What if a single revolutionary idea could completely transform how we see the world? That’s the power of a paradigm shift, a concept first coined in 1962 by Thomas Kuhn, an influential philosopher of science. According to Kuhn, scientific progress occurs through periodic revolutions that replace an existing scientific framework or paradigm with a fundamentally different one.
Phyllis Tickle, a renowned author and commentator on religion, contends that the church experiences significant paradigm shifts roughly every 500 years. The fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 AD changed the nature of the church. So did the Schism of 1054 and the Protestant Reformation of 1517.
Many believe that the church is at another 500-year moment in its history. Like the church in Luther’s day, the current church is at a crossroads, evidenced by the meteoric rise of the “Nones”—individuals who check “none” or “nothing in particular” when asked about their religious affiliation. Once comprising about 5% of the population before 1990, they now approach 25% or even 30%, rivaling the total population of white evangelicals in America.
This is a significant and transformative shift. As the PEW survey authors noted, “We do not typically see a change of anything on that scale in a relatively short period of time.” Various explanations abound, but the data is clear: the politicization of American religion is the primary factor behind this meteoric rise in people saying, “no thanks.”
What if the church exhibited an unwavering commitment to Christ’s call to “Follow Me?” What if it embodied the likeness of Christ, showing the world what their God is like through their words, deeds, and attitudes: a church with a singular identity centered on Jesus, in whom “we live and move, and have our being?” Wouldn’t that be a game changer, not just shifting the priorities and actions of the church, but unleashing its salt and light influence in the world?
Five hundred years ago, Luther famously posted 95 theses on the Wittenburg church door. The following text proposes a new set of 95 theses in response to the syncretistic faith crisis of our current era with a new call for change.
- When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, “Follow Me,” he willed the entire life of believers to be an imitator of his life and teachings.
- Imitators of Christ are “Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.”
- Imitators of Christ are those who “proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God.”
- Imitators of Christ are “His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
- Yet, many in the church have exchanged this Christ-centered calling for the pursuit of temporal power, trading Christ’s Kingdom mission for a culture-war mission with a thirst for the fight.
- Political expediency has trumped Christ-like virtue by its alignment with un-Christlike rhetoric and tactics.
- It’s yielded a Galatians 5-type works-of-the-flesh praxis rather than a fruit-of-the-spirit witness.
- Political goals have trumped Christ’s teachings, leading to alliances and endorsements that betray the gospel.
- It’s yielded an unbiblical focus on political solutions rather than spiritual renewal and transformation.
- Political tactics have led to the pursuit of power through unrighteous means, rather than fostering trust in God’s provision, providence, and sovereignty.
- It’s yielded an “us versus them” mindset, contrary to Christ’s call to love our enemies.
- Rather than reflecting Christ’s humility and love, it’s adopted the world’s quest for dominance and control.
- Rather than prioritizing integrity, it prioritizes cultural narratives through a deceitful disinterest in truth.
- Rather than exercising its biblical mandate to be peacemakers, the church has sown division and strife.
- Rather than becoming Christ’s ambassadors of reconciliation, they have become agents of division.
- Rather than being a place of grace and healing, they have exercised apathy or disdain.
- Rather than fostering a practice of humility and virtue, they have adopted a win-at-all-cost mindset.
- By seeking first political influence and control, they have neglected the power of the cross, lost the vision of the kingdom, and forsaken their ambassadorial calling to show the world what their God looks like.
- They have forgotten that our citizenship is in heaven, not earthly nations.
- They have elevated the priority of political victories over their mission to make disciples.
- They have discounted the power of heart transformation by bowing to the allurement of coercive power.
- They have quieted their voice for peace and reconciliation in a world ravaged by conflict and division.
- They have dimmed the beacon of hope and love in a world filled with fear and hatred.
- They have rejected their scriptural calling to welcome the marginalized regardless of background or status.
- They have lost their prophetic voice for justice and mercy by becoming captive to political ideologies marked by barriers rather than bridges.
- They have neglected to mirror Christ’s sacrificial love – to put the needs of others above their own desires for power and influence.
- They have forgotten that true worship is measured by how we live our lives, not just by what we say or sing.
- Christians are to be taught the foundational principles of the Christian faith, emphasizing repentance and a commitment to choose Christ’s teachings over political power fueled by fear.
- The church must recover its prophetic voice, challenging injustices and advocating for the vulnerable, even at the cost of its own comfort and safety.
- The church must stand with the oppressed and marginalized, advocating for their rights and dignity.
- The church must recognize that our ultimate allegiance is to Christ, not to any political entity or leader.
- The church must prioritize Jesus’s call to love our neighbors and care for the least of these.
- The church must be willing to be uncomfortably challenged to love mercy, do justly, and walk humbly.
- The church must be a community of grace and forgiveness, reflecting Christ’s love and mercy.
- The church must be vigilant against the idols of power, wealth, and success, which can corrupt our witness.
- The church must reject any form of Christian nationalism that conflates faith with patriotism.
- The church must remember that its battle is not against flesh and blood but against spiritual forces.
- The church must remember that its ultimate goal is to glorify God and reflect His love to the world.
- The church must remember that in Christ, there is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female.
- The church must recover its priority for the in-breaking of Christ’s kingdom, while we await Christ’s return.
- The church must recover its priority of salt and light in the world, re-presenting Jesus through its words, deeds, and attitudes.
- The church must recover its priority of Christlikeness in all its actions, even in the face of cultural opposition.
- The church must obey Christ’s injunction to “Follow Me” by being an imitator of his life and teachings.
- Christians are to be taught that Christ’s “Follow Me” cannot be understood as a one-time verbal confession.
