Reading Ronald Sider's book, "The Scandal of the Evangelical Conscience," I realized he had disturbing truths of Evangelical Christians and the way they live their lives. To know there is evidence of no change in lifestyle between Christians and non-Christians is quite disturbing. I was really bothered by the word, "sin." I wasn't offended by it but pleased to read about the problems I see daily since the word is a sensitive subject too many. Why are Christians living just like the rest of the world? That is a question I ask myself and one I will explore. In this paper, I will focus on some key reasons why Christians are living just like the rest of the world. Christian's values are compromised when a Christian do not die to their sin, have no faith, minds are not renewed and there's no confession or acknowledgement of their sin. I will suggest some proposals on how Christians do not have to become part of this dying world.
Sadly, many have chosen to become rotten fruit than to bear good fruit. Christians live like the rest of the world because they do no die to their sin. Just like a tree, we are strong and robust. A tree can live for many centuries if it has the proper nutrients and care. If it hasn't been properly cared for, the tree can die inside and out. In Christ, we can go south in a number of ways just like a tree. Factors within a tree such as rain, wind, extreme heat and cold can have an impact on whether the tree remains healthy. As a Christian, reading the Bible, daily prayer, evangelism, paying tithes, attending church and more are a few factors in keeping our spirit in healthy conditions. Our spirit can become compromised to rot if we lack or fall short within our faith. .
Another reason why Christians live like the rest of the world is lack of faith. "Faith without works is dead" according to the book of James 2:14-26 (NSRV). Ronald Sider mentions Romans 3:28 (NSRV) on page 37, "that a person is justified by faith apart from works.