It’s not about winning…

Everyone loves to win.  Oh, occasionally you will find the rare person who seems to have no modicum of competition, but that is the exception, not the rule.  Lets face it: if you get into an argument with someone you probably did so because you felt you were right and they were wrong.  And furthermore, once you are in the argument, you want to win it.

Are we loosing?

When peering back at 2013, one of the things that sticks out to me is the intensity of the culture battle.  It seems that everyday the headlines herald the latest celebrity to proclaim their freedom in homosexuality.  “Traditional morality” is spurned and people are praised and even awarded for expressing their newfound “freedom”.  And, God forbid that anyone say anything against him or her [i.e. Phil Robertson].  Our freedoms are being stripped from us [within the context of American culture] and the speed at which it is happening is gaining, as it rolls down the hill.

A slow but biblical loss

However, when we wake up in the morning and gasp at the latest news, we act as if all that is falling a part happened in one night.  Honestly, man is only doing what he naturally does.  And what we find each morning as we scroll through the news on our phones is the evidence of total depravity – something the people of God have been encountering long before us.

Are we winning?

Christians are not exempt from this desire to win, especially when we feel our cause is noble.  Yet, somehow our desire to win in the culture war and our cause for justice has been skewed by a strong hint of pride and ego. We stomp into Cracker Barrel and, with great dramatic pose, demand they restock the shelves with Duck Dynasty “or else”.  Then, when they grant our demands, we fill the social media feeds with our proverbial fist pumps.  And yes, with great pride, proclaim our triumph with a tone that reeks with the air of “we showed them” or “WE WON”.  Oh… and “Praise the Lord” the cause of justice was done and “truth won”.  But did we really win?

We are losing the battle!

My friends, we need to remember that it’s not about making Cracker Barrel restock their shelves or even A&E reinstating Phil Robertson.  It’s about the gospel.  Creating groups or ranting on Facebook will serve little.  So we twisted the arms of a completely secular cable network or a national food chain.  In the end, what did it accomplish?  Honestly, they could care less about what we think.  The almighty dollar rules the day.  They made a decision based upon money not because they were swayed by the power of the gospel.  I am afraid we are so consumed with fighting little skirmishes that we fail to see the bigger biblical picture.  David Mathis put it well in his recent blog:

“Here’s a call for sheep in the midst of wolves to be wise as serpents and innocent as doves (Matthew 10:16).  Wisdom isn’t picking a fight whenever we can, but picking the right fight.  Yes, we must beware: “they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues, and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake” (Matthew 10:17–18), but this is not that day. This is not the issue.”

Jesus has won!

Lets remember that Jesus has already won.  This is not a cop-out from engaging culture or standing on what we believe is true and right. It does not imply that we should not be vocal.  Actually, it is quite the opposite.  Let us engage the culture…with the gospel.  Let us engage the ideas and strongholds that hold sway over people’s minds and hearts…with the gospel.  It is the power of God unto salvation.  The gospel will change hearts not merely give us our favorite A&E personality back.  In the end, it’s not about winning.  It’s about proclaiming the victory that is in Christ over the bondage of sin.  We do want to redeem aspects of culture but ultimately we want the Spirit of God to change hearts. That is where true change takes place.  Make sure your heart and motives are serving the cause of Christ.  In the end, if all we do is push back the tide of secularism for another day, have we really accomplished the great commission?

Daniel Cavanaugh