Harvest House recently published Right Thinking for a Culture in Chaos: Responding Biblically to Today’s Most Urgent Needs. This is the third book in the Right Thinking series of books designed to help Christians respond appropriately to the world’s most pressing issues (you can purchase the first two here and here).
The book is edited by John MacArthur and Nathan Busenitz, Executive Vice President at The Master’s Seminary. Each of its 16 chapters is an essay addressing a hot-button cultural issue from a biblical perspective. Some of the topics covered are global warming, critical race theory, transgenderism, homosexuality, social media, and deconstruction. Several professors at The Master’s Seminary contributed chapters, including Dr. Michael Riccardi, Dr. Brad Klassen, Dr. Brian Biedebach, and Dr. Austin Duncan.
This book shows that no matter the issue, God’s Word is relevant. Its timeless and authoritative truth applies to every cultural issue. In the midst of so much chaos and confusion in the world, God’s people can always look to God’s Word for clarity.
Harvest House has given The Master’s Seminary permission to repost the introduction to Right Thinking for a Culture in Chaos. It’s available below. And you can purchase the book here.
AN IMPORTANT QUESTION
How should we then live?
Francis Schaeffer, the renowned evangelical apologist, asked that question a half-century ago, and it became the title of a video series Schaeffer produced in the late 1970s. In that series, he documented the development and decline of Western civilization, focusing on culture’s downward trajectory from the Enlightenment through modern times.
Schaeffer’s central question was both timely and timeless. All followers of Jesus Christ must ask themselves how they ought to live as they seek to glorify God and walk in His ways. The apostle Peter posed a similar question in 2 Peter 3:11, when he asked his readers, “What sort of people ought you to be?” Peter made that inquiry at a time when the church was being persecuted. His words strike a chord with us today because we find ourselves in an increasingly hostile society. Our culture has grown more and more antagonistic toward biblical norms and Christian values. So, as the world around us gets worse, how are we to think, speak, and act?
Our culture’s decline has been rapid. Within the past few decades, we have witnessed an unprecedented spiral of moral degradation. Today’s leading influencers openly reject the notion of moral absolutes, choosing instead to exchange the truth of God for whatever seems right in their own eyes. As a result, God has given our society over to degrading passions characterized by immorality, self-centeredness, and pride. We find ourselves as Christians trying to avoid the corruption as we navigate the complexities of a culture in chaos. Peter’s description of Lot in 2 Peter 2:7–8 summarizes our experience. While living in Sodom, Lot was “oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds).”
This brings us back to Schaeffer’s pivotal question. In a society that celebrates sin and scorns biblical truth, how should we then live? If we hope to exhibit right thinking and right living, we must begin by looking to the Word of God. His Word lights our way in the darkness (Psalm 119:105) and enables us to stay firmly grounded through uncertain times (Psalm 1:1–3). Scripture reveals the good news of the gospel (James 1:21). It is the means the Spirit uses to grow us in holiness (1 Peter 2:1–3). And it is the weapon God has given us to fend off temptation and error (Ephesians 6:17). By focusing our hearts and minds on divine revelation, we anchor ourselves in the truth (John 17:17). So, if we are going to think and act rightly, we must align our lives with the unchanging standard of God’s Word.
On the pages that follow, we will evaluate contemporary trends and cultural issues through the lens of Scripture. These topics include secularism, relativism, environmentalism, critical race theory, transgenderism, homosexuality, education, epistemology, social media, dating and marriage, government overreach, technology and worship, spiritual apostasy, and our Christian witness before a watching world. As you read each chapter, our prayer is that you will be equipped to think biblically about each subject.
Our culture may be in chaos, but the clarity of God’s Word cuts through the confusion. It establishes our convictions, ignites our courage, and governs our conduct. It shows us how we should live. Only by renewing our minds with divine truth can we protect our hearts from the contamination around us (Psalm 119:9–11). Consider Paul’s exhortation in Romans 12:2: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.” May that be your desire as you seek to think and act in ways that honor the Lord.
Taken from: Right Thinking for a Culture in Chaos. Copyright © 2023 John MacArthur and Nathan Busenitz. Published by Harvest House Publishers, Eugene, Oregon 97408. www.harvesthousepublishers.com