The Fabian Society was formed in 1884 in England with the purpose of establishing socialism in Britain not through revolutionary means but through a process of infiltration. They wanted to permeate the political parties at the time with socialist ideas. However, they were largely unsuccessful. In fact, H.G. Wells, who for a time was a part of the society, stated that they had permeated English society about as much as a mouse may be said to permeate a cat. In other words, their movement had been devoured, swallowed up by society rather than permeating it.Can the same be said of us as Christians? Do we permeate our culture about as much (or as little) as a mouse permeates a cat? Do we make an impact or are we swallowed up by our culture and digested? Are we transforming culture or being conformed to it?
In the last message in this series, we learned that to make an impact we need to be a people who live radically different lives out of love for God so that others can came to know that same love. Now we’re going to find that in order to make an impact we must not only be radically distinctive, but also radically influential.
However, can we be both? – both radically distinctive and radically influential? Doesn’t distinctiveness necessarily lead to isolation and segregation? It can, but not necessarily. We are called to be distinctive and so if we cease to be distinctive, we become useless. This is what Jesus says when He speaks of salt: “if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men” Likewise, if we remain isolated and segregated, we become useless. This is what Jesus says when He speaks of light: “people [don’t] light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.” Light is radically different than darkness and yet for light to illuminate anything, it must permeate darkness. You see, it is only when something distinctive maintains its distinctiveness while refusing to be isolated or segregated that it is useful and makes an impact.
John Stott wrote in his book, The Living Church, “if society becomes corrupt, there is no sense in blaming society for its corruption. That is what happens when human evil is unchecked and unrestrained. The question to ask is: where is the church? Where is the salt and light of Jesus? ” (133). If we are to make an impact in the lives of the people around us, we must maintain our distinctiveness as followers of Christ while refusing to be isolated or segregated from the world around us. We must permeate our society personally with the love of God and the truth of the Gospel. We must be radically influential.
But how do we permeate our society with the love of God and the truth of the Gospel? We must be sent by Jesus. The Church has been defined for centuries as being one, holy, catholic and apostolic. Usually when we think of being apostolic, we think of being orthodox – following the teachings of the apostles as found in the NT. However, the term ‘apostolic’ comes from the verb “to send”. The apostles were the “sent ones” and so are we. Not that we are apostles, per se, but we are apostolic in that we are sent by Jesus into the world. Now we get that. We know that, in some sense, we are sent into the world. However, we struggle with two things – 1) HOW we are sent and 2) the act of actually GOING. To help us understand the first problem of how we are sent, I want us to look at three passages from Scripture.
The first is Luke 10.1-3. In these verse, I think we find four ways we are sent.
We are sent together as witnesses. Jesus sent His followers out in pairs. We find this throughout the NT: Peter & John, Paul & Barnabas, Barnabas & Mark, Paul & Silas, even Priscilla and Aquila. But why pairs? Certainly for mutual support and encouragement, but I think there is another reason for two being sent and that is because the validity of one’s claim needed to be backed up by 2-3 witnesses. They went in pairs to bear witness that Jesus is in fact Savior and Lord. Likewise, we are sent together (as a people, as a community) to bear witness to the love and truth and saving work of Jesus.
We are sent ahead of Him. We read He “sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go.” This suggests that Jesus goes with us. We are sent, not to be the end-all and be-all, but simply to point to Jesus – to “prepare the way” in a person’s life - to make room for Jesus to do His work. Jesus sends us out, trusting that He will act. He goes before us and comes after us.
We are sent into a harvest field. The world is the harvest field. We are not sent into a supervisory office to oversee the combines out in the fields and watch the grain get poured into the silos. We are sent personally into the fields, into the world – the world of people and relationships, of culture and politics, of problems and difficulties and sin. We have been called to the harvest field – to go into the wet, muddy fields - to work hard, get dirty, but in the end, to bring in a harvest to God’s glory.
And we are sent like lambs among wolves. I wish I could put an exegetical spin on this passage, but I can’t. I wish Jesus said, I am sending you out like wolves among lambs, but He didn’t. He meant what He said. We are asked to do the impossible. We are asked to face enemies, hostility and difficulties. No sheep would relish being sent into a pack of wolves. It is a helpless, impossible position. And so what makes it possible? The fact that though we are sheep, we have a Good Shepherd who is with us and has told us, “take heart, I have overcome the world!” We belong to the Good Shepherd and so, like David, we can claim, “I will fear no evil, for You are with me.” We can face the wolves and do the impossible because the Good Shepherd is with us.
