It is time to bring everything together.
What we've learned
Our calling is to be a witness—pointing to what Jesus said and did; an ambassador—representing Jesus by doing what he did and saying what he said; a reflector as image-bearer and light, being who Jesus was; salt—being godly amongst others. (Seeking Perfection Imperfectly 1: Introduction to the Problem)
The content of what we're witnessing about is with regard to Jesus' life—his ethics, his culture, his actions; Jesus' death—his attitude to sin, his forgiveness, his atoning sacrifice, his love; and Jesus' resurrection—his power over sin, death and the devil, which he gives to us through his Spirit. (Seeking Perfection Imperfectly 2: Rediscovering the Resurrection)
The purpose for which we're witnessing is to reveal Jesus and his kingdom, in all his magnificence and glory. This is a consistent purpose, though done differently throughout the history of the biblical timeline. (Seeking Perfection Imperfectly 3: Purpose Throughout The Bible)
The extent to which we can expect God's Kingdom to come to earth now is not a triumphalist 100%, but neither is it just limited to converting souls. Instead, we live with a strong expectation that God will interrupt our natural with his super, as he has always done throughout history, and as he asks to pray for, that “your will be done on earth as it is in heaven”. (Seeking Perfection Imperfectly 4: The Extent of God’s Kingdom on Earth)
We act out our witness to Christ by submitting every area of our lives and society to his ethics and principles; redirecting laws and people towards the righteousness of Christ; reinvigorating people through meeting people where they are at, modelling and inviting them to something better; recognising the good in the world but redeeming it; building a strong alternative culture that has room for outsiders; and infusing all aspects of Christ into our daily lives. (Seeking Perfection Imperfectly 5: Through a Cultural Lens)
The type of witness we employ will depend on the situation. In times of political adversity we may not be able to advocate for better laws that allow all people to flourish, or be very open, but we can witness in small acts of love, expounding of truth, and praying for God's Spirit to act. When facing individuals' hate against the Word, we can help them to see Jesus' love through acts of sacrificial love. When facing an openness and receptive people, we can teach the Word. (Seeking Perfection Imperfectly 6: Through a Political Lens)
What we witness to are found not only in the Gospels and through the early church (Acts and Epistles), but also through depictions of the New Heavens and New Earth. God has always been about the business of showing off his glory, so we should be witnessing to who he is, what he's done, and what he will do. (Seeking Perfection Imperfectly 7: Through the Lens of the New Heavens and New Earth)
A few deeply individual ways this can work out
Warning: the following contains caricatures and generalisations that are used to emphasise a point, and are not necessarily reflective of mature, balanced people of faith.
The job: A Pentecostal, Conservative and Evangelical Charismatic walk into a bar, each having experienced loss of their job. The Pentecostal is upbeat, smiles, and declares that he has a job in Jesus' name. The Conservative shakes his head at this denial of reality, and with a downcast face mutters a quiet prayer that God would provide. The Evangelical Charismatic is astonished at this lack of faith and confidently assures them all that God works all things for the good of those who trust in him, knowing this loss will not shake the Lord who owns all things, and sets about considering how to honour God in this new situation.
The law: A new law comes about that empowers and emboldens evil in our midst. A Conservative, Liberal and Evangelical Charismatic are discussing it over social media. The Conservative declares they are moving to another country. The Liberal denies the situation is that bad–”this is not persecution”. The Evangelical Charismatic notes that while this might mean the church has to continue underground, in fact their light will be able to shine even brighter against this increased darkness.
The sick: Someone from church has been sick for a year. A Pentecostal, Conservative and Evangelical Charismatic call a prayer meeting to lay hands on them. The Conservative prays first and nothing happens. The Pentecostal, upset at how long this is going on for, incorrectly believes God is prompting them to call out the sick person's lack of faith. Already feeling sorry for himself, the sick person meekly accepts this rebuke and prays for faith. The Evangelical Charismatic, knowing this person is full of faith, but tired from the fight, perceives the issue. It's not a character issue like Paul's thorn; it could be that God wants to wait for just the right time to heal them, but unlikely; instead, it is most likely a spiritual attack because of the person's effectiveness, perhaps a bit like Job's experience, or perhaps buffeting from the spiritual battle. After praying for confirmation, they each agree this is the Lord's will and they call for fasting and prayer to request spiritual backup. Hope and trust fills everyone and they are all encouraged and emboldened to continue the good faith.
The Muslim: A loud, outspoken Muslim calls out to a few people walking past, who happen to be a Pentecostal, Conservative and Evangelical Charismatic. He challenges them to a dual of faiths. The Pentecostal declines and continues walking. The Conservative tries valiantly for some time, but ends up exhausted and ends the discussion, saying “this guy is not open to the Gospel”. The Evangelical Charismatic, perceiving an unbelieving spirit not open to the Holy Spirit, who is too proud to accept good arguments against his faith, instead sees an opening to represent Jesus through sacrificial love. The Evangelical Charismatic listens for some time until even the Muslim finishes talking, then, without engaging in argument, strikes a more personal conversation. Perceiving a need to help with babysitting, they agree to continue meeting and talking at a park while their kids play. The Muslim's respect grows, and their understanding of a what a Christian is like shimmers for a moment as if they had just woken up from a dream and were now looking at the real life version.
The parents: A large swathe of the church are parents and are facing common parental issues. Three church pastors are discussing at a network meeting what they do about this in their church. The Liberal pastor describes how with his connection with the local (secular) community he invited a psychologist to regularly teach an extra lesson on Sunday afternoons. The Conservative pastor says that he doesn't talk about such a sensitive issue because he knows that some parents are partial to a particular form of parenting which another strong contingent are against. “Best not to upset anyone.” The Evangelical Charismatic talks about how they saw an opportunity to witness to Christ's peacemaking, and led congregants through understanding four different parenting types first—no judgment at this stage. Then, they followed up with further understanding with Scriptural principles, scientific data, and sharing of experiential wisdom. They were then exhorted to consider their own position on parenting, before being guided through church-wide debating from the front. Gob-smacked, the Conservative asked how it went. “It was received really well. The debaters clearly understood each other and rarely used straw-man arguments. Those without much understanding tell me they learned so much. Now that the issue has been aired, people have been talking about how to practice the biblical principles all the time! I get emails and calls about it practically every day! People are excited again about getting into the Word, and seem to have forgotten that they disagree about some things—realising they agree about a whole lot more, respectfully acknowledging some practices they thought bizarre do in fact have some Scriptural grounding.”
Final thoughts
The Evangelical Charismatic recognises that God has set before us a masterplan for world domination—but not through force. His weapon of choice is ordinary people who do extraordinary things through the power of the Holy Spirit. His Kingdom is not from this world, but he wants us to pray that he might use us to bring it to this world. Since we are in an age after Jesus’ resurrection but before his return in triumph, we can only set our true hope in the Kingdom to come, rather than any earthly political victory. However, we witness to that Kingdom on a daily basis in hard times and good. We strive to root out sin in God’s strength, all the while yearning for a new perfected body. We preach the Gospel, knowing not all will be saved. We advocate for good laws, knowing we’re not guaranteed victory. We strive to live in a way that pleases God in every area of life, even though we’ll never become perfect. It’s an incredibly robust and resilient way forward, grounded in real life—which is what we ought to expect from the Bible. Let’s put aside ways of thinking that lead to despondency or ignorance, and embrace the template given to us to witness to the fullness of God's glory.