Kingdoms in Conflict - Part 1
Series: The Jesus We Need to Know
Preacher: Kevin Smith, Senior Pastor
Sunday Morning
Date: 18th January 2026
Passage: John 15:18-16:4
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The Christian life involves navigating what missionary Leslie Newbegin called an unbearable tension between faith and the surrounding culture. In John 15:18-25, Jesus repeatedly warns that the world will hate His followers, using the word hate eight times to emphasize this reality. This hatred isn't mere disagreement but an intense aversion that leads to dismissal and harm. The world Jesus refers to isn't the physical earth but a system of values, priorities, and thinking that excludes God entirely.Throughout history, Christians have attempted to resolve this tension through various approaches: assimilation by conforming to worldly values, withdrawal by creating separate Christian communities, combat by attacking secular culture, or nostalgia by longing for times when Christianity held more influence. However, Jesus chose none of these responses. Instead, He lived faithfully in the tension, remaining committed to His Father's will while engaging a world that ultimately rejected Him.The key insight is that Christians shouldn't try to make the world love them by compromising biblical truth. James 4:4 warns against friendship with the world's system, though this doesn't prohibit relationships with non-believers. We're called to be joyful outsiders who serve as living testimonies to the gospel's transforming power, shining Christ's light while loving those who may hate us, hoping they might be brought from darkness into God's marvelous light.
