The Old Testament is a record of God working primarily with one nation in very much of a holistic manner. That means that everything about the life of the Old Testament people was governed and controlled directly by God. The government itself was designed as a theocracy where God was the ultimate ruler but ruling through kings and priests and prophets. The government centrally controlled even laws for the family. Therefore, the word of God was absolutely central to everything in the Old Testament times including the society, the government, the family, education, the business community and even personal relations.

In the New Testament period, God changed His channel of operation upon the earth. He decided that the best way to build His kingdom around the world was not to use a political entity like the nation of Israel but to create a new organization, which we now call the church. A church is similar to a nation in several ways:

• It is made up of a group of people.
• It has a certain amount of organization and administration and discipline.
• It has different kinds of leaders.
• It has rules and principles to guide daily behavior.

However, a church is different from most nations in several ways.

• It is purely a voluntary organization and entry into it is based upon one's personal choice not the place of birth.
• It is not restricted to one geographical location.
• It is not restricted nor prefers one particular culture.
• There is no official language.
• There is not particular earthly headquarters.

In the age in which we now live, God has chosen to work through all nations and governments. Therefore, God has removed from individual Christians certain responsibilities given to the Old Testament nation. We are no longer responsible for enforcing justice in the culture. For example, we no longer execute murderers and rapists, either individually or corporately. It is the government who has that responsibility. The Apostle Paul declares in Romans 13:4 that the government is God's servant and "does not bear the sword for nothing." Although the Old Testament nation of Israel had this responsibility, it is not the responsibility of the church to solve all property disagreements or lawsuits between individuals. There are other such duties that governments normally do.

Paul says that one of the responsibilities of government is to "do good" and so governments traditionally have been involved in building roads and health facilities and providing other kinds of infrastructure that make life easier and better for its citizens. Although even these things would have fallen under the responsibility of the theocracy in the Old Testament, God has not asked the church to provide all infrastructure facilities for our societies. Since there is a difference between the structure of the Old Testament nation of Israel and the New Testament Church, it is important for us to understand those differences and make sure that we are doing what God expects us to do.

Although the church is not called upon to provide all of the governing responsibilities, we are called upon to have great influence in the many cultures where the Church exists. Jesus uses several metaphors to describe the kind of influence that Christians and Christianity are to have on the society and the nations of which we are a part. I have called these "mainstreaming metaphors" because they tell about the kind of mainstream effect that individual Christians and the church should have upon the society, the culture and the governments of which we are a part. The main point that I want to stress in this sermon is the responsibility we have as individual Christians to "mainstream Christianity." Christians are not to be at the edge of the river or building a canal beside the river but we are to be right in the middle of the river of society.

Unfortunately, Christians have not always understood that role and have not always been the kind of influence in society we should have been. These failures have often developed as a result of misunderstanding of Scripture. We have done better at making Jesus central in our personal lives than we have in making Him central in our society. One of the reasons we have done this is because of the voluntary nature of Christianity. We can force ourselves to do something religious but there is something within us that rebels against forcing others to do "religious things."

There are a number of examples of how we have failed to make Christianity central in our lives personally and in the society.

God expects the church today to penetrate and have a positive affect on every part of our society. Unfortunately, this has not always been the case. We have made progress in some areas but have lost ground in other areas. The whole area of "human rights" stems directly from the Christian's philosophy of the worth of every person as being made in the image of God. Therefore, all of the good which has been done by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights and other human rights organizations is a positive example of the teachings of Christianity penetrating the society and making a difference.

Examples of Failures

In the USA, perhaps the most obvious failure on the part of the church to influence the morals of the society is the issue of abortion. The Christian church along with other religions who believe similarly about abortion have failed to stop the march of the secularists on this issue.

