A War for Your Soul

At the end of Philippians 1, Paul emphasizes that the Church must:
1) Stand firm
2) Strive together
3) Avoid being afraid of opposition.

Why is it that in our general context, we have what we need (food, shelter, clothing) and yet we feel so tired, listless, and the numbers of people suffering from anxiety and depression are higher than ever?  Why does it feel like there's a war being waged for our souls?

Because there is.

Here are the main points from Pastor Aaron's sermon on 10/3/21.  Find it at UPPC.org/media, or use the listen-only feature on the UPPC app.

Christians today are experiencing three fundamental and troubling changes:
1) We are being moved from the majority in culture to the (cognitive) minority.
2) We are being moved from a place of honor in culture to a place of shame.
3) We are experiencing a noticeable rise in hostility toward the Church, and even God and Jesus.

What if this cultural moment is good for us?

We're not the first ones to experience this -- Paul and the Christians in Philippi did, too.  What can we learn from this?  What characteristics of the early Church made it resilient and even flourishing under these conditions?

Blessings...