Not Ashamed of the Gospel, But...

I am increasingly ashamed to be called an evangelical. This is not for theological reasons. My system of beliefs remains solidly evangelical: I firmly attest that the Bible in its original transmission was God-breathed, reliably inerrant, and the vehicle of God’s authority to man. Moreover, we are made right with God by grace through faith—not of ourselves (Ephesians 2:8). This is arguably the core set of beliefs for evangelical Christians.

Today in America the term ‘evangelical’ has been expanded to include ultra-conservative political ideologies. The ongoing culture wars reveal the increasing political visibility and influence of this self-affirmed demographic. Many leaders within evangelical organizations (churches and parachurch organizations) are energized around political issues. This has generated much publicity, especially with the 2004 electoral campaigns.

Now I do not deny that the role of the Christian includes the reshaping of our world. Indeed history tells us how the Roman Empire was radically altered once Christianity was officially recognized as a tolerated religion. The first three centuries marked growing persecution of Christians, who were seen as subversive and promoting anarchy against Caesar. It was the high moral standards (notably in marital fidelity, charity, and overall moral ethics) that earned credibility for followers of Jesus the Christ. However, once Rome tolerated and later endorsed Christianity as the preferred state religion, the gospel message and personal piety of its followers became distorted.

My fear is that our contemporaries have ignored the lessons of the early church. Christian leaders today (specifically evangelicals) are striving to create a Christian state within our existing government structure. By making this the goal, evangelicals are unwittingly falling into Satan’s trap: the church was at its best when its goal was not targeting governmental assimilation, but rather the great periods of growth occurred during the days of persecution while the simple message of Christ crucified marched on, changing lives through the power of God’s Holy Spirit (Romans 1:16, Colossians 1:6). What’s more, the Bible does not instruct us to Christianize governments. The gospel message (in all its fullness) is to spread though the nations making disciples of people (Colossians 1:6).

I submit that we must return to what it means to be uniquely disciples of the Messiah and to return to the pure gospel message (2 Corinthians 5:20 – “we are ambassadors for Christ…we beg you…be reconciled to God”). We are to be holy as God is holy (1 Peter 1:16). We are to “be careful how [we] walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of [our] time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:15-16). And we must remind ourselves that “our struggle is not against flesh and blood…” (Ephesians 6:12). I am almost ready to declare that I am no longer an evangelical, but instead simply a disciple of Jesus the Messiah.