The end of the age of Christendom. Churches viewed as hate groups. Traditional Christian teachings labeled as bigoted. The church as a cultural institution removed from its place of influence and pushed toward the margins of society. Sounds like a frightening, futuristic movie pitch for the Kendrick brothers.

But in Take Heart: Christian Courage in the Age of Unbelief, Matt Chandler observes that this is the reality we’re living right now, and he offers a radical solution: courageous engagement despite hostility.

In the first part of this brief, readable book, Chandler gives us a condensed look at the history of Christendom and the church. He points out that “the age of Christendom” – the time in which Christianity enjoyed preeminence in much of the Western world as a cultural and political influence – has been an aberration in the history of the church. For most of the church’s existence, Christians were on the margins of society, and they thrived there.

But when Christianity became the cultural norm, churches began taking on a consumerist sheen. It was easy to be a nominal Christian without any of the substance, because “doing church” was politically correct.

Now, as our culture becomes less and less friendly toward Christian teachings, we as the body of Christ have begun to experience growing hostility toward God and His people.

Many Christians have responded to these changes with fear: fear that the church cannot thrive in a culture that no longer espouses Christian values, fear that culture will corrupt the church, or fear that the church will become irrelevant if we do not give way to cultural norms.

Yet now is not a time for fear or for mourning, Chandler argues. It’s a time for courage.  It’s time for the church to embrace the margins, because it is in the margins of society that the church has historically flourished the most.

Throughout the remainder of the book, Chandler walks us through what courage in the age of unbelief looks like:

• Getting to know the greatness of God – When we understand that God is great and we are small, we can move beyond fear, because “God is far greater, far more eternal, far more sovereign, far more wonderful than anything this world may take from [us]” (p. 54).
• Understanding our place in God’s eternal story – Here’s a spoiler: Jesus wins. Because He has already conquered Satan publicly and completely on the cross, we can now “take the victory out to the world as we proclaim the gospel of Christ” (p. 69). This is our mission, and we can do it without fear because we know the end of the story.

• Learning what courage looks like in an age of unbelief – We are exiles standing on grace and looking towards eternity. That has several implications for how we live. We are called to lives of holiness, integrity, devotion, evangelism, and hospitality. Chandler walks us through each of these aspects, using I Peter as his playbook for life in a culture that is hostile to Christianity.

The book concludes with a call to courage, despite the increasing unbelief and hostility of our current culture:

“In our age we’re back in the place where the church thrives the most – on the margins, being seen as unique and weird. After all, it was on the margins where Christ lived, died, and rose again. It was on the margins that he built his church. It was on the margins that his church spread like wildfire.”

(p. 117-118)

And it is on the margins that we get to display God’s glory to a world that has lost its way.

God has put us here for this exact moment, and He has given us everything we need to face our changing culture with courage.

Take heart!

This book is available at the Resource Center. When it reopens, you can stop by before or after a service to purchase it. In the meanwhile, you can purchase it online or contact the church office to pick up a copy.