In Nigeria, where I live, we have a very religious society. I frequently tell people that in Nigeria there is a church on every corner and in every school in between. I would guess that a greater percentage of the people who call themselves Christians in Nigeria will be in church on a Sunday morning than in the USA. There are long and loud services. There are all night prayer meetings. There are many Christian activities. However, last year, one research organization stated that Nigeria was perceived to be the most corrupt nation in the world. And, unfortunately, all of the people who are stealing money from the government and extorting money from innocent people are not Mohammeds and Mustaphas. They are people with Christian names who go to church every Sunday. It is sad that the AIDS plague, which unfortunately is often a public testimony of loose morals, is worse in Christian areas of Africa than in Muslim areas.

The point is that our Christianity has somehow been compartmentalized. Christianity is something we do on Sundays but it has little to do with what we do during the rest of the week.

Reasons for Not Mainstreaming Christianity

The question is why have we not been the kind of influence that we should have been on the culture? I think that there are several possible reasons.

Misunderstanding of the "straight and narrow" scriptures

Jesus said in Matthew 7:13-14, "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." This verse has been used by many to teach that Christianity will always be a minority religion. Therefore, the best we can do is to hold to our faith personally and let the world go to hell. However, this is not the only or even the best interpretation of this passage. I think the "straight and narrow" imagery here is simply an indication that God's way will not be easy. God's way is not necessarily the most obvious way or the way that the world thinks. It is difficult but it is not necessarily going to be occupied by only a few. When John saw the vision of a scene in heaven, he said (Revelation 7:9), "After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb." The members of this great multitude are later identified in verse 14, "These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb." Certainly by the time John saw this scene, Christianity was not just a tiny little minority who would be unnoticed in society. Therefore the correct interpretation of these scriptures is that the way of Jesus will not necessarily be easy and natural. However, we believe billions of people will eventually find this wonderful way and will follow it.

Misunderstanding of the "separation" scriptures

There are several scriptures that some have used to teach that Christians should have nothing to do with "the world." I John 2:15 says "Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him." James 4:4 declares, "You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God?" II Corinthians 6:17 exhorts, "Therefore come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you."

All of these verses have been interpreted to mean that every person other than the Christian is somehow the "enemy" and must be avoided. The least contact with them the better. The only legitimate contact with the "world" is when you are witnessing to them-trying to get them to come over to your side. This interpretation of these passages has obviously led to some application problems.

Some have used these passages to teach that anyone who looks like the world or does things like the modern world does them is "worldly" and in violation of these scriptures. The most obvious illustration of this is the old order Amish community. Some of them have gotten stuck in an eighteenth century world and anything more recent than that is considered evil.

A less radical interpretation of this interpretation has been practiced by many people in my background who chose to be different from everything modern. If the common practice were to have wide ties, we would wear narrow ties because we did not want to look like the world. If the common practice is to wear long hair, we wear short hair; if the common practice is to get a crew cut, we will let our hair grow longer because we must be separate from the world. Even though God is the one who created beards for men, they must be "worldly" because they are popular.

These kinds of interpretations have usually been identified with the more extreme wing of Christianity. However, there is an application of this interpretation that has affected much if not most of evangelical Christianity.

Some have viewed the mainstream institutions as having become so corrupted by the world that we must abandon them and create our own. Perhaps the best illustration of this is the public school system. Until perhaps forty years ago, nearly all Christians sent their children to public schools that were taught by people who were "just like us." However, slowly things began to change in the school system. Prayer and the Bible were removed from schools. Negative activities began to creep into the schools such as dancing and wearing immodest clothes for PE classes and sex education. Even more troubling was the secular humanistic teachings which began to infiltrate the textbooks and activities of the public schools. In recent years, violent behavior has added to the formula.

During the last forty years, a very strong Christian day school movement has emerged at primarily because of these concerns. We have reasoned, "If the world will not allow us to do what we think we should do, we will 'come out from among them and be separate' and do our own thing." As such we have been able to create some very strong schools and have created a Christian "industry" to support it. In many ways the Christian Day School movement has been very positive. We have been able to preserve much of our Christian heritage. We have been trained some fine Christian leaders. I am a product of the Christian School movement.

