Local church revolution part 4

4) Teach discernment
The church is teaching its members to recognize labels instead of discerning right from wrong. We have our own radio stations, our own fashion statements, our own music, our own bookstores, our own cable networks, our own animated children's cartoons, and even our own breath mints. We've encouraged people to consume "christian" products so that they can avoid being influenced by a "sinful" world. Is that really what God meant when he that we should be "in the World but not of it?"

Christians today don't have to listen to the words that a musician says. They don't have to analyze the lyrics and judge the message of the artist. They just have to make sure it comes from the music aisle marked "Christian Contemporary." There are a lot of books to read but many Christians never will unless they are sold in a Christian bookstore. This creates a type of cultural ignorance among Christians. It's a type of separation from the World that makes the local church look out of touch and irrelevant to everyone who is outside of it.

I'm going to stick with music for right now and give you an example of what I am talking about. Most adults in the church believe that Eminem is obscene and doesn't have a message that is of any value. They could easily point to his newest single "Shake That" as an example and I would completely agree. But they would miss a song like "When I am Gone" which is a heartfelt expression of the love he feels for his family and the pain he feels when he is away from them. Sure he drops the f-bomb one time in the song. But, it has a sincerity that is sadly missing from most of the sanitized and over-produced music that is put out as a safe alternative for christians to listen to. Why can't christians listen to regular radio? Is their faith on such a weak foundation that something said in a Nickleback tune might might make them wander off the path of righteousness?

If you are new in the faith then maybe you need the shelter of Christian radio. And, there is a lot of really good Christian music. Right there is central issue. You should be able to listen to secular radio and find some music that moves you and other songs that don't. Likewise, music on Christian radio can speak right to your soul. Then again, some of it is crap. In all things excercise discernment. There is something to be said for filtering the types of messages that you listen to over and over again but using a "christian" label to determine the worth of music or books or movies is a crutch. Participation in "Christian Culture" is a dumbing down of the true call of Christ.

Let me give you one more quick example. MySpace is a very popular social networking web site with 65 million members and traffic that is second only to Google. This week I got an email from Xianz.com. Their slogan is "It's not myspace... it's His space." That's right christians, now you have your own safe social networking site where you won't have to interact with the unwashed masses and you can keep your light all to yourselves.