Ask the Pastor 143

What is a woke Christian?

An added question to this one is, should there be such a thing as a woke Christian? The answer to both questions depends on how we use the word woke. There is an interesting article written by Jessamin Birdsall which can be found at https://www.premierchristianity.com/opinion/the-meaning-of-woke-is-changing-heres-why-christians-should-avoid-using-it/13489.article. In it she provides 3 definitions to the word showing how the meaning of the word has evolved over the years. The original meaning of the word had its roots or etymology in Africa and was used by Africans in America to be and remain alert to racial injustice. In this base sense, it behooves Christians to be alert and active in the prevention of racial injustice. Here we use the real sense of racism in that a person is judged only on the basis of the color of their skin or national origin. A second definition or rather an expanded definition is that woke includes many other political agendas such as climate change and transgender rights or anything that is perceived as injustice. A third use of the word is where conservatives refer to anything sponsored by liberals and should be avoided at all costs such as socialism in general. The key here is understanding what is meant by the terms being used. Even the word racism is used differently by different people, other key words are inclusive, diversity, and injustice. We live in a day and age where words are used in many different ways, depending on the political agenda of the person speaking. Therefore, as believers, we must be careful to ask questions to ascertain what is meant by the words being used. Once that is established, we can take this meaning and lay it next to the Scriptures and see how it matches up. To make America Christian again, we must get back to the Bible.

Have questions about the Bible? Send them to Dr. Greg Koehn at gak4850@gmail.com and read the answer here in this article.