Christianity and Culture

Throughout history, the Christian church has existed in many different cultures, so it has had to engage with these various cultures. Thus, Christians have always asked questions about how the church should relate to different worldviews and to different cultures. Answering these questions has not been easy since at first glance, even the Bible’s messages about culture may appear contradictory. On the one hand, the psalmist wrote, “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein” (Ps. 24:1). On the other hand, Jesus told Pontius Pilate, “My kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36). The world and its cultures belong to God, but Christ’s kingdom is “not of this world.”

The larger biblical story shows how these two ideas fit together. God is the Creator of everything (Gen. 1). As the Creator, He rightfully possesses all things (Ps. 50:10). His providence causes everything to fulfill His purposes (Isa. 46:10). He will judge His world (Ps. 96:13). He even uses pagan political leaders to maintain justice and order in society (Rom. 13:3–4). God is also the Redeemer of those whom He chooses out of the world to belong to the kingdom of His Son, Jesus Christ (John 15:19; Col. 1:13). He brings these people to faith through the work of the redemptive kingdom that Jesus established: the church (Matt. 16:17–19). Jesus entrusted His church with the task of faithfully bringing the good news of His death and resurrection to the world (Matt. 28:18–20).

In this age, God calls His people to live as honorable citizens in their earthly cultures (1 Tim. 2:1–2; 1 Peter 2:13–17). But He calls them to do so as pilgrims and exiles whose “citizenship is in heaven” (Phil. 3:20; 1 Peter 2:11). God tells His people to seek peace with those around them “as far as it depends on you” (Rom. 12:18). Christians also know that “the present form of this world is passing away” (1 Cor. 7:31). Their Lord, Jesus Christ, is going to return and judge the world (Mark 13:26). On that day, there will be an eternal separation between those redeemed by Christ and those who do not belong to Christ (Matt. 25:31–46).

God created the world, giving it both its physical structure and its moral order. Christians have often called this created moral order natural law. Even after the fall, humans still know God’s moral order (Rom. 1:19–20; 2:14–16) and are governed by it. To sustain the world, God uses the institutions that belong to the created or natural order—especially the family and the state (Rom. 13:3–4; 1 Peter 2:13–14). This preservation of creation is God’s common grace. The moment that Adam and Eve sinned, God could have justly ended the human race (Gen. 2:16–17). It is grace—God’s unearned favor—that upholds the world in spite of sin. But this common grace is temporary, lasting only until Christ’s return (Gen. 8:21–22). It does not save anyone from the eternal consequences of sin.

From the beginning, though, God has also promised another kind of grace, calling people to faith in His promises of redemption (Gen. 3:15). Cain and his offspring were builders of culture, but Cain killed his brother Abel, who in faith offered a pleasing sacrifice to God (Gen. 4:4, 17–22; Heb. 11:4). Like Abel, Abraham put his faith in God’s gracious promise of life beyond this present creation, a kingdom “whose designer and builder is God” (Heb. 11:10). The temple sacrifices of Israel pointed to this same promise, that God would save His people from their sin (Heb. 10:1). When Jesus Christ came, He was the true and final sacrifice for sins (Heb. 10:12–14). Today, Christ’s church has the mission of proclaiming this redemption to the world (Matt. 28:18–20).

This distinction between creation and redemption does not answer every question about how the church relates to culture. But this biblical framework gives Christians a basic understanding of their identity and vocations in this life. Jesus, the risen King and Savior, now reigns in heaven at the Father’s right hand (Heb. 10:12). His kingdom is the church (Eph. 1:22). He gives the church a form of government (1 Tim. 5:17; Heb. 13:17), but this King also rules over everything (Matt. 28:18), including the kingdoms of this world that oppose Him, and He calls His people to faithfully serve the cultures they live in (Jer. 29:7; Col. 3:22–24). As they do so, they bless their neighbors and witness to Christ’s kingdom of grace (John 17:15–19; 1 Peter 2:12).

In other words, Christians live in the world, but it is not their ultimate home (1 Peter 2:11; Heb. 11:13). The Old Testament book of Daniel illustrates this. As Jewish exiles in Babylon, Daniel and his friends were given pagan names and a pagan education (Dan. 1:3–4, 7). They did not reject these elements of human culture. In fact, the Bible says that “God gave them learning and skill in all literature and wisdom” (1:17). Daniel and his friends served Babylonian and then Persian kings faithfully and became prominent officials (2:48–49; 6:1–2). At the same time, they remained separate. Daniel prayed three times a day toward Jerusalem, God’s holy city, which was Daniel’s home (6:10). He refused to “defile himself” with the king’s food and wine (1:8). When he and his fellow Jews faced danger and even death for their faith in God, they chose death over compromise (3:16–18; 6:10).

Christians as pilgrims and exiles should neither reject nor accept everything about their culture. God calls Christians to serve faithfully in their earthly vocations—as parents, workers, citizens, and neighbors—but they are also called to focus on heavenly things rather than earthly things (Col. 3:1–2). Christians are not “of the world” (John 17:16). They are separate, which means that they live for different things, and this results in a different way of life (1 Peter 4:3–4). At times, this will cause those outside the church to react with hostility toward God’s people (John 15:18–19). When this happens, Christians should love those who oppose them (Luke 6:27; Rom. 12:20–21).

Often, Christians face cultural questions for which the Bible gives no straightforward answers. The Bible does not give us many specifics regarding the school their children should attend, which movies are OK to watch, or which diet plans to follow. If God’s Word gives no answers directly or by good and necessary consequence, Christians have liberty and should respect one another’s choices (Rom. 14:1–6). Christians make such decisions with a clear conscience by using wisdom, drawing on general biblical principles, and praying.