The Power of Culture and the Power of the Church

THE POWER OF CULTURE AND THE POWER OF THE CHURCH

Culture has a powerful influence on us. Consider the experiment on five hungry monkeys who were placed in a cage with a ladder in the middle. A bunch of bananas were set at the top of the ladder. Each time a monkey started up the ladder, it was sprayed with cold water to prevent it from getting the bananas. Likewise, all the monkeys were sprayed whenever any of the monkeys attempted to climb the ladder to get the bananas. Soon all the monkeys learned not to climb the ladder.

Next, one of the monkeys was removed and a new monkey was introduced to the group. When it started up the ladder the other four, fearing they would be sprayed, grabbed the new monkey and kept it from climbing the ladder. Then they took out a second monkey that had been sprayed and put in another new one, and the process started all over again. The other four would not let the new monkey climb the ladder.

This continued until there were no longer any monkeys in the cage that had been sprayed, yet each time a new monkey tried to climb the ladder the others would not let it. By now no monkey knew why they shouldn’t climb the ladder, yet none would let a new one climb it.

This story serves as a vivid illustration of the power of culture, reminding us that we do tend to follow the attitudes, values, and actions of those around us. Sadly, today’s culture has moved far away from biblical standards. In fact, at almost every point the culture tries to spray water on us or pull us down from the ladder any time we try to stand up for what is biblical. It is for this reason that we need to be in church now more than ever.

The church is far from perfect. What can we expect, given it consists of sinners? Nevertheless, the church exists to encourage and strengthen people to know, trust, and follow Jesus. And that, by definition, runs counter to the culture.

Involvement in church will not guarantee you will resist the pressure to conform to the culture, nor will it secure a right relationship with God. But involvement in church will expose you to God’s plan and purpose for your life. In church you will learn who God is, what he expects from you, how to be reconciled to him, and how to maintain a relationship with him. You will find people who will help you through your struggles. And you will gain opportunities to serve God and others. The church is, after all, God’s idea. There is simply no better way to combat the pressures of the culture than involvement in the life of a local church.