Hello Pastor John,
This email is a little long, so sorry in advance.
I have been thinking about several quotes and stories in the Bible. One, how Jesus talked about turning the other cheek in Luke 6:27-29:
“But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either.”
Another, where he said if you have a cloak but no sword, to sell it to buy one, Luke 22:36
“He said to them, ‘But now let the one who has a moneybag take it, and likewise a knapsack. And let the one who has no sword sell his cloak and buy one.’”
Another place, Matthew 26:52, he says that those who live by the sword die by the sword,
“Then Jesus said to him, ‘Put your sword back into its place. For all who take the sword will perish by the sword.’”
And here, Paul tells us that our weapons are not carnal in 2Corinthians 10:4-5,
“For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ..”
But then in another place, Jesus says we are to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world/city on a hill (Matthew 5:13-14).
“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.”
I’m sure there are more passages that I’m not remembering which say similar messages regarding being the standard and being a light to the world, but this leads me to wonder.
In the world, there are a lot of evil and simply not holy people and actions. If we are to do as Paul said and not be entangled in the affairs of this world, how can we also be the light of the world and effect good change in society? I think of the cases where blatant immorality and evil are promulgated in society through music, politics, or pop culture. This made me wonder: If we only do our part in our homes and that which we are immediately responsible for, how does that fulfill Jesus’ commandment to be the light in the world if the world is not within the realm of our responsibilities? If a lamp is on in your home, adding another lamp helps shed more light, but it is not as necessary as it would be in a dark room without a lamp.
Seeing terrorist attacks and rampant evil challenge the presence and acceptance of Christ in society makes me wonder what we should do? Are we only to be good and holy for ourselves? Regardless of what goes on around us? If Jesus told us that we were to be a light, how are we a light if we are not standing before others and being that outward example against those who would try to be wicked?
We often see people doing evil in public or behaving inappropriately and just say, “They need Jesus,” and “That is disgusting.” But rarely do we ever seem to be the light other than just looking and praying about that situation from a distance. Given that the world has free will, we see morally wrong things happening to believers everywhere, but it feels as if we have our hands tied to help or support them, other than in prayer.
When Jesus said in Matthew 28:18-20 (ESV),
“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.””
How are we to do that if we are obeying Paul’s instructions to not be entangled? Is that verse not contradictory to Paul? How are we to go into the world proclaiming Christ to others and try to be the change in society without being involved in more than our own homes alone? I do not necessarily ask because I want to get involved in politics, but I don’t understand how we are to effect moral and societal change without being involved in the affairs as Paul advised us not to be. If everyone in the world interpreted not being entangled in earthly affairs the same way, evil would go unchecked, correct? I just want to understand more and be wise and follow the Spirit when it speaks to me. But that being said, some of the logistics of Christ’s calling to us to himself confuse me logically. I know the Bible will always have verses that may contradict each other in some ways. In some cases, what God tells one person may differ from what he tells another in the same scenario, and that we must obey the Spirit. Sometimes, when looking at a world where so much wrong goes unchecked or is only minimally challenged by good people, I feel like we are fighting a spiritual war with our hands tied behind our backs, unable to utilize our full capabilities. More often than not, the commandment to turn the other cheek seems to be referenced more than Jesus flipping tables and whipping wicked men in the temple square. Are we truly only to be docile and without fight? I do not see how good can win or a good stand be held without some action behind the prayers. It’s like if I as a firefighter prayed for the fire to go out but then failed to use the equipment in my hands to stop it. I realize that I sound like Peter, haha. I don’t mean to sound as if I am itching for a fight, but I am just seeking clarification on the “spiritual rules of engagement.” That being said, I know that the Spirit is our guide, but it just seems we observe much bad without taking a stand against it. I can’t help but think that if believers everywhere stood up and had outward standards, the world would be a better place.
The world feels so dangerous and volatile now; It all feels very unstable. I recall you had a dream where you in your dream shot a prison guard, but other dreams, such as my dad’s, we in the dream stood still while German soldiers walked past us.
I feel the world changing and it does not feel as benevolent as I recall from childhood. I have felt a shift in the air, for lack of better wording, within the last couple of months that I hadn’t felt prior. Perhaps this is just a normal part of becoming an adult and growing up… I don’t know. But I am praying to be willing to do whatever the Lord wants me to do and to stay upright as much as I can.
Your mentioning last night to ask questions and read your bibles made me think back to this email I had been working on for a few weeks now, and I wanted to ask my question.
Thank you for your time and the work you do for us.
Jonathan S.
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Hi Jonathan.
Thank you for your questions. I underlined the parts that seemed to encapsulate your thoughts, and so, I will respond to those points, specifically.
You said, “If we only do our part in our homes and that which we are immediately responsible for, how does that fulfill Jesus’ commandment to be the light in the world if the world is not within the realm of our responsibilities?”
My answer: To be the light of the world means to walk in the Spirit, that is, to live in God’s will, both in our homes and wherever we go. We are not, and cannot be, responsible for anything beyond that. The best anyone can do in Christ is to “brighten the corner where you are,” as the old hymn goes. We cannot determine how far His light in us shines; we can only do God’s will where we are, at any given time and place. Jesus did not mean for all God’s children to travel the world over, or to buy time on TV to proclaim the good news.
(2) “Are we only to be good and holy for ourselves?”
