The agenda and mission of the church
By world standards Australia is a great place to live. We do not have the political violence, wars, and other problems that affect many globally. We remain ‘the lucky country’ in just so many ways.
However, before we rise to sing ‘you ought to be congratulated’, a pause is necessary. If we dig deeper we see a raft of problems bedevilling Australian life.
Consider these examples:
- Key indices of indigenous well-being remain stubbornly low;
- The recent refusal of the Senate to pass a Bill mandating medical care for children born alive after an abortion;
- The tsunami of mental illness and its expression in violent and dysfunctional behaviours such as anti-social behaviour, chronic homelessness and addiction
- The scourge of domestic and gender-based violence
- A recent judicial decision enshrining gender confusion and fluidity
- Rising fragmentation and tribalism within Australian society
- The i-god identity and its expression in cancel culture
- The underlying hedonism and materialism expressed in a cult of consumerism
It is said that ancient Rome fell not from invasions, but because she imploded under her own problems. It is not hard to see the same pattern in Australia.
Where do we begin before such problems?
How we define a problem shapes the solution for which we grasp.
For example, If the problem is defined as ignorance, the solution lies in education. If the problem is social inequality, the solution lies in redistribution of opportunity and wealth. If the problem is lack of guidance, the solution is more legislation. If the problem is mental wellbeing, the solution is in more therapists. However, this ‘more, more, more’ approach is ultimately futile because it builds on an inadequate diagnosis of the problem. ‘More’ is never enough.
The Christian gospel gives a lens both to understand the problem and to chart a solution. It is a simple, but not simplistic lens.
The problem and solution begin with identity.
The Bible teaches that humans were made in the image of God and appointed to be the managers of his creation. Our core identity is that we are not God. Rather we are made to belong to him, to be loved by him, to love and worship him and to live in his creation on his terms. However, we are not content with that. We seek independence from him and to live in his world uncoupled from our identity as image bearers. We want autonomy. We want to be our own god. We want to be the one whose image we bear.
The results are catastrophic. Genesis tracks how autonomy from God turned into alienation from him, alienation from each other and within ourselves, along with destructive impacts on the rest of creation. Adam and Eve were left to squabble with one another and to the comic scramble for leaves to cover their shame, all along laying the seeds of the sibling rivalry that was the first act of domestic violence. This is all called sin.
The basic human problem is this sin. It is the problem behind the problem in the issues noted above. Each of these problems has its own complexity and pathology, for sin is not simplistic. However, at root, these problems all manifest our human attempt to live in denial and defiance of God.
As is the problem, so is the solution. The path to human wholeness lies in recovery of our identity as creatures who are made, finite and dependent, but who are also the image-bearers of our maker.
That recovery lies in the gospel of Jesus Christ. There, in the riches of his mercy, God stepped into our world in the person of Jesus who lived the life that we should have lived and died the death that should be ours. For those who respond to his call to ‘repent, believe and follow’, there is the possibility of a recovering image of God.
That recovery is the start of a lasting solution to the human problems noted above. However, the recovery is not instant nor complete. Just as sin is complex in its pathology, so is grace complex in its operation. Until Jesus returns the Christian struggles against sin, but it is a Spirit empowered and grace-driven struggle. Yes, we still need legislators, counsellors, educators and the rest – but in Christ these efforts are now not futile.
Here is the agenda and mission of the church. Our task is to call out the root causes of the human problem in sin and to freely offer the solution of the gospel.
By all means, let the church encourage and support Christians who work in the public squares of legislation, education, mental health, indigenous welfare and the like. However, let us beware of mission drift by meandering through good causes without direction. Let our message be as simple as that of Jesus: The kingdom of God has come. Repent and believe the gospel. Let our resolve be as simple as that of Paul: For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.
David Burke,
Moderator-general,
August 2024.