I know from the beginning there will be those to prejudge the content of these thoughts because they don’t believe we should care how the world perceives Christianity. Obviously there is a sense in which they are right (1 Corinthians 4:3). The world is the world and as an entity the world is never going to approve of Christianity as a whole. True Christianity is against everything the world is about and that will result in a natural opposition.
But there is a sense in which they are very, very wrong. The terms of the Great Commission imply that we care about how the world views Christianity because how they view Christianity will impact how receptive they are to Christians and the message of the gospel. That’s why, in Matthew 10, when Jesus sent the apostles on the Limited Commission He gave such stringent instructions as to how they were to conduct themselves. He knew that people’s perception of them would affect how receptive they were to their message.
With all of that in mind I believe it is safe to say now, almost 2,000 years removed from Christianity’s beginning, that people’s attitude toward the church is very poor. Now don’t get me wrong. Much of the fault lies with those people. We have both the ability and the responsibility to examine facts and be persuaded by truth. When a person refuses to do that ultimately the blame rests squarely on their shoulders.
However, there is something that I think we have far too long discounted from the discussion. That is how Christians represent Christianity. The only thing that the vast majority of people in this world know about Christianity is what they learn from observing Christians. I’m not saying that’s how it should work, but it is where we are. Fewer people are judging Christianity based on what the Bible says and more are judging it based on how Christians live. The sad reality is that the two do not always meet and attention is paid to the latter much more so than the former.
In the process the world hears a message of division, not unity. They see fighting, not peace. They experience spite and indifference, not love. They witness sin, not separation. In addition to how Christians represent Christianity they also have to contend with the imposters of Christianity, those who call themselves Christians but aren’t. The televangelists, the worldly religions, the opposing messages, and the outright confusion that exists – these all contribute to the world not really understanding Christianity and thus ignoring it all together.
I understand the problem is much too large to offer a realistic quick fix. A total solution would involve the eradication of denominationalism, the reversal of much of this world’s religious history, and generations worth of time to allow us to start with a clean canvas. These aren’t realistic terms because even God has promised us that there will always be those in the world who live in active opposition to Christianity (2 Peter 2:1-2). All we can do is work to alleviate the severity of that problem.
But at the same time there is something that every Christian in this world can do to immediately help in improving the world’s perception of Christianity. “What is it?” you ask. Be Christians! No, I’m not just talking about identifying ourselves as Christians. I’m talking about being Christians. The word “be” is an active verb. It is descriptive. It implies an identity based on action. Many people call themselves Christians but they don’t “do Christianity.” That’s what is hurting God’s cause more than anything in this world. If we’re going to call ourselves Christians then we need to be Christians. It needs to be evident in every conceivable area of our lives, from the way that we walk to the way that we talk, from how we dress to how we act, from the relationships we have to the influence we exert into the world. Who we are and what we do needs to reflect Christianity as God defined it.
Christians are a “chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people.” We are intended to show forth the praises of Him who has called us out of darkness and into His marvelous light (1 Peter 2:9). As such we are to walk in the light as He is in the light. And if we walk in the light as he is in the light then we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:7). That immediately sets us apart from the world and makes us different. But if we are truly different as expected, then the world is going to see that difference and equate it with Christianity. And when the world equates Christianity with those who are actually being Christians then that will immediately begin to improve how the world perceives Christianity.
-Andy Brewer