My answer: We are never to be good and holy for ourselves.
(3) “How are we a light if we are not standing before others and being that outward example against those who would try to be wicked.”
My answer: Living in the Spirit means to stand before others as a visible example of purity and peace. But it is not against those lost in sin; it is for them, showing them the way to eternal life.
(4) “Rarely do we ever seem to be the light, other than just looking and praying about that situation from a distance.”
My answer: It is from a distance only to those who are distant from us, and we can do nothing about that. But we are lights to everyone who is connected with us, whether at home, or at work, or in school, or just people we meet in the normal course of life. The light of Christ is not shining to change society; it shines so that God’s lost sheep can find it. Jesus said, “If you seek, you will find.” He did not say that the light will make people seek it who have no heart for God.
(5) “Given that the world has free will, we see morally wrong things happening to believers everywhere, but it feels as if we have our hands tied to help or support them, other than in prayer.”
My answer: Paul said to do good to all men as we have the opportunity, but especially to those of God’s family (Gal. 6:10). That is the very best we can do, and it is all that we can do. If no opportunity presents itself, then whom can we do good for? We cannot help believers on the other side of the world who are being persecuted, other than to pray for them. The world as a whole will never be righteous, and to try to make it otherwise is to live in frustration and bitterness. So, the only time our hands are tied, as I see it, is when sinners refuse the light they see in us.
(6) Jesus said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
You said, “How are we to do that if we are obeying Paul’s instructions to not be entangled [in the affairs of this life]? Is that verse not contradictory to Paul?
My answer: No, it is not. If a believer travels around the world and becomes embroiled in man’s political and social controversies, he is not the light of the world; he has become part of the darkness.
(6) “How are we to go into the world proclaiming Christ to others and try to be the change in society without being involved in more than our own homes alone?”
My answer: I am puzzled as to why you keep saying that our light in Christ shines only in our homes. Nobody I know lives only at home. Even at that, Jesus has not called us to change society. Societies of earth will never change, even though we are the light of the world. The light of the world is for those looking for the light; it is not for society.
(7) “How we are to effect moral and societal change without being involved in the affairs [of this life] as Paul advised us not to be? If everyone in the world interpreted not being entangled in earthly affairs the same way, evil would go unchecked, correct??”
My answer: Again, societal change is not the mission of the body of Christy. Evil goes unchecked when the body of Christ becomes entangled in the worldly affairs of this life, not when we obey God and stay out them. The only evils we can oppose are those that are around us, where we are. And the most effective way to oppose them is to live the kind of life Jesus has given us, apart from those evils, as Jesus was.
(8) “I feel like we are fighting a spiritual war with our hands tied behind our backs, unable to utilize our full capabilities. More often than not, the commandment to turn the other cheek seems to be referenced more than Jesus flipping tables and whipping wicked men in the temple square.”
My answer: Trying to imitate Jesus without being led by the Spirit can be a fatal error. That is the very reason so many believers today believe in and practice water baptism – because Jesus was baptized in water by John the Baptizer. I asked my father a similar question when I was young in the Lord, and he replied, “You’re not Jesus.” Offering God any service without being led by the Spirit to do so is vain.
Nobody’s hands are tied who is walking in the Spirit. And our “full capability” is attained to only when we learn to use the spiritual weapons Jesus provides by the Spirit.
(8) “Are we truly only to be docile and without fight? I do not see how good can win or a good standard be held without some action behind the prayers. It’s like if I as a firefighter prayed for the fire to go out but then failed to use the equipment in my hands to stop it. . . . I am just seeking clarification on the ‘spiritual rules of engagement.’”
My answer: Our rules of engagement are to trust the Lord, that what he supplies us is sufficient to please God and overcome the world. Of course, there is more to it than praying. There is living a holy life in the midst of a wicked world! Not only are the weapons of our warfare spiritual, the warfare itself is spiritual. Do NOT resort to carnal methods of fighting; if you do, you have already lost the battle. You have been overcome by the world.
If by “docile”, you mean submissive to the will of God, then yes, we are to be docile. But if you mean unwilling to resist evil, I have to ask, Is that what you think I am teaching?
(9) “It just seems we observe much bad without taking a stand against it. I can’t help but think that if believers everywhere stood up and had outward standards, the world would be a better place.”
My answer: You have stood up and had “outward standards” at your workplace, and you have been sneered at because of it by some of your fellow workers. But your righteous example has been a testimony to all who know you, whether they receive it or not. That is overcoming the world. We overcome the world by overcoming the evils that are around us each day, not by forcing the world to change.
Finally, Jonathan, if Jesus is putting it on your heart to do something more or something other than what we are doing, please do as he says I am all for it, and all for you. But remember, you cannot effect change in the world for righteousness by resorting to tactics other than what the Spirit provides.
“You have need of patience,” the man of God told the saints, for our testimonies are like the seeds of a tree. One tree can release thousands of seeds in the fall, but many times, none of them take root. A good year is when a few of them do. “Let us not grow weary in well-doing,” Paul said, “for in due time, we will reap if we do not faint.” Well-doing in God’s sight is the thing that overcomes the world, even if for the time being, we do not see any of our seeds taking root.
Thank you for your questions. I hope I have resolved at least some of your issues. If not, it might help clear things up for me if you were more specific concerning what more you think we should be doing.
Pastor John