04 Sep Life in the City: An Insider-Outsider

I love the energy, rush, and excitement of big cities. I love the people, cultures, languages, and ideas that constantly buzz around a city. Recently, I went to Starbucks and in the first 5 minutes I heard no less than 4 languages, the last of which was English. Sitting around me I heard French, German, a language I can only assume is a Russian dialect.

You might think I was in NYC or Boston, or perhaps Washington DC. But I was in Greenville, South Carolina, in the heart of the Eastside. Though small, Greenville has rapidly grown as a regional and now global influencer. Companies like Michelin and BMW have attracted numerous international residents and a bustling economy has led many others to call the Upstate home.

For the first time in history more people now live in cities than in rural areas (source). Power is shifting from nation-states to cities; a move that more closely resembles medieval days than any other time in modern history. Think of the power of cities such as New York, London, and Tokyo as compared to Rome, Alexandria, and Constantinople.

Throughout the book of Acts we see the Gospel spreading through urban settings. The Apostle Paul traveled into the heart of many cultural epicenters talking and debating with civic, religious, and cultural leaders with the intent of reshaping their worldview to that of a gospel-centered worldview. (Acts 13,-20)

Our cities are more important than ever before for creating culture, power, and sharing ideas. So what does this mean for the local church?

First, we need to be present in our cities. We need to be involved in civic organizations, school PTA, arts societies, and coffee shop regulars. Our lives should naturally intersect with those of the culture at large throughout the week.

Second, we need to have a dual perspective of our cities. We are simultaneously locals and foreigners. We are uniquely positioned in our time, space, and geographical context to understand the culture as insiders. Additionally, we are outsiders, foreigners living in a place that is not our home. As believers, we have a responsibility to challenge, accept, redeem, or reject the norms and values to which our culture ascribes. We can affirm the good, challenge the unjust, and give hopeful answers to difficult questions.

In the same vein, we should be our city’s biggest champion. We should be for our city. Tim Keller expounds upon this idea more here. Keller argues against both isolation and assimilation, but instead shows God’s call on Israelites to serve the city of Babylon out of their distinct spiritual status.

Throughout the Bible, we see God’s intentionality in caring for the orphan, widow, immigrant, and poor. Often it is easy to live insulated, unintentionally segregated lives distanced from the realities of this quartet of the vulnerable. We must live intentionally, with empathy knowing that we were the orphans who were adopted, we were the whore made a bride, we were the destitute given riches, and we are the foreigners longing for home.

Engaging our culture is both a corporate and individual responsibility. God has given us individual passions, talents, and opportunities to love as He loves. He has also given our church specific responsibilities and a calling to be a part of His redemption of the Earth. A remarkable privilege awaits us as we are used by God to redeem our World—and in a spectacular twist, we ourselves are refined and redeemed in the process.

-Taylor Beard