- Christ’s “Follow Me” requires us to heed the teachings of the apostle James, who said, “Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror.”
- Christ’s “Follow Me” means that we “Renounce ungodliness and worldly passions” as we “Train ourselves for godliness,” living “self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age.”
- Christians are to be taught that “Follow me” first requires “let him deny himself and take up his cross”
- Denying ourselves stems from “being crucified with Christ. [so that] It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.”
- Denying ourselves means to “offer your bodies [all of our lives] as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God” as our “true and proper worship.”
- Denying ourselves means to “not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind.”
- Denying ourselves means to “throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.”
- Denying ourselves means to set our “mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”
- Christians are to be taught that following Christ requires that we abide in Him, “For in him we live, and move, and have our being ”
- Abiding in Him leads to the promise, “If any man is in Christ, there is a new creation, the old has gone, and the new has come.”
- Abiding in Him leads to the promise “that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.”
- Abiding in Him leads to the promise that “His divine power has given us all things that pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of Him.”
- Christians are to be taught that following Christ makes us “Witnesses of the Lamb” through a whole life of worship and devotion to God.
- A whole life of worship and devotion to God means loving our enemies, helping the poor, clothing the naked, binding up the wounded, and blessing those who curse us.
- It means we wear the marks of love and unity, as instructed by the apostle John.
- It means we do “nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves [looking out] to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus.”
- It means we “do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God.”
- It means we “live by the Spirit” as proven by the fruit of the Spirit, which is “love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
- It means we “run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”
- It means we live “as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothed with compassion, kindness, humility.”
- Christians are to be taught that following Christ makes us dissident to culture, alert to its subversive influence on our beliefs, priorities, and practices.
- Being dissident to culture means rejecting the commercialization of faith, and a lifestyle marked by an appetite for worldly passions, power, and privilege.
- It means “Be[ing] humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.”
- It means refusing to accommodate or excuse any form of corruption, moral failure, abuse of power, or lack of accountability.
- It means avoiding the snare of people, media, or world systems that promote a constant diet of fear, strife, rivalries, and dissensions, which scripture calls the works of the flesh.
- It means knowing “that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore, whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”
- It means guarding against the identity-changing influence of political entanglements and how their allurement to do good can pull us into their fold
- It means rejecting the spirit of populism that exchanges God’s perspective of people as image bearers for a Manichean perspective of us versus them.
- It means refusing to countenance exclusivist attitudes and practices that marginalize people from races, groups, or faith traditions that are different from us.
- It means rejecting the idolatry of nationalism, especially the fusion of Christian and national identities.
- Christians are to be taught that following Christ requires us to have a discerning spirit.
- A discerning spirit heeds the instruction of the apostle Peter. “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.”
- A discerning spirit knows “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for you. You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is beneficial.”
- A discerning spirit recognizes, “For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.”
- A discerning spirit is one that “will no longer be immature like children. Won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. Will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth.”
- A discerning spirit is heedful that “A time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear.”
- A discerning spirit is heedful that “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”
- A discerning spirit begins and ends with love: “that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.”
- Christians are to be taught that following Christ means relying upon the power of the Spirit.
- Relying upon the power of the Spirit recognizes that “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”
- Relying upon the power of the Spirit recognizes that “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.”
- Christians are to be taught that the goal of following Christ is to progressively make us Christ-like in attitudes and actions.
- Christlikeness is to “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus.”
- Christlikeness adopts the posture, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.”
- Christlikeness testifies to “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
- Christlikeness is found in those who “as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe [themselves] with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.”
- Christlikeness stems from making “every effort to add to our faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if we possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep us from being ineffective and unproductive in our knowledge of our Jesus Christ.”
- Christlikeness “Consider[s] how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.”
- Christlikeness imitates the servant heart of Christ, who “did not come to be served, but to serve.”
- Christlikeness is one who is merciful, poor in spirit, meek, able to mourn, a peacemaker, pure in heart, hungers and thirsts after justice, and willing to suffer persecution for justice’s sake.
- Christlikeness stems from those who, with “unveiled faces [as they] contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”
Martin Luther’s 95 Theses, which ignited the Protestant Reformation, primarily targeted the Catholic Church’s practice of selling indulgences—a practice Luther viewed as corrupt, unbiblical, and a significant deviation from the “faith once delivered to the saints.” His urgent call for a profound reformation of church practices and a return to scriptural integrity would transform the Church and alter the course of history.
These 95 theses address a contemporary, yet related, deviation from the “faith once delivered to the saints.” The church’s elevation of political power and cultural battles above the teachings of Christ is similarly corrupt and unbiblical. The true calling of believers must be to imitate Christ, reflecting His goodness rather than the “works of the flesh” that those battles produce.
The 95 theses critique the church’s alignment with un-Christlike rhetoric, tactics, and political goals, which have led to division, fear, and a loss of its prophetic voice and mission of reconciliation. They call for a return to Christ-centered values, prioritizing spiritual transformation, humility, love, and a commitment to justice and mercy for all, especially the marginalized and oppressed.
It’s been done before and can be done again. In the words of Julian the Apostate, the last pagan emperor of Rome: “These impious Galileans (Christians) not only feed their own, but ours also; welcoming them with their agape, they attract them, as children are attracted with cakes… Whilst the pagan priests neglect the poor, the hated Galileans devote themselves to works of charity, and by a display of false compassion have established and given effect to their pernicious errors. Such practice is common among them, and causes contempt for our gods.”
Julian’s dying words in AD 363 were “vicisti Galilaee” (You Galileans [Christians] have conquered!). What a tribute to the power of a Christ-like community. It was a force that couldn’t be stopped. It changed the world.