Christians and Pop Culture

Mark Driscoll recently wrote a thoughtful blog post on how and why Christians should seek to engage the culture of the people they minister to for the sake of “contexualizing the good news of Jesus.” Here are some quotes that made me pause to think:

‘As a missionary, I do not view culture passively, merely as entertainment. Rather, I engage it actively as a sermon that is preaching a worldview. I teach my children to do the same.’

‘We want our kids to be innocent but not naïve. Naïve Christians are the most vulnerable to engaging culture ignorantly and unpreparedly. ‘

‘We all have some areas in which we need to restrict our freedoms because of our weaknesses, while we are able to use our Christian liberty in areas in which we are strong.’

‘…I am encouraging Christians to involve themselves in culture not merely for the purpose of entertainment but primarily for the purpose of education.’

‘Engaging culture requires discernment by God’s people to filter all of the cultures they encounter, Christian and non-Christian, through a biblical and theological grid in order to cling to that which is good and reject that which is evil.’

‘Should Christians who like rap check out guys I have enjoyed getting to know a bit, such as Lecrae? Yes. Should all Christians listen to Jay-Z? No. Should Jay-Z sit down and talk to me about Jesus? Yes.’