When I was around 9 years old I got a “do it yourself” transistor radio kit for Christmas. It came from Radio Shack and in the box was a circuit board with all the components and the instructions you needed to wire it together. I would like to tell you that I assembled the radio and it worked great, but actually I lost some of the parts and eventually it got thrown away. But, as I have said in past blogs, I have learned more from my failures than my successes. As I looked at all the components that it took to make that radio work, I realized everything that plugged in the wall had inner working parts. So, from that point on, if my family had something get broken, I would ask for the item then I would go outside and take it apart. I would undo all the screws of the outer shell, open up the case and just observe. There were circuit boards, gears, a whole array of parts. I could not wait till something tore up so that I could see inside to observe how it worked.

I am not a social scientist nor a psychologist, but something as a whole has changed in our world. It’s not just this generation coming up with some new fad or a new math that we don’t understand. No, something is different on a new level.

As I have researched and read, I have tried to understand what is different. The word that keeps coming up is “Post-modern”. I wanted to give you a brief introduction to what I feel is the sociatal shift that is taking place. There are volumes of books on this subject, so it would take more than this blog to get a thorough understanding. But, If you will allow me, I will simplify and explain the concept in the next several paragraphs to the best of my ability.

If we are to understand post-modern, we have to think about it in the context of pre-modern and modern. Because wisdom and Biblically based ideas are my focus in these blogs, and for the sake of limited space and time, I will mainly relate these concepts to Christianity and the Church.

John 1:4
In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

Pre-modern:
Around the 16th century most of the world lived in the feudal system; whatever class of society you were born into was the class you lived and died in. There was no opportunity like Bill Gates, where if you invented something, you could change your circumstances. Education was only for the wealthy land owners and ruling class. The Catholic church was the only choice of religion and, if you were an atheist or heretic, you were stoned or burned at the stake. The Word of God, as translated by the Catholic Church was the authority over science or reason. The true Word of God was only in the hands of a few. Creeds were said so that the common people would be able to repeat and understand what they should believe. The church services or mass was centered around communion. It was taught that the elements of communion, the bread and the wine, once blessed by the priest became the actual Body of Christ. The thought of church was to elevate the believer in a God-ward direction. This explains the architecturally impressive cathedrals the high church atmosphere, with liturgy conducted in elevated language and music on a grand scale.

Matthew 4:16
the people living in darkness have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death
a light has dawned.”

Modern:
With the advent of the reformation by Martin Luther and others, along with the printing press, plus King James authorizing a translation of the Bible that could be understood in english, the common people now had their own copy of the Bible. This brought on new interpretations of scripture that had been suppressed. Now a person could think outside the established religions. The Church of England became separated from The Catholic Church. Then came different denominations branching out of separate movements based on theology and understanding. Also, agnostics and atheists were no longer burned at the stake or stoned. The church was no longer the standard bearer of society. Copernicus formulated that the earth was not the center of the universe, but actually rotated around the sun. Music changed, major scales were now more common as baroque and classical music made the way for more modern music. The age of reason had dawned. Now decisions were made by scientific method and tested facts and science and reason would now take authority over scripture. The church service now became centered around the sermon instead of communion. The preacher now delivered sermons based on the quest for truth and fact, according to their particular denomination.

2 Timothy 4:3
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.

Post-modern:
Well, after hundreds of years of science and reason, the world still has famine and hunger and there is still no cure for the cold or cancer and many other diseases. The answer to life’s greatest questions are still unresolved. The colonization brought by the British Empire and the Americanization of countries through missionaries and economic investments only took away the original cultures without leaving any lasting answers. The countries buying into these systems sold their souls for capitalism and profit, and lost their old way of life. So, with the perceived failure of free markets to solve the problems of the world, and with individual cultures not wanting to lose any more of their uniqueness, the modern world ends, and the post-modern world begins. Now reason and logic is replaced with social justice and fairness. Healthcare and any other supposed need is put in place, regardless of cost or logic. The church service is now mixed with new music and old hymns, liturgy and music shown on power point, high formal church in casual clothes.The sermons are motivational speeches to help everyone feel good about them-self. Denominations and association based on beliefs are diminishing. Acceptance of any behavior or lifestyle overrides Biblical precepts. Theology has given way to quick sound bites of individual verses. Only the good sounding verses that can be displayed on a refrigerator magnet are accepted. The hard truths and teachings are left unsaid.

The reason I write this is to illuminate the subject. I do not have it all figured out. I just wanted to loosen a few screws and take the cover off so we can observe the workings inside. Certainly through the ages changes were needed. Every change has not been bad, but not all changes were good. God is sovereign and He is bringing this world to an eventual end. It will be up to Him to judge it righteously.

I share these ideas only as a reporter, but I did want to make a few points. There is a world out there that has lost it’s way. We as followers of Christ say we have the answers, although we have not done a good job of communicating those answers. If just simply building another church building or adding another church service would get the job done, the whole world would have already followed Christ. The methods that worked in the pre-modern or modern eras will most likely not work in a post-modern era.

1 Corinthians 9:22
To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.