Cedarville Magazine, Spring 2013

Cedarville Magazine | 23 Evangelism and social action are inseparable, but they are not identical. Working for economic development in poor communities or working to change structural injustice to end systemic oppression is not the same as inviting people to embrace Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. If we only do social action and never say we’re doing it because of Jesus, our good deeds only point to ourselves. Sin is both personal and social. By personal, I mean lying, committing adultery, etc. By social, I mean participating in unfair structures. Social brokenness, including poverty, results both from bad personal choices and unjust systems. If we only work at half the problem, we only produce half a solution. People need both personal faith in Christ, which transforms their values and very life, and material, structural transformation that brings new socioeconomic opportunities. That is why holistic community development programs that combine evangelism and social action are more effective. People do need material things, but they are made for far more than a good life here on earth. Every person is invited to live forever with God. Jesus died so whoever believes in Himmay have a better life now and for all eternity. Two other biblical truths are crucial. Jesus is the only way to salvation, and those who reject Christ depart eternally from the living God. I know my generation has sometimes said those things in harsh, insensitive ways. Too often we have failed to say with the Bible that God does not want anyone to perish (2 Pet. 3:9). But if the Bible is our authority, we dare not neglect its teaching that people are lost without Christ. Jesus, who is certainly the most amazing teacher of love the world has ever known, says more about eternal separation from God than anything else . Surely, if Jesus is true God as well as true man, we cannot act as if Jesus did not know what He was talking about. Instead, we should embrace His claim that He is the way, the truth, and the life, and that no one comes to the Father except through Him (John 14:6). So, gently but clearly, I ask you to wrestle with this question: Do you care as much about lovingly inviting people to embrace the Savior as you do about empowering the poor? Will this generation of evangelical social activists repeat the one-sidedness of the old “social gospel” and neglect evangelism? Will you spend as much time, money, and effort praying and strategizing about how to winsomely invite non-Christians to Jesus as you do working for social justice? Dr. Ron Sider is the author of many books including Fixing the Moral Deficit and Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger , recognized by Christianity Today as one of the 100 most influential religious books of the 20th century. Dr. Sider was a keynote speaker for the American Dream Conference. You may view a video of his remarks at cedarville.edu/americandream . by Ron Sider Does Your Social Action Neglect Evangelism? C h a p e l N o t e s The following is an excerpt from Ron Sider’s chapel message on October 25, 2012. He is the President of Evangelicals for Social Action andDirector of the Sider Center on Ministry and Public Policy at Palmer Theological Seminary. Listen to his full remarks at cedarville.edu/siderchapel . Watch or listen online at cedarville.edu/chapel to hear these engaging speakers: 1/15 Scott Lehr ‘00 Lead Pastor of Southbridge Fellowship Raleigh, North Carolina 1/17 Leslie Leyland Fields ‘79 Author, Speaker, and Christianity Today Columnist Kodiak, Alaska 2/21 Russell Moore Dean of the School of Theology, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary Louisville, Kentucky 3/14 Eric Metaxas Co-host of BreakPoint Radio and Best-selling Author NewYork, NewYork