that’s a familiar line in traditional evangelicalism; many “sinners” hated it; i wonder though if some are now trying to “love the soldier but hate the war”? either way…
(and i’m not saying that only “sinners” hate the war; i think war is bad too, and i think of myself as a “saint”!)
in the mission field (or any cross-cultural context, like in most cities around the world), a church leader might feel pressured to distinguish between cultural issues and spiritual issues; for instance, senior missionaries might suggest that believers can do this (eg, eat meat sacrificed to idols) but not that (eg, eat food cooked in blood), and so on.
that’s how i was trained; but right now, i’m not sure if these distinctions or dichotomies help us to love our neighbor and stand for the “truth” of the gospel; i’ll have to think more on it, but i wouldn’t be surprised if this “rational” way of thinking has done a lot of harm in the mission field.
