The Slow and More Effective Way to See Transformation in Our Culture:

Over my 40+ years in ministry, I have watched the American Church increasingly turn to the government and the making of laws to help solve what they believe are the problems with our culture, whether it be sexual orientation, education, crime, immigration, poverty, abortion, etc. The consequences have been immense and disheartening.

First, these pursuits have divided the Church.  The sense of unity is no longer found in our common allegiance to Jesus Christ, but rather on our political leanings or strongly held views. Churches have split over political positions, and friendships have ended in anger and resentment.

Second, pursuing laws to change the culture has not worked. Decades of spending billions of dollars to advocate against homosexual relationships ended with laws recognizing the right of homosexuals to marry. Same can be said of abortion. Even with the recension of Roe, abortions have remained at similar rates or even slightly higher. Many laws attempting to eliminate poverty have been similarly unsuccessful. Now many in the Church are doubling down that government and laws they create are a significant step to changing the direction of our culture. This is true regardless of actual political leanings.

Third, the government and political power have become idols. Many are more aligned with the government, a political party, or a politician than they are with Christ. Their trust has shifted from Jesus.

These are all consequences of the Church ceasing to be the Church but rather seeking influence through the exertion of power. But lasting influence isn’t achieved through power, but through love and service. Making disciples, teaching people how to follow Jesus, is the way in which the early Church influenced the culture around them; yet they had no political power. This is our commission from the Lord (Matthew 28:18-20), but it is slow in demonstrating results; yet it is so much more effective in the long run.

Dawson Trotman, founder of the Navigators, developed what he called the “multiplication principle.” He believed and demonstrated that a person discipling two people and then those two each discipling two more, and so on eventually would exceed the effectiveness of large gatherings aiming for converts. I think this principle applies to making disciples versus trying to change the culture through political action. The former has so much more power to influence because it is focused on the transformation of the heart. When hearts are transformed, it will follow that abortions will lessen, homosexuality and other sexual orientation issues will recede, crime will be reduced, and cultural anger will dissipate because of the transformed hearts.

Yet, the reality is we as followers of Jesus have no power to transform the culture. We can only lead them to the One who does. The early Church didn’t totally transform the culture of its day. There were still brutality and oppression. Many believers were martyred. But the believers did have an impact and that impact continued down through the centuries. Even in the 3rd Century when Constantine made Christianity the state religion, the culture wasn’t transformed. Political power is not enough to do that. So why pursue it?

Jesus’ own disciples thought political power was the prize until He was crucified. Then His teachings came back to them after the resurrection, and they realized they had viewed His ministry through the wrong lens. That mistake has been made repeatedly by the Church down through history. It is being made again. Jesus never gravitated toward political change, even though there was pressure to do so from His disciples. He knew transformational change could not happen through that means.

Cultural transformation will not be decided in the next election cycle, or with the election of a new president. It can only begin to happen through submission to the Lord and following His command to make disciples. Ultimately, the state of our culture is not our burden to carry; it is His. We don’t need to be anxious or afraid. He is in control and nothing that has happened has caught Him by surprise. He will do His part. The question for us is, are we willing and prepared to do ours?

I am not saying all political involvement is wrong. Part of good citizenship is voting and advocating for good governance. But our hope should never be placed anywhere else but Jesus. He is our Lord and King. Our devotion is ultimately and daily to Him, humbly following Him carrying our cross.

© Jim Musser 2026