However, this movement has also had a down side. By pulling all of our best people out of mainstream education, we have created a vacuum which has been filled with secularists and humanists and atheists and the end result is that our society has greatly suffered. The question is retrospect is: Are we as a culture better off because we have separated from the world and been so different while ignoring our responsibilities to the world at large? I am afraid that in keeping our Christianity strong, we have made our society weak.

The Christian Day School movement has been only one of the "Christian" institutions and entities we have created. We have our own entertainment industry, including Christian music and Christian videos and even Christian theme parks. We have our own radio stations so that we can listen to Christian music and preaching and teaching all day long. We have our own Christian literature so that we don't ever have to read any of that stuff with the bad words produced by the world.

Please do not misunderstand me. I am not necessarily criticizing these things. They are good and we have all benefited from them. And please understand that I do not have time in this sermon to say all that I do not mean. The point I am making is that for one reason or another, our understanding and application of these scriptures and other scriptures have caused Christianity to be removed from the mainstream.

• Christianity has become the scenic route rather than the interstate highway.
• Christianity has become one of the chapters rather than the theme of the book.
• Christianity has become a strip mall rather than down town shopping district.
• Christianity has become a minor skirmish rather than the main battle.
• Christianity has become the third baseman rather than the baseball stadium.
• Christianity has become the onions in the salad rather than the main course.
• Christianity has become a computer program rather than the operating system.

The world recognizes us Christians as just one other minority. It occasionally visits us and sometimes criticizes us and even occasionally says nice things about us. It notes our concerns and has its token Christian or two who can speak authoritatively for the rest of us. We are to be accepted and even defended, just like any other minority. However, we are not "one of them." We are different and not part of the "real world." I am sure that this is viewed as the way Christianity should operate in some circles but I do not think that is what Jesus teaches. My thesis in this sermon is that God wants us to be back into the mainstream.

Misunderstanding Christianity's role in government

Because the new entity which Jesus created was not a government, Christians have bounced from one extreme to the other in understanding the Christian's relationship to the government. For the first three hundred years of Church history, Christianity was a minority religion that was considered either illegal or at least undesirable by the ruling governmental body of the world. After Constantine granted the church legal recognition, the church gradually became the majority religion in Europe and the dominating force in the society. The Church eventually developed enormous influence over the governments of Europe to the point that government became the instrument that would do the dirty work for the church. Hundreds of people were tortured and executed through official government agents for ecclesiastical crimes at the request of the church.

After the reformation, many Christian leaders began to see the wrongness of this approach and demanded a separation between the government and the church. When the settlers went to the new world called America and set up a government, to avoid the strange amalgamation of the church and government which had been popular prior to that time, they decided not to set up a state church or allow the state to interfere in church-related matters. They were not opposed to the church or even afraid of the church having a very public role in society and even in government. For example, when the capitol building was built in Washington DC and the rules were created for the Congress, speaking to Congress became possible from three different places. The Speaker of the House speaks from the top position. Congressmen speak from the floor of the Congress. The middle section, which is elevated about eighteen inches above the floor level, is reserved only for heads of state and the chaplain, even until today. Giving only the chaplain the opportunity to speak from the same place where the head of state speaks demonstrates how important the American church fathers believed religion should be.

The founders of the American government simply wanted the church to be totally free from state interference so it could do its work without outside political influence. I believe that our forefathers' motives were right and their decision was probably right at that time. However, their decision to separate the church from government has opened wide the gates for secularism and has been interpreted by many modern courts to demand removal of anything religious from public life. This has had the effect to amoralize the society and has helped to neutralize government's ability to maintain order and justice.

The correct view is that the government is a servant of the people. The Apostle Paul outlines two specific responsibilities of governments. They are to punish those who do wrong and reward those who do right (Romans 13:3-4). The natural question that arises is, "Who determines what is right and wrong?" A related question is, "If the government is the servant, who is master?" In a democracy, the master is the majority of the people who choose to be part of the political process. In a nation or even a community where Christianity is the majority religion, Christianity should influence if not determine the morals and ethics of the society and the government that is filled with Christians should create legislation that is consistent with Christian principles.

