Primary Focus

Yet again questions such as: "should Christians run for office" and "should Christians engage the culture" have come up.

The answer is: Yes, of course

The Bible says we should be salt and light, and not to hide our "light" under a basket.  We should engage society and stand against social evil, government corruption, abuse, crime, etc.  Christians should run for political offices, vote, participate in petitions, awareness drives, defend the victimized, help the widows and orphans, etc.

However, these activities should never replace, take away from, or supersede

#1 Our personal relationship with God (including reading the Bible, prayer, gathering together)

and


#2 Our primary mission, while we are here, is to share the gospel and make disciples.

All other activities should flow naturally out of our walk with God.  As our hearts are molded more and more in the likeness of His heart and nature, sin becomes more and more offensive to us.  That SHOULD drive us to take a stand against the evil system of the world.

The thing to remember is that the only PERMANENT way to effect society is by changing the hearts of individuals, one at a time. 

You can't change hearts by signing petitions, participating in a pep-rally, getting someone elected, or passing bills.  While these things are all good things to do, they cannot effect a lasting change.  Only sharing the good news about Jesus and the heart transforming power of the Holy Spirit can make an eternal difference.