Red Letter Christians

Reconnecting Spiritual Practice, Evangelism, and Justice

by Tony Campolo Monday, June 20th, 2011

Many Christians are questioning whether evangelicals care enough about trying to change the political and economic institutions of our society so that they will provide equal justice for all of its citizens; protect other animals and the environment; and end poverty for those who have been shut out of the American Dream. On the other hand, there are those who primarily preach a social gospel but are wondering if they have neglected that more personal connection with God that is so much at the core of contemporary evangelicalism.

In both mainline and evangelical churches, congregations are coming to realize that if the whole gospel is to be lived out, it cannot be a matter of either-or. Instead, it must be both-and.

Unless those who are won to a personal relationship with Christ are incorporated into local congregations, churches will die; and unless these local congregations are also equipping their people to work for justice issues, especially on behalf of any who are poor and oppressed, they are failing to live out biblical mandates, and their religious lives could become narcissistic.

That much seems clear, but how can we establish an organic connection between these two essential parts of the mission of the church so that they are fully integrated? This book seeks to answer that question. We believe that the nexus between evangelism and justice is to be found in the kind of Christian mysticism we are advocating.

We contend that being “fully devoted followers of Christ,” a phrase popular with many evangelical churches today, involves commitment to what Jesus was committed to—maintaining a deep, mystical connection to God that empowered him to be compassionately connected to others, particularly the outcasts of society. Jesus wanted all to know God personally and enjoy the benefits of the “full life” that God intends for all people.

Jesus’ times alone with God and the Holy Spirit resulted in his being “moved with compassion” toward others. Compassion always led to action. While in the wilderness for 40 days and nights Jesus resisted the devil by quoting scripture. This was not because he had just studied scripture; he had drawn strength and power by having those holy words absorbed into his spirit.

Jesus then “returned in the power of the Spirit” (Luke 4:14); two of his initial acts involved preaching and advocating justice. In Matthew 4:17-19, we learn that Jesus began to preach and also called his disciples to follow him. In Luke 4:18-19, Jesus declared his commitment to justice by proclaiming the year of jubilee—freedom for all, whether poor, oppressed, or captive. This theme of economic justice permeates the gospels, especially the gospel of Luke. As modeled by Jesus, mystical intimacy with God truly empowers our ability to carry out his mission of evangelism and justice.

From the earliest days of Christianity, when a mystical relationship with Jesus Christ was nurtured in accord with biblical guidelines, the result was the church zealously at work winning persons to a transforming relationship with Jesus and, at the same time, passionately pursuing justice. In the New Testament church, there was no disconnect between the two. Each naturally flowed into the other.

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This post is an excerpt taken from The God of Intimacy and Action: Reconnecting Ancient Spiritual Practices, Evangelism, and Justice by Tony Campolo and Mary Albert Darling, pg. 15. Copyright(c) 2007 by Jossey Bass.

If you’d like to purchase a copy of The God of Intimacy and Action please click here.


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  • Areopagus.co.uk

    Evangelism will arise organically and irresistibly when we focus on our mystical oneness with Christ and on working to promote social and environmental justice in His name and spirit. Thinking of winning converts as a distinct from these, let alone as taking precedence over them, is a denial of the power of Christ working in us.
     As St. Francis of Assissi is reputed to have said, Preach the Gospel by every means; use words if necessary.

  • Drew

    Tony,
     
    This really gets to the heart of Sola Fide.

    Being too rigid about Sola Fide is an invitiation to be “okay” with leading a life that bears no fruit.  The reality is that good works will not save you, but that by having no good works (“bad fruit”) you never really were saved because you never really had faith.  Protestants have a tendancy to oversimplify Sola Fide and make it too rigid; a large segment of Evangelicals believe they can pretty much ACT however they want to as long as they SAY they have faith.  (Kind of like people who measure how Patriotic one is by how material posessions one owns with the US flag on it).  This is what I think the Red Letter Christian movement is correcting.

    Being too lax about Sola Fide, however, is an invitiation to buy into the secular notion that works somehow trumps faith or that works is the purpose of the Christian life.  I think you do an excellent job of not being too lax about Sola Fide, despite the charges of some Evangelicals.  However, it is a real threat to be aware of, to make sure that Red Letter Christians are living out the Bible to glorify Christ and to glorify Christ only.  There is a lot of Secular pressure for Red Letter Christanity to water down doctrine and faith in favor of focusing solely on producing good works for the sake of having more good works.

    I would like to see you tackle this topic more – Sola Fide – and striking that balance.

  • http://nailtothedoor.blogspot.com Dan Martin

    Perhaps if we were to reconnect our understanding of “Fide” with the meaning the Marines know in their motto “Semper Fidelis.”  I don’t support the methods, but nobody can doubt that “Fidelis” for a Marine is a highly action-oriented sort of faith.  Can we say as much of our “Fide?”

  • Karalee99

    If we as Christians assume we all come from the same creator, we must also assume there is no “us” versus “them.” We all have the same Spirit in us. By focusing on the and/both, we become much better reflections of that Spirit in others and within ourselves. Thank you, Tony, for blogging on a topic I have had on my heart a lot lately. 

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1388514701 Greg Dill

    I don’t think its the mandate of any Christian to change the political and economic institutions of our society.

    It’s not the job of our government to care for those lesser and weaker than us. It’s not the job of the government to care for the poor, the orphaned, and widows. It’s not the job of the government to take up the cause for injustices around the world. It is the job of the church. We have been given the task, and sadly the government is stepping up to the plate to do what we are supposed to do.

    This is why the church is so messed up today. It so wants to rely on the government to do the work for her. Voting for legislative bills, throwing money at organizations, and signing petitions isn’t going to solve these problems. It takes courageous love, a truly transformed life, to leave the confines of our comfort zones and mobilize. Be a people on the go to help those less fortunate than ourselves and who are victims of injustice. As Jesus said, GO!

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