What’s a pilgrim to do? The narrow way that leads to life has gotten a bit crowded recently. Merchants have set up shop selling guidebooks that promise the newest (and best) option for reaching the Celestial City. Hearing the sales pitch, one would be forgiven for thinking that “our” stage of the pilgrimage is more dangerous than any before—that unique dangers lay in wait for us that no other previous Christian has ever faced. It’s tempting to keep our family just a little closer, to walk just a little faster, and to worry just a little more about whether God’s promises to us and our children will come true.
Without going too deeply into the various options being hawked to modern pilgrims, this issue of Modern Reformation is intended to show us that there is truly nothing new under the sun and that the resources we need for our pilgrimage have already been given to us by Christ himself. First up is Blake Hartung’s article “Back to the Future.” Hartung, a scholar whose work focuses on early Christianity, reminds us that the earliest Christians had to make their way in a society that was radically opposed to their new faith, and we can draw on their experience to help us navigate our own pilgrimage today, in an increasingly hostile culture.
Our editor-in-chief, Michael Horton, recently sat down to talk with James K. A. Smith, professor of philosophy at Calvin College. In their wide-ranging conversation, they discussed how the church is the first and most important resource given by God to weary pilgrims. The preached word and sacraments, the fellowship of the saints, the oversight of local shepherds—these are the tools we need (and every age needs) for a safe journey home.
To help illustrate that point, we asked two pastors—Michel Brown of Christ United Reformed Church and Juan Sanchez of High Pointe Baptist Church—to talk about the ministry of the local church and the gift of the Sabbath. An ordinary church and an ordinary day in the hands of God can become extraordinary places of divine action and comfort for pilgrims on the way.
We cap it all off with a classic article from our archives by Don Eberly. Don is the director of the Civil Society Project. In his article, he lays out fifteen propositions for how American Christians, especially, should approach this particular cultural moment. As American Christians see our cultural prestige diminished, we may be tempted to conflate the sacred and the secular, Eberly argues, but instead we must resist the desperate grab for power and influence that has too often characterized evangelical political engagement. In its place, a new way of engaging the culture can develop.
So, what’s a pilgrim to do when faced with all of the problems that flood our television screens and Twitter feeds? What we have always done: Bear patient and prophetic witness of the rightful King who is coming to rescue and renew the world. We can walk in the faithful footsteps of those who have gone before us, knowing that God will sustain us—like them—all the way home.
Eric Landry executive editor
