10 Issues That Divide Christians , livre ebook

PRAISE FOR
10 Isssues That Divide Christians
How to live in proximity to one another, that’s politics. In 10 Issues That Divide Christians , McFarland reminds us that the gospel is never merely personal. As we are transformed from the inside out, we bring hope to our communities—whether at school, work or play. Far from alienating others, living as salt and light in witness to the truth is an act of love, and a mandate for all who call themselves “Christian.”
Eric Teetsel
Director, Manhattan Declaration, www.manhattandeclaration.org
On these pages, Alex McFarland brings to the table a critical issue for the Body of Christ: How do we handle it when we disagree? His challenge to Christians should move us toward a deeper dialogue with fellow-believers and toward a more compassionate face for the world to see Jesus in us.
Tim Wildmon
President, American Family Association, American Family Radio Network

2014 Alex McFarland. Alex McFarland is represented by the literary agency of Alive Communications, Inc., 7680 Goddard St., Suite 200, Colorado Springs, CO 80920. www.alivecommunications.com
Published by Bethany House Publishers 11400 Hampshire Avenue South Bloomington, Minnesota 55438 www.bethanyhouse.com
Bethany House Publishers is a division of Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan. www.bakerpublishinggroup.com
Bethany House Publishers edition published 2014
ISBN 978-1-4412-6660-6
Previously published by Regal Books
Ebook edition originally created 2014
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version ® . NIV ® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patents and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc. ™
Other versions used are:
ESV —Scripture taken from the English Standard Version , Copyright © 2001. The ESV and English Standard Version are trademarks of Good News Publishers.
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NLT —Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation , copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Contents
Foreword by Tony Perkins
Foreword by John Stonestreet
Introduction: Why These 10 Issues Should Matter to Christians
1. Government: What Relationship Should Government and Religion Have?
2. American Exceptionalism: Is the United States Superior to Other Nations?
3. Social Justice: Are All Approaches to Showing Compassion Correct?
4. Abortion: Is the Termination of a Pregnancy Ever Right?
5. Homosexuality: Should Same-Sex Relationships Be Condemned?
6. Pornography: Is Erotic and Sensational Material Really Harmful?
7. War: Is an Armed Conflict Ever Justified?
8. Environmentalism: What Is Christian Stewardship?
9. Religious Pluralism: Do All Paths Lead to God?
10. Evil: Why Is There Pain and Suffering in the World?
Conclusion: What Christians Should Do About the 10 Issues
Endnotes
Foreword
BY TONY PERKINS
President, Family Research Council
Taking a stand—and taking action—in the world of politics is hard. Progress is slow and partial. Criticism can be fierce and personal. Your motives are questioned, your judgment challenged, and your principles demeaned.
This hardly sounds like an inviting environment for serious Christians! Yet it is a forum where the Lord calls His people to stand for truth, graciously but firmly, for His sake and for the sake of our fellow image-bearers of God (see John 1:17; Eph. 6:13).
Alex McFarland is one of the most penetrating and committed Christian thinkers of our time. He has carefully weighed the claims of Christ in the balance, and concluded they are trustworthy and true. As a result, Alex’s burden is to equip the church to win men and women for Jesus Christ and to follow Him faithfully in an increasingly troubled society.
That burden has led him to write this book. Christians are called in Scripture to defend the vulnerable, protect human dignity, honor family, and do justice. But the question many Christians face today is summed up in one word: How?
Alex not only provides a road map for how we can faithfully represent Christ in public life, but he also provides a biblical basis for political action that is true to God’s Word and illustrated by stories that show how that action can have a profound practical effect on culture and government.
Foreword
BY JOHN STONESTREET
Host, “Breakpoint This Week” radio show The Chuck Colson Center for Christian Worldview
America is deeply divided. While the more obvious (and often obnoxious) of our divisions are political, of even greater consequences are our deeply held moral differences. As Ross Douthat points out in his book Bad Religion: How We Became a Nation of Heretics , the cultural consensus that once was is no more. 1
At one time, the cultural center was held by beliefs and assumptions rooted in historic Christianity. While there were certainly doctrinal and denominational battles, some quite intense, there was still fundamental agreement across the spectrum of Christianity on such issues as the definition of marriage, helping the poor, sexuality and Christian exclusivism. In the last fifty years, not only has Christianity’s place in the cultural center been lost, but fundamental agreement on many of these issues has also been lost. It’s almost as if once the larger culture started to doubt Christian certainties, so did the Christians.
So now, on issues that were once quite obvious, American Christianity is divided. One factor that has been exacerbated has been the triumph of what the eccentric French theologian Jacques Ellul called “the political illusion.” This has primarily taken two forms. First, many conservatives seem to measure the spiritual state of our culture by how elected officials are governing in Washington, D.C., rather than how they are living out their faith everywhere else. While politics matter, as do all cultural arenas, an inordinate amount of attention has been placed on political victories.
On the other hand, in reaction to the so-called “Religious Right,” many younger, more liberal Christians now talk as if even the most consequential of moral issues are mere political distractions. The largest gatherings of “missional” and innovative young Christians will often feature plenty of sessions and speakers on causes such as clean water, helping the poor, and ending human slavery. But suggest a speaker on abortion or recovering biblical marriage and suddenly you’re just being political.
It won’t do us any good to proceed as if these deep divisions in the church do not exist. They do. On the rare occasion these divisions are mentioned, they are quickly cast aside as insignificant by calls to unity and love. In effect, these calls to “stop making such a big deal out these issues” devolve into “if you would just agree with my position, we could move on.” Of course, Jesus prayed for unity and commanded us to love one another, but He did not leave these concepts undefined or without a larger context of truth.
In this book, Alex McFarland confronts these divisions head-on. He understands that these issues first call for careful theological consideration. He understands that if Jesus is indeed the Lord of Heaven and Earth, then we must first and foremost be beholden to what He thinks about these matters. Where there is room for disagreement, Alex acknowledges the options and what’s at stake. Where the Scriptures are clear, Alex understands that so is our responsibility to them.
Second, Alex demonstrates in this book that he understands that while truth is personal, it is not private. Ideas have consequences, and not just for us. If life is infinitely valued from the moment of conception, then it must be defended publically. If Christ is the exclusive path to God, then it is far worse not to point that out in love than to point it out and be thought intolerant.
These issues matter, and Alex is a helpful guide through them. You may not agree with him on everything, but go with him anyway. Confronting our differences in truth and love will be far better than ignoring them.
Introduction
WHY THESE 10 ISSUES SHOULD MATTER TO CHRISTIANS
Alex, I am enjoying your book and learning a lot. I see the need for apologetics and the importance of standing up for God and Christianity. Reading your book has helped me a lot, but I’m just hoping my brain doesn’t melt!
And so began an email that was in my inbox one day, sent in response to an earlier book I had done, The 10 Most Common Objections to Christianity . It is humbling for me as an author to receive correspondence from anyone gracious enough to spend time reading what I have written. As an author, minister, broadcaster and educator, it is always my goal to present my subject matter in the most understandable way. This can sometimes be challenging, because my interests and calling led me into the field of apologetics and the study and critique of worldviews. Apologetics (devotion to a rational defense of the Christian faith) and worldviews (belief systems) deal with some very heady issues—questions such as “Where did the universe come from?” “Is there a purpose to life?” “Is there a God?” “Why doesn’t God end all the pain and suffering in the world?” (Topics not too different from t