OPINION:
The world is becoming increasingly proficient at telling stories that deny God. But does anyone really notice? It would seem so.
A recent Pew Research study found that a large percentage (80%) of U.S. adults believe religion’s influence is waning in the United States and a majority (57%) are concerned by that decline in influence. In addition, the research showed an increase in the percentage of those who sense some conflict between their religious convictions and mainstream American culture from 2020 (42%) to 2024 (48%).
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There was not a single religious group, including atheists, agonistics, and those identifying as “nothing in particular,” that saw a decrease in the percentage of those reporting “a great deal/some” conflict between mainstream culture and their religious convictions from 2020 to 2024. Christians, Jews, the religiously unaffiliated, and those affiliated with both of the major political parties noted the tension between their religious beliefs and the surrounding culture. How these various groups would describe these tensions differs.
For instance, the study notes that 50% of Americans said that non-religious liberals have overstepped in trying to keep religious values out of public schools, whereas 48% believe the same about conservative Christians. When the data is broken down by category, the polarization between “conservative Christians” and “secular liberals” becomes more evident with 73% of “conservative Christians” and 88% of “secular liberals” believing their opponents have overstepped in their efforts related to religion in government and public schools. Neither group believes “their own side has gone too far in the other direction.”
This begs the question: how far is too far? Would either side actually know when they have overstepped?
SEE ALSO: Religion’s role in U.S. life is shrinking, 80% of Americans tell Pew Research
Before addressing the question of overstepping, it is worth noting that it somewhat encouraging to see that increasing percentages of Christians who believe there is “a great deal/some” conflict between their religious beliefs and the surrounding culture. We need to recognize that mainstream culture (whether conservative or liberal) has no vested interest in making disciples for Jesus Christ. As such, the body of Christ will ultimately find itself at odds with non-Christian culture. While we may experience times of relative peace with the world, we cannot assume that we can depend on our nation to support, sustain, or promote the proclamation of the gospel.
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While the Pew research demonstrates correlations between, for instance, white evangelical Christian and Republican, views of Donald Trump and the Democratic Party more generally, overlapping perspectives should not blind Christians from the fact that Christians cannot settle for conservative solutions. Christians may seek conservative (or liberal) reforms, but we do not have the luxury of stopping there. We are to point to and magnify the Triune God.
With this framing in mind, we may turn to the question of overstepping in seeking to retain, if not expand, a place for religion in government and in public schools. If Christians are to point to and glorify the Triune God, we have a broad litmus test to determine when we’ve gone to far. While it may be tempting to justify our actions based on who gets elected president, how many conservative judges have been appointed to the Supreme Court, or the institution of conservative laws and policies, none of these necessarily mean that we have accomplished the basic task of pointing to and glorifying the Triune God.
Our practices are generally bound up with some sort of justifying narrative that situates us and our practices before God and in relation to others. When Christians seek influence and authority on the world’s terms or by adopting the world’s tactics, we obscure and distort the Triune God rather than pointing to and glorifying Him. It is not that political participation is something Christians must avoid. Instead, political participation, like any other practice can create distance between God, ourselves, and others.
Consider Jesus’s teaching in Matthew 6. As He walks with His disciples, He encourages them not to give, pray, or fast like the hypocrites and Gentiles, but He does not encourage them not to give, pray, or fast at all. Instead, He encourages the disciples not to give, pray, and fast so that others will see them and think them pious. Their practices are to reflect their faith in the Triune God so that they do not seek earthly rewards, but wait for the reward only God can provide.
Is it lamentable that mainstream culture seems to increasingly adopt values and practices that are not aligned with God’s order? Certainly. Does this mean that Christians should seek to become more influential in society? Not necessarily. Christians cannot simply pursue influence. Building influence within the culture is not an appropriate ultimate end for the body of Christ. While it is tempting to think that we need to “win back” the culture, that way of articulating the Christian task will too often lead us to settle for wholesomeness when only holiness will do.
There is nothing wrong with being influential so long as we remain Christian. To put it differently, the body of Christ must be a community dedicated to worship and discipleship. Influence is coincidental with our willingness to offer a faithful presence in the world. It is not our job to “win back” the culture but to be an alternative community in the midst of the culture. We can only influence the culture through practices emerging from a life of worship and discipleship.
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James Spencer earned his Ph.D. in Theological Studies from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He believes discipleship will open up opportunities beyond anything God’s people could accomplish through their own wit and wisdom. As such, his writing aims at helping believers look with eyes that see and listen with ears that hear as they consider, question, and revise the social, cultural, and political assumptions hindering Christians from conforming more closely to the image of Christ. James has published multiple works, including his most recent book “Serpents and Doves: Christians, Politics, and the Art of Bearing Witness,” “Christian Resistance: Learning to Defy the World and Follow Christ,” “Useful to God: Eight Lessons from the Life of D. L. Moody,” “Thinking Christian: Essays on Testimony,” “Accountability, and the Christian Mind,’ and“Trajectories: A Gospel-Centered Introduction to Old Testament Theology.” In addition to serving as the president of the D. L. Moody Center, James is the host of “Useful to God” a weekly radio broadcast and podcast, a member of the faculty at Right On Mission, and an adjunct instructor with the Wheaton College Graduate School.
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