Where we attempt to create a government totally devoid of all religious truth, we create an ethically neutral society because government impacts so many parts of the society. If there are no underlying absolute moral principles, which traditionally and most naturally come from religion, then everyone does that which is right in his own eyes. When that happens, Columbine High School becomes the ultimate result.

Christianity will always be a voluntary religion and no attempt should ever be made to force citizens to convert or worship in any particular way. However, where Christianity is a majority religion, the society should reflect a Christian worldview and the laws of the land should be structured in such a way as to support that Christian worldview. Therefore, Christian politicians should have to make no apologies for seeking to promote and enact legislation that reflects a Christian worldview.

There are two pairs of metaphors that teach us that Christianity is designed not to just be a minor part of the society but the defining part.

Metaphors about Influence - Salt and Light

The first set of metaphors is "salt and light." Jesus says in Matthew 5:13-14; "You are the salt of the earth . . . You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house."

The key truth here is that Christianity should influence every part of society. Salt influences everything it touches. If you sprinkle a little salt in a pan of food, it will reach all parts. The more salt you add, the more salty the food tastes. Here is the formula: A little salt plus a little stirring plus a little heat plus a little time will produce a salty taste in the whole dish. That same formula applies to life as well.

Light drives out darkness completely. In a very dark room, a small candle will give you enough light to see. The good thing about light is that it affects everything within its domain. A light does not only touch part of the room. It drives out darkness totally from its sphere of influence. Light and darkness are totally incompatible. Where one exists, the other is driven away. Of course, the imagery is not absolutely parallel with the application. However, the point should be obvious. Wherever Christ is, evil must flee away. Wherever truth is, deceit and dishonest must excuse themselves. Wherever Christians are, society should be better.

What application is there in this for us today?

1. Christianity must influence every part of society.

As I indicated earlier, we have allowed ourselves to develop something of a separation mentality. It is "us and them." However, Jesus says that we should take our Christianity and penetrate every part of society with it. This means that Christians should penetrate business, entertainment, the media, politics, and certainly education. And when we penetrate those industries, we should leave a little taste of Christianity. If we are not doing that, we are not doing what Jesus taught us to do.

2. Christians must make a deliberate effort to become salt and light.

Salt does not get into the kettle without someone putting it there. A light does not turn itself on. Someone lights the candle. The point I am making is that if we want to be salt and light in the world, we need to make a deliberate effort to do so. That means:

• Christians should seek jobs in public institutions.
• Christians should run for political office.
• Christians should be a part of the police force and the military.
• Christians should make themselves available for appointed offices.
• Christians should become part of the legal system.
• Christians should be a part of every academic discipline in every academic institution.

A couple of years ago, I became involved in an ongoing attempt to create some kind of academic Christian studies project at public university in the USA. When I was presenting this opportunity to a group of missionaries in Nigeria, one missionary lady said, "Oh, Danny, they won't let you do that." I immediately said to her, "Too often we Christians defeat ourselves by anticipating the negative replies of others."

We must stop defeating ourselves with our negative attitudes. We must stop being bullied and intimidated by the mainstream secular heavyweights in the various parts of society. Christians are just as smart and are much more honest and disciplined than most of society so we do have something to say and we must be in the mainstream letting our voice be heard.

When I pastored a church in Georgia, some of the pastors became appalled to learn of the kinds of pornography that were being sold in our stores. We got together to try to do something about it. Our temptation was to think that we were just a few little people who could do nothing. However, two of us pastors got together. We went to see all of the owners of the stores who sold pornography and asked them to remove the material from their stores and all of them did so. With a small amount of effort by a small group of Christians, the entire county was delivered from pornography and the Christian worldview was enhanced in that area.

Metaphors about Success - Mustard Seed and Leaven

The pair of metaphors about success are the mustard seed and leaven. Jesus said in Matthew 13:31-32; "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches." He also said in Matthew 13:33; "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough."

The key truth here is this: If all the ingredients are present (good seed, good soil, good moisture), success is certain. What application does that have for our modern world?

