There Are Sharp Cultural Differences Between Christian and Non Christian Peoples

Why is culture a key concept here?

Culture originally was agricultural in perspective. Webster’s definition said:

“1. The act of tilling and preparing the earth for crops; cultivation; the application of labor or other means of improvement.

2. The application of labor or other means to improve good qualities in, or growth; as the culture of the mind; the culture of virtue.”

Originally it was the earth which was in need of manipulation through the work of culture. In the social sense it related to the need for applying improvement to man. For man, the body and the senses need to be cultivated and improved.

What part of man needs improvement?

Man needs cultivation of the culture of his mind. Secondly he needs cultivation with regard to virtue training.

Why is there a problem with the culture of man anyway? The mind was deadened because of sin. The effect of a corrupt mind is the absence of or perverting of God intended virtues. The naturalist sense of culture is man’s attempt at social structuring to overcome or excuse this corruptive aspect. But because of the deadness of the mind, long term efforts based upon natural resources are without effect, strength and durability. The nature of man is destructively perverse.

Originally man did not need cultural cultivation.

Originally God created the heavens and the earth and God declared his creation “good”. (Genesis 1:25) When the creation of man was mention God declared that it all was even “very good.” (Genesis 1:31) That means that in his original state, man was not in need of cultivating.

Why do we need cultivation today?

We learn in Genesis chapter three, that a major change took place. Things ceased to be “very good.” Man chose to disobey Gods direct command. By doing so we learn that he chose to try to become as God rather than to enjoy Him and enjoy what had been prepared for man. This was a direct act of rebellious insurrection. The penalty, about which man was warned of ahead of time, was death. Spiritual death came immediately. This spiritual death is evidenced in that man discovered himself to be naked. Man was no longer comfortable to enter into the presence of a holy God. Innocence was gone. Physical death eventually followed.

The Bible records that mankind desperately needed cultural cultivation from that time forward.

The corrupted culture of man almost immediately included murder, and all kinds of wickedness. During the next nearly two thousand years, the ways of man became so bad that it was observed in the following passages:

Genesis 6:5  “And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”

Genesis 6:6  “And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.”

God determined  “Genesis 6:7  And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.”

Genesis 6:8  “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.”

1 Peter 3:20  “Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.”

There are apparent limits to man’s ability to develop culturally.

God then destroyed the world with a great universal flood. The evidence of this is in every nation and land. Of mankind, Noah only and his three sons and their wives were saved from this terrible judgment in a huge ship which they built. But after the flood, we see that the nature of wickedness continued in mankind. This characteristic was seen in deadness and separation from God. Selfish interests began to flourish again.

Was there need of cultivation in man then? Is there need of cultivation in man today? History is replete with every manner of story and example.

Man did no better even after the flood.

At Babel, mankind gathered and rebelled against God. They refused God’s command to disperse around the world and to repopulate the world. God dispersed them by dividing them into people groups by language. They had no means to unify and so they dispersed. In the following years they still sinned when they continued to live in their nations according to what was right in their own eyes.

Then God called Abraham to live separated from the world. He was picked to develop a new culture. Abraham was to become a great nation of peoples who were to show forth the glories of God. They, as they walked in obedience, would be protected and cared for by God. The rest of the world was to learn from them. They were to demonstrate by their work and the life style what was necessary to enjoy the blessings of God.

As we read the history of Israel, the nation, we begin to learn that they had a body of commandments in the Scriptures. They were motivated by blessing and chastisement.  Yet, they repeatedly sinned against God. Eventually the nation ceased to be a viable entity even though they received eternal promises. Over time they failed the test. When Messiah came to set up His kingdom, they rejected Him, and God dispersed the nation under Titus the Roman general. They would have to wait for another time. Personal responsibility under this plan of culturization failed.

In summary, living according to conscience failed. Family influence failed. Human government failed. Having a separate nation living according to theocratic rule failed. Having a nation living under the rule of a human king failed. Even living under the captivity of a foreign nation did not correct them.

Then began the Christian era.
Israel was set aside as a nation but not forsaken. Christ came and died for man’s sin as a substitute in punishment. He extended to those who turned to Him for new life an opportunity to live with the Holy Spirit in them.  Upon His resurrection from the dead and then ascension unto God the Father, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to gather out a people who were to be born again. They were not to be a nation among nations. They were to become a part of the heavenly kingdom, yet they were to be but pilgrims and sojourners here in this world. They were to call out those who would hear and receive the Gospel of salvation from sin and the sin nature, to become a part of the kingdom of heaven.

What were the options for the called ones?

Those who were the called out were no longer citizens of this world but citizens of heaven. They were to have their own culture. This culture would be one of holiness, even as God is holy. This holiness came by a new means. The Holy Spirit of God would now dwell in them and fill them with His nature. But to enjoy promised blessings, they must willingly yield to the leading of the Holy Spirit. They must allow their lives to be filled with His presence. But such opportunities could be lacking if they were to grieve the Holy Spirit or quench His ways in them.

The cultural development of the Christians is possible if Christians will follow but two commandments.

Mark 12:30  “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.”

Mark 12:31  “And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.”

The world’s rule for life is contrasted.

These two commandments in every way set apart the Christian from the rest of the world. The world follows this rule:

Isaiah 22:13  “And behold joy and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: let us eat and drink; for to morrow we shall die.”

They follow this rule even during times of impending judgment. God will not always be long suffering with days of wickedness. Such a philosophy of personal indulgence shall not continue indefinitely. The world calls this “hedonism.” Hedonism is the doctrine that “pleasure is the chief end of life.” (Winston-Universal Dictionary, 1944)

Self pleasure is inward. It is selfish. It leads to abuse of others, even their death. Hedonism is declared by some to be a prime motivation of Generation X. Some deny this by saying that they do public works. But look at the total of their motivations and activities, and it is easily recognizable. But it is also recognizable in other generations too. Each generation exercises their corrupt cultural traits by pampering themselves according to their selfish interests.

Conclusion

A Christian is to act like a Christian. A Christian is to live according to a different culture. He is to live with all his attentions focused upon his God. His actions are not to be selfishly motivated. His motivations should be directed to caring for his brother, his neighbor, and even his enemy. All of this is to be God glorifying, and purposeful according to the scriptures.

There are two basic cultural trends in this world. One shows obedience to our Creator; the other is according to disobedience to our Creator. One is to glorify man according to his selfish imaginations. The other is to bring glory to God our Creator. Anything that does not please or glorify God is the way of death. While the world is involved in a cross-cultural frenzy, no cross-cultural intermixing is allowed for the Christian.