There are many Christians who keep warning us to have nothing to do with folks like Elon Musk and Jordan Peterson and so many others like them. They warn us that they are not Christians and they will just mislead people as to Christianity and biblical truth. They can wax all very Pharisaical as they launch their armchair criticisms.
Many evangelicals are in this camp. Let’s call them Pharigelicals. They want us to steer well-clear of these folks. But I have already written a number of pieces on these people. Whether or not they are actual Christians (and at the end of the day only God knows this infallibly), it seems clear to me that many of these public figures at the very least are on a spiritual journey, and Musk and Peterson have praised and highlighted Christianity quite a lot of late.
And one thing I have said repeatedly now about these matters is this: if the Christian critics would spend as much time praying for folks like Musk as they do criticising him, we all might be a whole lot better off. I pray every single day for Musk and Peterson. I also pray every single day for noted misotheists such as Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris.
I have even started to pray for Thomas Jolly. ‘Thomas who?’ you ask. He was the “artistic director” who was responsible for the worst ever Olympic opening ceremony. What took place in Paris two days ago was shocking, appalling and downright diabolical. I have already penned two pieces on this:
I mention it here because some tweets of Musk have been directly referring to this demonic display in Paris. Here are three quite recent tweets of his:
“Christianity has become toothless.”
“This was extremely disrespectful to Christians.”
“Unless there is more bravery to stand up for what is fair and right, Christianity will perish.”
I posted these and other quotes of his on my social media page. The last one especially generated a lot of discussion. Plenty of Christians replied by saying that Musk is wrong and Christianity will never perish. After lots of these sorts of comments, I posted this response:
“Of course His Kingdom will last. But I take it that his point is that if Western Christians do not start getting a bit bolder and stronger, there will be little left of it to show for in the West. He is quite right in that regard.”
Let me tease that out a bit more. If Musk is not yet a Christian (and as far as we are aware, he does not yet seem to be one), then we should not expect full-blown biblical truth claims to be pouring from his lips. So statements like this are not meant to be taken as rugged theological axioms.
But he is 100 per cent correct to say that Christians need to be made of much sterner stuff if they hope to survive in an increasingly diabolical and anti-Christian West. If we do not get a bit of Holy Ghost boldness and toughness, we will all be faring very poorly indeed.
And of course many evangelicals DID get what Musk was talking about. Franklin Graham for example said this about his comment:
I appreciate Elon Musk bringing this up. He’s right—we must absolutely stand strong for what is right. And I believe we must stand for God’s truth. We should not be cowardly, and we shouldn’t be shy about it. God’s Word tells us there will be a “falling away.” However, I don’t believe Christianity will perish, because Jesus Christ said “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore” (Revelation 1:17-18). He died on the cross for our sins and rose again. He’s alive, and one day, He is coming back. If we receive Him in repentance and faith, we can look forward to spending eternity with Him.
Yes of course Christianity will not perish. As Jesus put it in Matthew 16:18, “I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” Demonic Olympic ceremonies will come and go. God-hating writers and philosophers will come and go. Atheist conventions will come and go. Deplorable and hyper-sexualised public events and celebrations will come and go. Attacks on Christians and Christian churches will come and go.
But soon enough they will all be no more. Nothing will stand except King Jesus and his eternal Kingdom. Or as Isaiah 40:8 reminds us:
“The grass withers, the flower fades,
but the word of our God will stand forever.”
That is terrific news indeed. God and his truth abide eternally. There will be and can be no ending to his Kingdom. It is in the light of these wondrous truths that we keep working tirelessly for Christ and the Kingdom. We keep sharing the good news with all those we come in contact with.
And we keep praying for them to come to know Christ. There I must ask this of all my readers: Who will join me in committing to pray daily for folks like Musk and Peterson and so many others who seem to be on a real spiritual journey? They really do need our prayers.
Also bear in mind that over a half century ago I also was quite lost, but still on a journey, looking for truth. Some Christians back then might have looked at me and written me off as a no-hoper. They would not have thought I would come around so radically and dramatically.
But other Christians prayed for me. And today I stand before you as a changed man. If God can radically turn my life around, he can turn around Musk’s life – and so many others. So keep praying.
Russell Brand…born again what a delight, I join you Bill in praying for these folks.
Thanks Dallas.