Steven Travis tells the amusing, or rather bemusing story, of a group of Sicilian monks who spent their days making, unmaking and then remaking wicker baskets. They did this because they were convinced that this present world was passing away, and as a result they saw no reason to change it. Given this sort of attitude, it is easy to see why it’s often been said that Christians are so heavenly minded that they are of no earthly use.

It’s worth noting then, that then that when the Bible talks of Christians being ‘heavenly minded,’ it doesn’t mean they have no need to relate their faith to the world in which they live live. Rather the opposite is true.

Sadly, the church is often subverted by the values and norms of contemporary culture and in so doing allows non Christians to set its agenda and influence its decisions. Just as sadly Christians are regularly tempted to withdraw into a holy huddle and so have little or no contact with those who do not share their faith.

No one could disagree that these are challenging days to be a Christian. This was highlighted in a debate hosted by Radio 4 some time ago when broadcaster John Humphries posed the question: “Is Christianity in crisis or at the cross roads?” He had good reason to raise the issue given the growing disenchantment with the church, and the rising tide of secularism that is engulfing western society.

A growing number of people today accept values that that are either a distortion of, or even a rejection of those that we find in traditional Christian teaching. But that does not mean I am going to lose heart. I believe that the ‘heavenly way’ will prevail, and for one simple reason: I have been persuaded that Jesus conquered death and is seated at the right hand of God.

In other words, I am looking forward to the day when I will not need to pray. ‘Our Father in heaven . . . your Kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven’ (Mt 6:9-10). As far as I am concerned, the answer to that prayer carries a divine guarantee. It’s as certain as death and taxes!

In the light of all this then, I will keep encouraging the Christians I know to avoid both the way of compromise and the temptation to become a ‘holy huddle.’ We must continue to seek a ‘third way,’ and learn how to translate heavenly values into our earthly context. This ‘third way’ must begin in the church of course, otherwise we will simply be hypocrites, but it must never be confined it to the church. Elaine Storkey hit the nail on the head when she said: “The church isn’t there to box us in; we should be living and worshipping as if the church has no walls.”

Christians must never bow down to the contemporary wisdom which suggests that we should keep our opinions to ourselves. What we believe belongs to ‘the public square’ as much as to our ‘sacred space’ because it reflects the mind of the Creator Himself. As has often been said, every square inch of this world belongs to Christ.

A former Bishop of Durham has rightly suggested that ‘The whole point of Christianity is that it offers a story which is the story of the whole world.’ I agree with him. We are not evolutionary accidents or meaningless biological blobs. We are designer made beings who have the potential to become like our Creator in so doing exercise a profound influence for good. And one day we will have to give an account of our lives to Him.

Rob James is a Baptist Pastor broadcaster and writer who currently operates as a church and media consultant for the Evangelical Alliance Wales. He is available for preaching and teaching throughout Wales and can be contacted at [email protected]