Erwin W. Lutzer - No Reason to Hide Workbook: Standing for Christ in a Collapsing Culture

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No Reason to Hide Workbook

Copyright 2022 by Erwin W. Lutzer

Published by Harvest House Publishers

Eugene, Oregon 97408

www.harvesthousepublishers.com

ISBN 978-0-7369-8689-2 (pbk)

ISBN 978-0-7369-8690-8 (eBook)

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When our boat is blown out of the water, we need heroes to swim for help

Standing for Christ often means being rejected by the culture

When we put ourselves in the place of God, we must live with the dire consequences

The gospel shows us there can be genuine unity despite diversity

We must learn from our past but not be bound by it

Truth is never welcome in a pagan world

A false view of love can be an excuse for serious compromises

When we destroy Gods created order, we destroy ourselves

Parents be warned: God holds us responsible for our childrens education

Someday politics, religion, and economics will be united under one global ruler

We must rethink our view of what it means to suffer for Christ

C hristians are finding it more challenging than ever to interact with others in todays culture. In a world that says there is no objective truth, but rather, each individual has their own truth based on their life experiences, Christians are told theyre intolerant for claiming that God and His Word are the sole sources of truth for all humanity.

The difficulty is this: In a society that refuses to acknowledge the existence of objective truth, there are no longer any reference points for determining right from wrong, or truth from error. Therefore, for a Christian to speak up about matters such as sin and wrong doing is considered intolerant. After all, every person is entitled to their own viewpoint, which should never be questioned.

So widespread is this cultural thinking that there is tremendous pressure on Christians to keep their perspectives to themselves. At one time, being considerate of others still allowed room for people to share their differing views with one another without animosity. But that isnt the case anymore.

This puts Christians in a difficult place. For the sake of keeping the peace, the temptation is great for us to simply keep quiet and stay hidden. We may reason, Wouldnt it be better to not upset people lest they end up with a negative view of Christianity?

But is that the calling weve been given? Even as culture makes it more costly for us to speak up for the truth, we must ask ourselves: Are we living to please people or to please God?

Surrender, sink, or swim to the shore. Sometimes heroes are made because of their courage; sometimes they are made by their circumstances. Sometimes a person volunteers to become a hero; sometimes a person becomes a hero because necessity demands it.

No Reason to Hide , page 16

What did John F. Kennedy do that made him so heroic?

Describe a memorable situation in which you had to make a choice between surrendering, sinking, or swimming.

What would surrender have looked like?

What would sinking have looked like?

What would swimming have looked like?

Regardless of how you responded, what was the most important lesson you learned from that experience?

Read Acts 4:1321. What did the religious leaders in Jerusalem command Peter and John to do (verse 18)?

How did Peter and John respond (verses 1920)?

According to verse 21, what was the result of Peter and Johns boldness?

In what way does Peter and Johns example inspire you?

God has lessons to teach us even as we find ourselves drifting in open waters we have never navigated before.

No Reason to Hide , page 17

Think about a way that God confirmed His faithfulness to you when you felt as if you were adrift. What did God do to help you?

In No Reason to Hide , we read, Politics cannot be separated from morality, and morality cannot be separated from Christianity (page 18). Try to give one or two examples of why this statement is true.

I understand the tension we as Christians feel. We would prefer not to become involved in politics or culture wars. We want to be known as loving and caring, and we want to be known for what we support, not for what we are against. We want to be known as being apolitical for a reason; we dont want to allow what appears to be secondary disagreements to divide us. We dont want to erect needless stumbling blocks for the gospel. I agree that sometimes neutrality is best; but at other times its not possible. Sometimes political issues force us into a moral corner where we must choose sides.

No Reason to Hide , page 20

Jonathan Edwards is cited as believing that Christians should join forces with non-Christians in the public square to work toward common moral goals (see page 18 in No Reason to Hide ). What are at least two examples of moral goals we can work toward with unbelieversmoral goals that are consistent with Scripture?

What are the possible benefits of working on common moral goals with non-Christians in the political or social realms?

What are some ways we as believers can offer hope and grace to a weary and angry world?

Do you think it is possible for Christianity to survive and be a positive influence in an oppressive, anti-Christian political environment? Why or why not?

Matthew 5:11 says, Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account . Note that if were attacked for righteousnesss sake or for Christs sake, that counts as persecution. But if we face opposition apart from our faith, that doesnt count as persecution. Why is this an important distinction for us to recognize?