With the start of the new year ( I have to keep saying this to remind myself to think in terms of 2013 rather than 2012) we return to our reflections on 1 Corinthians, a letter which provides an inspired guide to living as Christians in a pagan society.
We increasingly live in a diverse, pagan society. As Chesterton once remarked, when people stop believing in God it does not mean that they end up believing in nothing, rather they end up believing in anything. Even those public figures who pride themselves on their atheism are when one takes a closer look, closet pantheists. (A pantheist is someone who regards the universe as god. When one reads the writings of many atheists it is striking how often they refer to the universe, nature, or even the process of evolution itself in personal terms. Some, such as Richard Dawkins, even go as far as to refer to the universe in terms that we Christians reserve for God.)
The Biblical teaching on how to live as a Christian in a pagan society can be summarized in the acrostic FAITH.
Faithfulness to God above all else.
Attention to our culture.
Intelligent probing of issues.
Tactfulness towards our fellow believers.
Humility to admit when we have got it wrong.
“there is but one God, and Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live.†1 Corinthians 8:6
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