Faith That Engages The Culture

An intriguing, substantive look into the relationship between the church and the world of art.

Think Christianly is about seizing the opportunities we have every day to speak the life Jesus offers into our culture. Tragically, many such opportunities pass us by unclaimed—either because we don’t notice them or we have not prepared ourselves to enter into them. And those around us seem to grow increasingly unwilling to hear anything the church has to say. Jonathan Morrow helps church leaders envision and implement ways for their congregations to “think Christianly” about contemporary questions and to speak in informed, engaging ways. Morrow explores many of the important issues that Christians often hear raised with regard to faith—questions about who Jesus was, the good and bad of religion, pain and evil in the world, the reliability of the Bible, sexuality and intimate relationships, and hope for change, among others. The life and faith issues that Think Christianly addresses lead to cultural moments where Christianity and contemporary culture intersect. This book will help churches take vital steps toward cultivating compassion and competence in speaking faithfully to a questioning world.

Engaging the Culture will inspire a greater understanding and participation in the Great Commission by Christians of all ages empowering people to engage their world with the "Good News" right where they are. Most American Christians are unable to explain their faith to a non-believer. Studies have shown, seventy percent of Christian young people fall away from their faith once they enter college. Right now, the Christian church has an unprecedented opportunity to be right where the action is. It's time to speak up. The gospel not only confronts us spiritually with the cross but also equips us practically for its cause. Jesus started it, Paul and subsequent generations continued it, and it is now left to us to finish it. In God's eyes, sharing our faith has never been, nor shall ever be just an option. One day we will stand before God for our generation. Engaging the Culture examines the biblical mandate for evangelism, identifying the common challenges people face sharing their faith while equipping the reader to be ready to give an answer to the skeptic or Bible critic with confidence, clarity and compassion.

The Christian life is one of dualities: we are simultaneously sinner and saint, we know believers and non-believers, we interact in the left and right kingdoms, and we hear Law and Gospel.

This 50th-anniversary edition, with a new foreword by the distinguished historian Martin E. Marty, who regards this book as one of the most vital books of our time, as well as an introduction by the author never before included in the book, and a new preface by James Gustafson, the premier Christian ethicist who is considered Niebuhr’s contemporary successor, poses the challenge of being true to Christ in a materialistic age to an entirely new generation of Christian readers.

Every day, major headlines tell the story of how Christianity is attempting to influence American culture and politics. But statistics show that young Americans are disenchanted with a faith that has become culturally antagonistic and too closely aligned with partisan politics. In this personal yet practical work, Jonathan Merritt uncovers the changing face of American Christianity by uniquely examining the coming of age of a new generation of Christians. Jonathan Merritt illuminates the spiritual ethos of this new generation of believers who engage the world with Christ-centered faith but an un-polarized political perspective. Through personal stories and biblically rooted commentary this scion of a leading evangelical family takes a close, thoughtful look at the changing religious and political environment, addressing such divisive issues as abortion, gay marriage, environmental use and care, race, war, poverty, and the imbalance of world wealth. Through Scripture, the examples of Jesus, and personal defining faith experiences, he distills the essential truths at the core of a Christian faith that is now just coming of age.

This book is a brilliant use of metaphor that makes clear why the world leaves us feeling so uneasy!

Brett Ullman takes on some of the most challenging questions young people today are struggling with, such as how, as Christians, they are to approach the media and culture they are surrounded by, and how media and culture are affecting their faith. He helps his readers better understand their faith heritage, and encourages them to engage their culture through the lens of a knowledgeable and discerning Christian worldview.

Take your group to a place ? ? Where they can see people's needs in a new way ? Where they can understand their calling ? Where they will learn how their faith can shape culture This six-session DVD and corresponding curriculum helps your group experience and envision how followers of Christ can be a counterculture for the common good. Together you'll experience stories of other believers who changed the culture around them. You'll watch how their journeys unfolded, their challenges, and their breakthroughs. Also included on the DVD are insights from trusted pastors and Christian leaders such as Tim Keller, Lauren Winner, James Meeks, Brenda Salter McNeil, and Ken Fong. Sessions consist of: 1. Begin: God calls the church to be a counterculture for the common good 2. Dwell: When we live closely with others, we find new opportunities to minister 3. Unite: We serve more effectively and joyfully when we serve together 4. Reconcile: God wants to heal our racial and ethnic divisions, especially in and through his church 5. Invest: Transforming entire communities begins when we give ourselves to people one by one 6. Abide: Spiritual disciplines help us abide in Christ so we can serve him faithfully