An ongoing theme of the Catch of the Day has been a Christian's place and testimony in the world. Much has been done in the last 20 years to damage a credible and trustworthy image of Christians in society. The attempt of Christians to gain an influence in culture using tools and weapons that are not of the Spirit of God has been costly to the gospel in that those who so desperately need the hope the gospel provides have been driven away by the fear and anger of those who should be carriers of that hope.
We know that Jesus did not come to condemn the world (John 3:17), but most of those who are not Christians today are convinced his followers did. We have exchanged the good news of the gospel for the bad news of a culture war, and the battle continues to rage in many sectors and in many minds. In light of this, The Catch is seeking to help advance a different worldview and redefine a Christian's role in society.
Today I share with you a work in progress-a new manifesto for global change. Reflect on it. Comment on it. Pray over it. We will be looking more deeply into all 10 of these as the days go by, but this will get us started.
"For as he thinks in his heart, so is he." (Proverbs 23:7) What you think ultimately effects who you are.
10 Prerequisites for Being an Effective Christian in the World
1. A personal understanding of my own sinfulness
2. An overwhelming sense of God's grace for me, and for everyone else
3. A heart that forgives and forgets
4. An absence of agenda
5. An expectation that God is already in the world (I am joining Him there, not taking Him there.)
6. A sense of the church as the Body of Christ Universal
7. An insatiable curiosity for all that is not yet known to me
8. A belief in the intrinsic value of every human life
9. An assumption that I have something to learn from everybody
10. A deep and abiding desire for everyone to know what God has done for them through Christ
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