Sean McDowell - A Rebels Manifesto: Choosing Truth, Real Justice, and Love amid the Noise of Todays World

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A Rebels Manifesto: Choosing Truth, Real Justice, and Love amid the Noise of Todays World

Copyright 2022 by Sean McDowell. All rights reserved.

An earlier edition was previously published in 2006 as Ethix: Being Bold in a Whatever World by B&H Publishing Group under ISBN 978-0-8054-4519-0. First printing by Tyndale House Publishers in 2022.

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Scripture quotations are from The ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NASB1995 are taken from the (NASB) New American Standard Bible copyright 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.lockman.org.

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A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress.

ISBN 978-1-4964-4392-2

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To my son, Scottie.
As you head out into the real world,
I pray you will continue to care about
truth, justice, and loving those around you.
I could not be prouder to be your dad.

J ANA HAD NEVER IMAGINED SHE WOULD be facing the decision that was before her today. As a former member of a high school youth group, she had learned much about making right choices in the areas of sex, love, and relationships, but this was beyond anything she had been tested with before. How can I possibly do the right thing, she wondered, when my college psychology professor has assigned me to review a porn film as part of my grade? Without this assignment, Janas grade would suffer greatly, but she also knew that God wanted her to be sexually pure. What could she do in this situation? What would you do?

Jaelene faced one of the toughest decisions of her life. Would she wear a US national soccer team jersey sporting rainbow numbers to celebrate gay pride? Or should she decline and jeopardize her position on the team? You might not think this is such a big deal. After all, its just a jersey, right? But because of her Christian faith and her convictions about Gods design for sex and marriage, it was a big deal for Jaelene. After the Supreme Court ruling legalizing same-sex marriage, she wrote on her Instagram page, I believe with every fiber in my body that what was written 2,000 years ago in the Bible is undoubtedly true.... This world may change, but Christ and His Word NEVER will. What should she do? What would you do?

These are not easy situations to be in. Can you imagine the pressure Jana and Jaelene would feel to compromise their Christian convictions? After all, both had worked hard for their success. They wanted to succeed in life and they wanted to honor the Lord. Is there a way to do both? Should they really be expected to suffer for doing the right thing? Doesnt God want them to be happy?

In Platos Republic, Socrates says, We are discussing no small matter, but how we ought to live. His point is simple and powerful: the most important questions we ask are not about what we accomplish but how we live. The most important questions are not related to what career we choose or what college we attend but, rather, what or whom we live for. Life isnt about what we do as much as why we do it.

Every day you face moral choices: Will I respect my parents? Should I post that on social media? How far should I go with my boyfriend or girlfriend? Will I use the preferred gender pronoun for a classmate? Should I join a protest for climate change, racial reconciliation, immigration, or some other pressing issue?

The question is not if you will face a challenging situation like Jana or Jaelene but when you will face it. How you respond to moral dilemmas reflects who you are right now and, in turn, shapes who you become. Will you follow the example of Jesus, or will you follow the pattern of the world? Our world often says to criticize and cancel others when they fail or when they offend you. Jesus calls us to rebel against this approach by lovingly standing for truth and justice. Jesus never compromised his convictions. But he was kind and gracious toward others. Thats what it means to rebel today.

Will that be you?

In 1958, a group of high school principals was asked the following question: What are the main problems among your students? The top answers were

1. Not doing homework
2. Not respecting propertye.g., throwing books
3. Leaving lights on and doors wide open
4. Throwing spitballs in class
5. Running through the halls

While life was probably not quite that simple in the late fifties, the same question today would undoubtedly elicit a very different response from a group of high school principals. In my experience, students today fret about climate change, racism, sexism, the economy, managing a social media identity, terrorism, school shootings, and much more. Your generation faces greater moral challenges just one click away than any generation in history.

Christian moral standards used to be considered good. Now the moral teachings of Jesus (especially in areas of sexuality) are increasingly considered bigoted, harmful, and hateful. Depression and loneliness are rampant. Fatherlessness and divorce are off the charts. Pornography use is pervasive. People are addicted to social media. Hundreds of thousands of preborn humans are aborted every year. And our culture seems more racially divided than ever.

You may feel so overwhelmed with your responsibilities, and the myriad of moral issues that you are expected to opine about on social media, that you hardly have time to slow down and grow up. Bombarded by endless messages of promiscuity and compromise, who can honestly expect you to make right choices today?

The answer to that question is simple: God. God expects you to make right choices. As Jaelene pointed out, Gods standards never change, even if ours do. And God not only expects you to stand up for what is right; he also will empower you with the strength to do so. How can you possibly do that