Paul’s authenticity was tempered by discernment. Paul knew that while everything may be permissible, not everything is profitable. In an age of platforming and personal brand building, of social media profiles and image consultants, this should give us great pause. Paul held back truth, he didn’t supply the fullest picture of his credibility. Why? “so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me.”

Every cultural season has its buzzwords. These words aren’t always great descriptors of reality, but they do act as a window into the perceived values of a given culture and time. These words shift and morph largely due to the fact that they are created through reactive response in an attempt to correct some assumed weakness of a previous culture or generation. A brief survey of Western social culture will easily display the ebb and flow of outrage and aspirations we are inherently familiar with.

The church is not immune from such trends. The same forces that shape our culture inevitably push against the patterns and values of our local churches. So in response to the criticism of previous generations of Christian culture, where the primary patterns of worship and communication seemed so forced and fake, where plastic smiles and veneered evangelical lives were at the fore front, a new brand of Christian culture emerged. This, emergent church was a phenomenon of the early 2000’s and flourished for a season but, for the large part, its candle has sputtered out almost as fast as it had been lit.

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