic, I will get several angry comments, suggesting that I am somehow telling Christians not to "stand up for Jesus."

I thought by expressing Christ's sermon to his disciples and encouraging us to follow it in these really difficult days was "standing up for Jesus" the way he calls us to.

I really wish I could say this kind of push back took me off guard, but I know where it stems from.

Growing up in Evangelical spaces, I quickly came to realize at a young age that "standing up for Jesus" meant rebuking others, hostilely calling out sin, and even justifying violence against the government if it ever came to that.

Looking back on it now, I see how much fear this perspective carries. It is more about defending the evangelical ideas about our culture and Jesus rather than about Jesus himself.

I now believe that the moment we Christians feel as though we need to defend and protect God, that is the moment we have created an idol for ourselves.

For it is a fragile god that needs our protection and our defense. It is a fragile god that needs an entire culture, an entire nation to conform to its will in order to validate its own might and power.

Idols are really fragile gods.

All that to say, what if one of the things God is calling us Christians to repent from is how we advocate or "take a stand" for Jesus? What if "taking a stand for Jesus" looked like bringing even more good news to the poor than we already are? What if it looked like bringing even more food to the hungry, more advocacy for the oppressed, more turning the other cheek, more going the extra mile, more compassion, more grace, and more mercy? What if "taking a stand for Jesus" looked like being "peacemakers" rather than stoking the fires of a hostile culture war?

I really do believe that Christians should be involved in improving our culture, including the political sphere. But if that involvement does not look like Jesus, but instead looks like an "ends justify the means" approach, I don't think we can honestly say that we are "taking a stand for Jesus." We are taking a stand to demand our own way.

One of the most desperate desires of my heart is for Christianity to become more Christlike in our culture. I think that is one of the most important things we can do for the world right now, become more like Jesus.

Do you think God is calling us Christians to repentance in this area? What do you think about what I've said here?

As you read this, I should just be getting settled back home after my vacation with my family. So I look forward to reading your replies once I am back in the swing of things!

Sincerely,

Ben