1. Successful projects usually start small.

Our temptation is to think that the needs are so big and we are so few and so insignificant that we cannot do anything. Jesus said that a plant big enough for the birds to come and sit inside, begins as a tiny mustard seed. Regardless of how big a lump of dough, just a tiny bit of yeast or leaven will penetrate the whole thing. One of the points that I frequently make in my initial speech about IICS is that God enjoys using that which is small and insignificant. Jesus said to the church at Philadelphia in Revelation 3:8; "See I have set before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength . . ." This was not the biggest or the richest church but it was a church before whom God sat an open door. Paul said that God likes to use the small, the insignificant and the things that are not to do his work (I Corinthians 1:27-29). Therefore, if you are teaching in a small university to only a few students, do not be discouraged. If you are working in a small office or volunteering a small church, don't be discouraged. Every big thing starts small.

2. Successful projects usually grow slowly.

Our tendency is to want things to happen quickly. We want rapid growth. We want to see our society changed instantly. We tend to get discouraged if we do not see a lot of results quickly. However, the metaphors Jesus gave suggest that things will not always go fast. You can plant a seed and go out and sit beside the place where you have planted it and watch and watch and you will never see any movement. However, if you come back in a few days, you will see that there has been progress.

Other movements in the United States have used this strategy. The anti-smoking campaign started out very slowly and with little hope of success but it is now unpopular to smoke in public. The attempt Lady Bird Johnson made to clean up our highways started very slowly and, for a while, made little progress. However, today most of the American public highways are beautiful and well maintained.

Sometimes when I look back and say, "What did I do that was meaningful today" or "this week?" I tend to be discouraged. However, when I look back over thirteen years in Africa, I can see that there has been good progress.

I am committed to a long-term philosophy of ministry. Changing a culture or society is not going to happen with short-term missions trips or sabbaticals as good and important as they are. Success will only come when that seed gets planted in one place and stays there long enough to grow big enough to do what God has called it to do. Our responsibility is to allow God to plant us where He wants us, be faithful and He will bring the results.

Paul's Philosophy

Paul wrote in II Corinthians 2:14; "But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him." What is the significance of this verse? Note these key words: God, always, triumph and everywhere. This verse shows that Paul fully expected to triumph in his work. It would be God who was successfully doing the work through him always. This verse teaches that the work of God was going to be done through Christians. Paul says it will be "through us." This verse also shows that Paul expected Christianity to be totally successful. Paul said, "through us (it) spreads everywhere." Paul did not expect any nation or society or people group to escape the powerful influence of Christianity. This verse also shows that Christianity will have a positive influence wherever it goes. He says "the fragrance of the knowledge of him" is what will triumph. Wherever true Christianity goes, it will be like a sweet perfume in society. In one word, Paul expected Christianity to penetrate to all societies and cultures and be so positive and appealing that Christianity would triumph and change all cultures.

Paul's Practice How did Paul go about mainstreaming Christianity?

He focused on the major population centers.

These included Antioch, Philippi, Thessalonica, Athens, Corinth, Ephesus, Jerusalem and Rome. An old proverb says, "If you want to catch fish, you go where the fish are." It makes sense to take the gospel to where the greatest concentration of people is. People tend to congregate in greater concentrations in the cities. Therefore, the city is an ideal place to find them and win them. This is not a call to abandon rural evangelism. God certainly raises up rural evangelists. Most of the unreached people remaining in Nigeria are in rural areas. The application is that we should examine how we can most effectively use our resources to accomplish the most good for God.

He focused on leaders and people of influence.

Paul had a regular practice of witnessing to and trying to convert key leaders. The first convert mentioned by name on the first missionary journey was Sergius Paulus, the governor of the island of Cyprus. Paul addressed academic and philosophical leaders in Athens (Acts 17:19-34). Several times "influential women" are mentioned in Acts (13:50, 17:4, 12). Paul had an opportunity to witness to several political, religious and military leaders including the magistrates of Philippi (16:35-39), Gallio, the proconsul of Corinth (18:12-15), the city clerk of Ephesus (19:35-41), the commander of the Roman troops in Jerusalem (21:33-22:30; 23:10), the high priest of the Sanhedrin (23:2-5), Felix, the governor of Judea (24:1-26), Festus, governor of Judea (25:6-12), Agrippa, king over Galilee and Bernice, his sister (25:23-26:32), and possibly Caesar himself or his representative (25:11-12).