The second passage is Matthew 5.13-16. We are sent as salt and light. As Stott points out, salt and light are effective; they change the environment into which they are introduced. Christians are likewise to be effective. We are to bring change to environment into which we are introduced. Often, however, we are effected – we are changed by our environment, but we must strive against that – strive to be effective rather than effected. Salt and light are also complimentary. Salt acts negatively, hindering bacteria from causing decay. Light acts positively, illuminating darkness and creating color. Christians likewise have complimentary roles. We are to check the spread of evil and to promote the spread of goodness and truth, especially the Good News of the Gospel.
The third passage is Matthew 28.19-20. We are sent as disciple makers. That is our primary responsibility – to help people know, love and follow Christ. Christianity seeks the transformation of people. Our mission work is not the conquering and subjugation of nations, but rather telling and living the Good News of salvation and transformation in Jesus Christ. We are called to impact our culture not violently, superficially or merely politically, but subtly and genuinely. We do not seek political domination, but rather personal transformation. We are sent to make disciples - to help people know, love and follow Christ. And so we are sent out with the presence of Jesus. How can we do what Jesus has called us to do? How can we permeate and impact our society and the lives of the people around us? Because Jesus has promised us, “surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Therefore, nothing is impossible. We can do all things through Him who gives us strength.
We are sent out together, with the presence and power of Jesus, into the harest field, as witnesses, like lambs among wolves, as salt and light, in order to make disciples.
But there is one verse we have not addressed: Luke 10:4. Jesus instructed His disciples not to take anything with them: “Do not take a purse or bag or sandals.” Their task was urgent and required them to trust God for everything. The task is still urgent and we are still required to trust God for everything. But does God send us with nothing? In the end, all we can depend upon is Jesus Himself, however, He has given us resources. John Stott suggests that we actually have six weapons for social change or, as I refer to them, six instruments for impact.
We have Prayer. Prayer is our strength. How can we make an impact? Because we have been given strength in prayer. In prayer we connect the people and the problems and the potential before us with God.
We have Evangelism. Or since we called prayer our strength, we could call evangelism our heart and voice. We will have no lasting impact unless we are faithful to clearly, continually, compassionately and compellingly communicate the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Gospel is true, relevant and powerful and when we share it with our heart and voice, it makes an impact.
We have Example, or we could say a life to share. A Christ-like life of love and integrity is hard to dismiss. We also need to be a little more Reformed in our thinking and regain the concept of the priesthood of all believers, so that we will see our various occupations as our calling. You see, “Calling” is not merely for those going into ‘the ministry’. You can be called to be an artist; called to be a dentist; called to be a writer or film maker; called to be a builder or an engineer. God calls us to do different things, but to do them all for His glory and to better the world as we live out the Gospel through them. You can be a witness of the Gospel on a construction site, in an office building, in a studio or museum, at home, in a classroom, in a restaurant. It is not so much what God calls us to do for a living, but who God calls us to be.
We have Argument. We can use our minds to stand up for truth. We can enter into private discussions and public debate. We don’t have to hide in the corner mumbling our two cents worth. As citizens of our country who are Christians, we can and should enter the political and cultural realm – not as argumentative, cantankerous people, but with truth and love.
We have Action. We have hands and feet. We can act as citizens, working for the good of our nation. And we can act as neighbors, helping those around us. We make an impact with the Gospel not only through our words, but with our actions.
And the final instrument is Suffering. We have a will - “a willingness to suffer for what we believe in”. We must persevere. We must believe whole-heartedly in the validity of the Gospel, in the love of God for the world, and in the power of God to transform that world. And then be ready to give of ourselves, to suffer and struggle and persevere for what we whole-heartedly believe.
We can make an impact because God has given us strength, a heart and voice, a life, a mind, hands and feet, and a will – all of which we are to use for His glory, the benefit of human beings and the furthering of His Kingdom. And all of which can make us radically influential.
But we struggle with two things. Hopefully, we have learned something about how we are sent. The other piece is the issue of actually going – actually following the call of Jesus to permeate our society and make an impact with the Gospel. That is not something that I, as a preacher and pastor, can do anything about. I can’t make anybody do anything (I have a hard enough time trying to make myself do it). I don’t send you, Jesus does. And so, He must be the One who motivates you to make an impact. You have to decide whether or not you will follow Jesus’ call.
Will we strive, by the grace of God, to make an impact? Will we be salt and light in a dark and decaying world? Will we permeate society with the love of God and the truth and power of the Gospel? I hope we will. And I hope that, by the grace of God, we will be more successful than the mouse.
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