I can say this, because I'm trusting that in thirty or forty years you will not remember my request. I don't want you to slap me. But I'm sure I will, at some point in my life, wish for a return to the good ol' 00's. I think that's natural.
But I do get confused when I hear people today, many of whom share my faith as well as my political beliefs, long for a return to the "good ol' days." This nebulous golden age can stretch from the late 1940's to the early 1990's (November 1992, to be exact...). And of course, the 1960's and 1970's are not included.
For some, the "good ol' days" refers to a period where one particular political ideology ruled the day. For others, it refers to a period where people were nicer, kids had better manners, and folks were more God-fearin'. For others, it refers to a period where there was actually good stuff on television.
Sure...I've fallen prey to this myself. It's easy to get caught up in the hype. The 1950's sound great! Everybody was so happy! Kids were respectful to their parents, Elvis Presley's pelvis-gyrations was about as raunchy as the pop-culture got, and everyone was patriotic. The most young people had to worry about was what to order at the soda shop, or maybe what to wear to the sock hop. Life was simpler. None of this technology to complicate everything.
Of course, there was also that whole racism thing. You know...the society that still believed one skin tone was better than another and had laws in place to make sure things stayed separate. There was the birth of ugly suburban sprawl and the repression of suburban women. There was the Communist witch-hunt in which innocent Americans had their reputations destroyed by a rabidly irrational (sometimes cold and calculating) fear of opposing viewpoints.
Basically...people were still sinful.
I'm not saying the 1950's were any worse than our current state. Goodness knows we're plenty screwed-up today! I'm just saying that people have always been the same. If kids in the 1950's had the resources available to kids today, they would be getting into exactly the same kinds of trouble. Is this technology's fault? I don't think so...I think it's called sin. The problem's not "out there," it's "in here" [pointing at myself.] And I'm pretty sure kids in the 1950's got into plenty of trouble...they just weren't able to post pictures of it on facebook.
It's easy to look around today and be overwhelmed. Everywhere you look, there's more evidence that our world is filled with sinners...that's us. Sometimes we might be tempted to throw up our hands and say "forget it!" America's done for. We're going to hell in a handbasket. Surely, this must be the end of the world. It's gotta be coming any day now.
What arrogance! First of all, this assumes we can look around world events and predict Christ's return (that, in and of itself, is a pretty big leap). Second of all, it assumes that we're somehow in a much worse position than the world has ever been in. Have we been that spoiled in America? A little over 200 years of relative liberty and democracy, and the moment things start to go down hill in the slightest...it MUST be the end of the WORLD!!!
Are we so arrogant that we believe America's fate on the geopolitical stage must be tied to God's timing for the end of the world? America could sink into the sea tomorrow, and the Church would still continue. God's work would still continue.
Christians have always thought they were living in the "last days." It's always seemed like the tribulation was right around the corner. But now? Good heavens, we have a President who says he's a Christian (but we all raise an eyebrow at that one). We have a Congress who's running up our debt like crazy, doing things like trying to give everyone healthcare. And don't get us started on the culture. Look at Lady Gaga. If Obama's not the anti-Christ, then surely she is. And did you know they can say the F-word once in PG-13 movies? What about these kids who can send naked pictures of themselves to each other on cell phones??? And then there's all this war and terrorism. Two words...WHAT'S NEW?
I don't mean to trivialize the sin that's running rampant in our world today. Abortion is a terrible crime that our country is allowing. God cannot take the murder of millions of innocent children lightly, and He doesn't take the rest of our sins lightly. He never has.
Nothing in our world or culture today is new. It's materializing in different ways than it has in the past, but it's sin, and it's coming from our hearts. There have been pagan cultures throughout history that make the USA look like one big Sunday school class. There have been brutal wars and holocausts. There has been rampant sexual debauchery. There have been ruthless tyrants. There have been overreaching domineering governments. And there have also been times when the Church has sat back and done nothing about it.
Sin is nothing new. We don't need the internet or raunchy music or bikinis to sin. That's already in our hearts.
Okay, so maybe the deterioration of American culture doesn't necessitate the end of the world. So what?
We need to get our heads out of the sand. We need to stop worrying about when and how Christ is coming back and simply trust in the fact that He IS coming back! We shouldn't just throw up our hands on our nation or, on the other hand, worry and fret about it's political direction.
It doesn't matter who's in charge, the call of the Church still stands. We, as Christians, are still called to minister to those around us, preach the gospel, and give glory to God. This happened for centuries, without the luxury of a "Christian" government.
We need to stop reacting against our culture and start redeeming it. We don't do that by lobbing cultural projectiles from afar. We don't do that by preaching anti-Harry Potter sermons and wearing Christian T-shirts that parody popular clothing brands. We do that by getting involved and getting our hands dirty. We do that by building relationships with our neighbors, and we do that by showing love and charity.
We do that by not relegating issues of social justice to the "liberal" realm. Why have we let the secular world take ownership of matters of social justice and civil rights? These things must not be placed ahead of the gospel, but any true understanding of the gospel will naturally lead to them.
Lastly, we must realize that our answer does not lie in politics. While I agree with much of what the Tea Parties stand for, I do get a little worried by the religious aspects that some attach to the movement. Christians should be involved with politics, true. It's just as holy of a calling as any other career, and we should have an interest in improving society. But our hope is not in Sarah Palin. Our hope is in Christ. In some ways, I fear a government that claims to be "Christian" more than I fear a government that is openly secular. We humans have a tendency to take that which is sacred and pervert it for our own goals and purposes.
So while it's easy to look back to some idea of the "good ol' days," let's remember that there has always been sin. There have always been atrocities. Our problems are not because of technology or too much government or raunchy entertainment...our problems are because of us! Let's not despair, because God is in control and our call is still the same.
When it comes right down to it, I need to be a little more focused on building a relationship with my neighbor and demonstrating the love of Christ than I am on denouncing Lady Gaga. (Besides...she's quite entertaining.)
1 comment:
It is very interesting story. Thanks for sharing.
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