Has the church lost its sting?

I remember a time, not that long ago, when everyone who was a christian was considered a Bible Basher. Anyone who took a hard lined position on a moral issue, and aligned themselves with God was a fundamentalist, for better of for worse. Has this species of believer died and been replaced by passive flower sniffers: petal pushers?

US News and World Reports recently did an expose on what they called "That New Old-time Religion". The church has undergone, and continues to undergo a major shift in focus. The Bible Bashers, if nothing else, were blatantly honest about their goals: they wanted you to be saved. Perhaps the technique was off, but the goal was a good and gracious one. Problamatically, there has been a shift in focus, from the outward to the inward. No longer is the church's main goal saving souls, it has become personal development. Though this is not altogether a bad thing, it has softened the christian message.

Believers are focusing on becoming more Christ-like, magnificent. But aren't we forgetting something? Christ was out in the world stirring controversy, intellectually challenging the ruling philosophies of the day. Christ never dilluted his message so that more people would come and listen to him. He never kept quiet on an issue because he knew that God would take care of it in the end. To Christ, there is no freedom of religion.

Maybe the church did need a shift, to get a little more hip. But we cannot soften our message. Growing closer to God is a great goal, and must be pursued. Part of that pursuit is evangelism, why else are we still in this world. If growing closer to God was our only mission we should have been swept into heaven and the moment of conversion; but we're still here.

We still have a job to do; we cannot let excuses, or warm fuzzy feelings get in the way. Treat this world like the spiritual battleground it is instead of the playgroup that so many want it to be.