It is interesting that most leaders congregate in the population centers. It only makes good sense that if a person wants to influence a group of people he or she should attempt to influence their leaders. If leaders can be convinced of any truth, they will pass that truth on down to their people. Most of the missionary movement in the latter part of the nineteenth and early part of the twentieth century focused on reaching the grassroots with the gospel. Often these missionaries were successful in winning these people to the Lord. However, the fact that the lower classes of people accepted the gospel first sometimes made it more difficult for the more educated and more influential people to accept the gospel. Influence trickles down the societal ladder much better than it trickles up. Though this sounds very paternalistic, the influence of leaders is much greater than the influence of the common man.

India is a society that has been divided into classes called casts. There are three major classes, the ruling class, the teaching class and the working class or the peasants. Traditionally these people have almost been like distinct tribes. There is little overlap between the groups. I have heard, though I cannot personally confirm this, that when Christianity went to India, it was received well by the peasant class so the missionaries concentrated on the peasants. Unfortunately, Christianity became known as a peasant religion. Although Christianity is popular today among the peasants, it has not seriously penetrated the upper echelons of society because it went to the masses first. Because Christianity has not reached the people of influence, it has not had a major impact on the society. This is not a criticism of the approach of the missionaries in India. It is simply an observation and it shows the wisdom of Paul's approach.

Paul's methodology of working from the top down is a principle that should continue to be used today.

He developed a teaching ministry.

Paul' s teaching ministry included lecturing. When Paul started his work in Ephesus, at first he taught daily in the synagogue. However, after a while, he ran into opposition. Acts 19:9-10; "So Paul left them. He took the disciples with him and had discussions daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. This went on for two years, so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord." Note the amazing result of this lecturing. All the people living in Asia Minor, which was an area half the size of the midwest American state of Missouri, heard the word of the Lord within a space of two years. All of those people did not come to the school were Paul was teaching. However, Paul was apparently such a good teacher that his students went out into all of these areas and presented the gospel. Lecturing is a very important evangelistic and discipleship tool. It is probably the most important way theological information is transferred from one generation to the next today, especially in Africa.

Paul's teaching ministry also included writing. Paul later wrote letters to some of his churches and disciples to teach them, encourage them or warn them. After the first missionary journey, Paul heard that some people had gone among the Galatians and were trying to pervert them. He wrote a very clear letter to the Galatians telling them exactly what they needed to do. On his second missionary journey, only a few weeks or months after evangelizing in Thessalonica, he learned that there were some questions and concerns in that young church. He sat down and wrote a letter to them and then wrote a follow up letter. On his third missionary journey, while living in Ephesus, Paul learned of problems in the Corinthian Church, which was across the Aegean Sea. He wrote at least three and possibly four letters to them trying to solve those problems. In all, Paul wrote at least thirteen epistles. All of them were part of his follow-up and discipleship. Had Paul only given those instructions orally, even if he would have given them 500 times, nearly all of them would be lost to us today. However, the Apostle Paul is still teaching today because he had the foresight to write things down.

He committed his whole life to this project.

Paul took advantage of every opportunity he had. When he went to make a courtesy call to the governor of the Island of Cypress, he used that as an opportunity to spread the gospel. When he was brought before the magistrates and city officials and even the jailers and soldiers, he would present his message. He saw every new person as an opportunity to spread this new message and to impact the society.

Paul made any sacrifice necessary to promote the goal. When we tell about getting two hours of electricity per day or not having water for several weeks in Nigeria, people will shake their heads as if we have gone through the greatest possible suffering. However, listen to the Apostle Paul in II Corinthians 6:4ff. "As servants of God, we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger . . . through glory and dishonor; bad report, and good report, genuine yet regarded as impostors; known, yet regarded as unknown, dying, and yet we live on; beaten and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing, poor, yet making many rich; having nothing and yet possessing all things."

