A New Counterculture

”And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the Scriptures, Opening and alleging, that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ.” –Acts 17:2-3

In the 1970’s, America saw a wave of cultural confusion known as “the counterculture.” Spawned in part by the New Age movement and fueled by social discord, this movement sought to reshape America’s basic moral values. It attacked the very foundation of what America stood for by questioning the role of God in our nation and gave to us a new morality in which people were free to make destructive choices and feel good about doing so. Today, the counterculture of the 70’s is simply the culture.

I believe that it’s time for a new counterculture, on that will accomplish the reverse of what occurred in the 1970’s and restore God’s image and role as the necessary Father of a good and moral society. Paul never feared to confront the pagan culture of his day. The Scriptures say he “reasoned” with them, which means he argued a case for Jesus and disputed their false claims. He also “opened” which means that he expounded the meaning of Scripture fully. He further “alleged” the truth of Christ meaning that he placed the historical Christ alongside of the Scriptures he was reading. Finally he “preached” or proclaimed the gospel loud and clear.

The Church in America must learn never to fear the culture around us nor be bullied into the corner. We cannot remain silent. We have a case to be made. Never believe that Christianity is not reasonable or rational. When you were saved, you did not subscribe to a myth or join a cult, you did the one thing in the world that actually made sense – you humbled yourself in submission to the God of the universe, accepted His Son as your means of redemption, and you were born again by His miraculous power.

The world in general will hate us as we make our case for Christ, but oh how many will see the light of the gospel and be saved! We must have a new counterculture. Instead of giving in and going with the flow and simply shaping our churches into the image of the common night club, we must be different an distinct, upholding a perfect Bible, a saving Christ, and a new holy expectation for God’s people.