only our nation but also the church . We give our systems of education over to non-Christians and send our children through those same systems . Twelve years later , we are surprised when our children have fully absorbed the false redefinition of many words and can no longer articulate true biblical definitions . This is where we find ourselves today , with secular postmodern culture shaping the church and not the other way around . The downward progression looks something like this :
• The church tries to speak relevantly to the culture ;
• The church adopts the language of the culture ;
• The church makes accommodations to the culture ;
• The church is held captive by the culture .
We must remember that our enemy isn ’ t flesh and blood but is composed of “ spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms ” ( Eph . 6:12 ). Satan uses the redefinition of words to advance His counterfeit kingdom . His tactic is parasitic . He latches onto words given by God and redefines them — empties them of their God-given meaning and ultimately destroys the very words and their meanings .
Here ’ s how this works today . Look up “ marriage ” in Webster ’ s 1828 Dictionary , and you ’ ll find this definition : “ The act of uniting a man and woman for life ; wedlock ; the legal union of man and woman for life . Marriage is a contract , both civil and religious , by which parties engage to live together in mutual affection and fidelity , till death shall separate them . Marriage was instituted by God himself for the purpose of preventing the promiscuous intercourse of the sexes , for promoting domestic felicity , and for securing the maintenance and education of children .”
Now look at the definition embedded in Microsoft ’ s popular word-processing software “ Word .” It defines marriage as : “ A legally recognized relationship , established by a civil or religious ceremony , between two people who intend to live together as sexual and domestic partners .”
Marriage , as it has been understood for millennia , is being intentionally redefined out of existence — in our lifetimes . Think of the enormously destructive cultural repercussions that changing the definition of just one word will bring about . Some of the most important words in the English language — not only marriage but also freedom , love , justice , sex , human , and truth — have been redefined in a deliberate effort to advance non-biblical ideologies . Contrary to postmodern deconstructionism , words are not empty vessels to be filled with whatever meaning we wish . These are God-spoken words , and to redefine them is an act of rebellion against the Creator .
Christians should long to see our neighbors and their families , communities , and nations flourish and see nations struggling with corruption become more just and prosperous . This will only happen if the dominant culture of any nation develops a biblical vocabulary and a moral and mental ecology that comports with reality . As the ancient Chinese philosopher Confucius sagely wrote , “ In reconstructing a society in collapse , the first priority is to restore the proper meaning of words .” After all , biblical definitions are not merely valid for Christians . They are true for everyone — Christian and non-Christian alike .
As the tectonic plates of culture shift in the West ( and around the world ), societal pressure mounts against the church . The
Adhering to biblical definitions increasingly results in cultural stigma and legal penalties . It can even necessitate civil disobedience .
dominant culture in the West has moved from post-Christian to anti-Christian almost overnight , and with that shift , the pressure to discard biblical definitions grows stronger with each passing day . Policies and laws are increasingly being established to compel speech and action based on false redefinitions . Adhering to biblical definitions increasingly results in cultural stigma and legal penalties . It can even necessitate civil disobedience .
Will the committed Christian remnant in Europe and North America withstand the pressure ? Ultimately , each of us will answer this question , which will primarily come down to this : Whose dictionary do we trust ?
Like the great Noah Webster before us , may we treasure and preserve the power , beauty , and truthfulness of biblical words and pass their meanings down to future generations . God has called us for such a time as this . Let us be salt and light by telling the truth about sex , marriage , love , freedom , justice , and truth itself for the glory of God and the good of our nations .
Editor ’ s Note : This article was adapted from the introduction of Scott ’ s newest book , 10 Words to Heal Our Broken World : Recovering the True Meaning of Our Most Important Words .
Scott Allen is president of the Disciple Nations Alliance and the author of Why Social Justice is Not Biblical Justice : An Urgent Appeal to Fellow Christians in a Time of Social Crisis and 10 Words to Heal Our Broken World : Recovering the True Meaning of Our Most Important Words . He is married to Kimberly and the homeschooling father of five children .
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