Paul left his home and lived among the people he wished to influence. This man was the first and greatest missionary.

God has called IICS to be part of His team to change society. We change society by changing leaders. We change leaders by taking the message of Jesus Christ to the every academic discipline in the university. How do we do this? We do it similar to the way Paul did.

God had called us to focus on leaders.

Leaders and future leaders are found in greater proportions in universities than anywhere else. One of our recent IICS brochures shows four of the most powerful leaders of the last century, all of whom attended universities. In fact, you will have a difficult time trying to find any major leader in the world today who did not pass through a university.

The IICS ministry is a ministry to leaders. About three months ago, I went to see the Minister of Education in Abuja. This is the most powerful educational officer in Nigeria, in the largest country in Africa. As I walked into his office, a young man walked out from a door behind his desk and came up to me and said, "Dr. McCain, you don't remember me, do you? You were my lecturer at the University of Jos in 1996. You taught me Acts of the Apostles." He was the personal assistant to the Minister of Education. The point is that in a relatively short time, one of my university students has been place in one of the most influential offices in the largest country in Africa where he will have influence as long as he is there.

God has called us to focus on a teaching ministry.

One of the key words in the Great Commission is "teaching them to observe all things." The particular ministry to which God has called IICS is a teaching ministry. And we never have to apologize for that because we are helping to fulfill the Great Commission as much as those who are doing direct evangelism and church planting. Paul taught with lectures, with one-on-one mentoring relationships and with literature. God has called IICS to all of those same kinds of teaching. Perhaps the most obvious kind of teaching we do is in the classroom. God has called us to be and we must be professional teachers.

However, our teaching must not be limited to the classroom. We teach in our offices. We teach while we are walking across the campus. We teach when we are entertaining students in our homes. Our whole lives are a long lesson to our students and our friends and our neighbors about how Christianity is applied in real life.

In addition, God has also called the IICS academics to be writers. I was pleased recently when our promotion committee went through the various applications for promotion within IICS and we were able to see that our people are taking publication seriously. The words that we say will soon become either forgotten or remembered only in part. However, the words we write will continue to communicate important truths long after you are gone. I'm encouraged that IICS academicians are becoming writers.

I have written four textbooks in Nigeria plus several other books. These are actually rather simple books. I never would have published them in America but because we have so few things in Nigeria, I have published them so that we can have them for our classrooms and our Christian leaders can have something simple to read. to have something. Seldom does a week go by without two or three people coming up to me and telling me that they have never met me but they have read my books. What that means is that my teaching and preaching extends far beyond where my voice reaches. It takes discipline and time and commitment to write but it is worth the effort. Just do it.

God has called us to commit our whole lives to this project.

Paul was willing to make whatever sacrifice was necessary in order to make Christianity the dominant force in the Roman world. He eventually gave his life for this cause. We must be willing to make the same kinds of sacrifice.

The people trying to stop global warming and corporate exploitation of the third world and the capture of whales are willing to go anywhere and spend any amount of money and get arrested and thrown in jail if necessary in order to bring attention to and promote their agendas. Are we willing to make those same kinds of sacrifices?

It is not easy leaving families and children and possessions and homes and careers and security but if we are to mainstream Christianity, it is the right thing to do. Not everybody has been called to do this and not everyone can do it but God has called us in IICS to do it.

At the end of the first set of metaphors we discussed earlier, Jesus says this: "In the same way, let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." No matter how dark a place is, once the light comes, it becomes the center of attention. Some of you are serving in some pretty dark places. Let your light shine there in the middle of wherever you are. Ask God to plant you deeply in the soil of your host country. Do not be satisfied to just be part of the minority called Christianity. Make Christianity part of the mainstream wherever you are.

Presented at the International Institute for Christian Studies Vision Conference, Kansas City, Kansas, USA July 19, 2001 by Rev. Dr. Danny McCain, IICS Founder and International Director-at-Large