So if you didn't listen to this from Tim Keller you should. Just take 10 minutes. It will be worth your time. One of the things he talks about is how the 1st century church was characterized by a few very distinct views of culture. In that day, the church influenced culture. It was not influenced by it.
Here are 9 ways he says the church was radically different from the culture of its day.
-They empowered women in a patriarchal society
-They didn't attend gladiator fests. For this, they were considered anti-social
-Against abortion
-Against gay practices
-Against war. They did not fight for Caesar's army
-Against sex outside of marriage
-Racially diverse in a way that was shocking to culture
-Believed Jesus was the only way to salvation
-Advocated for the poor in a way no one else in society did.
Of course the church has been classified by the "against" items on this list but this is rapidly changing. One of the reasons I think this was the norm was that it was easy. It is easy to say what you believe. The others on the list require action (Save, Jesus is the only way to salvation. Although that requires action too). The church forgot about advocating for the poor, including all races, empowering women (still largely in a patriarchal dominated society), and supporting non-violence. Sometimes I think we still do. If you want to say, "We are trying to get back to the roots of the 1st century church", you should act like it.
