
Are You a Counterculturalist?
There is a place for the right kind of rebellion, resistance and nonconformity:
The 60s and 70s were a time of radical social and political turmoil and upheaval. This was the time when the hippy movement, the ‘peace and love’ generation, and the New Left erupted in America and the West. Popular culture at the time reflected all that in books, films and music. They glamorised rebellion, defying authority, drug-taking, and protests against the system. A few songs that come to mind include:
“The Times They Are a-Changin’” by Bob Dylan (1964)
“Eve of Destruction” by Barry McGuire (1965)
“Time Has Come Today” by the Chambers Brothers (1967)
“Volunteers” by Jefferson Airplane (1969)
“War! What is it good for?” by Edwin Starr (1970)
“Big Yellow Taxi” by Joni Mitchell (1970)
“Ohio” by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young (1971)
“Peace Train” by Cat Stevens (1971)
“Rebel, Rebel” by David Bowie (1974)
A few of the books that can be mentioned:
The Politics of Experience by R. D. Laing (1967)
The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe (1968)
Soul on Ice by Eldridge Cleaver (1968)
The Politics of Ecstasy by Timothy Leary (1968)
DO IT! Scenarios of the Revolution by Jerry Rubin (1970)
Finally, some films would include:
Easy Rider (1969)
Woodstock (1969)
Zabriskie Point (1970)
All this had to do with the 60s counterculture. For those who are too young, or not in the know, one definition of a counterculture is ‘a culture whose values and norms of behaviour differ substantially from those of mainstream society.’ It seems that the term first appeared in the 1969 book The Making of a Counterculture by the American writer Theodore Roszak.
If you are a bit older, you might recall those heady days. And if you are like me, you might actually have been involved in it. I was fully into this time of rebellion and resistance. I was reading reams of Marxist and leftist literature at the time, and I became convinced that the mainstream culture had to be fully rejected, resisted and overthrown. You can read about my early days of being a wild child of the revolution here: https://billmuehlenberg.com/2012/06/27/coming-home-my-testimony-part-1/
But little did I know that at the age of 18 when I left this movement that I was simply trading in one counterculture for another. Let me explain. In the early 1950s when I was born, one could still say that American culture, and much of Western culture, was essentially Christian culture.
But by the time of the late 60s and early 70s, one needed to speak of living in a post-Christian culture. And today it is more accurate to speak of being in an anti-Christian culture. As such, I became a card-carrying member of not one but two hardcore countercultures.
As mentioned, I was fully immersed in the radicalism of the 60s. But when I became a Christian in August of 1971, I simply moved from one counterculture to another. If being a radical and a hippy in the 60s meant you were on the fringes of society, estranged from the surrounding culture, and seen as a rebel and an outsider, well, guess what? It is now the same for being a Christian today.
We believers have been relegated to the margins of society, and the mainstream culture views us with suspicion, disdain and contempt. We are seen as troublemakers and malcontents. We are viewed to be rebellious oddballs who need to be put in our place, in order to maintain the status quo.
So I have now experienced two terms of being at odds with the society that I live in. But the Christian should not be surprised at being an outsider and a castaway from the culture of the day. Jesus himself promised his followers that they would not just be rejected by others, but they would be hated as well. And the New Testament makes it clear that Christ-followers will be rejected, scorned, and persecuted.
Scripture throughout testifies to the believer’s countercultural role. Consider just two passages, one from each Testament. When the prophet Elijah appeared before the wicked King Ahab, he was called “the troubler of Israel” (1 Kings 18:17). And it was said of the early disciples that they “turned the world upside down” (Acts 17:6).
It is always this way. But when one is living just in the present, it is hard to get real perspective. With age however there hopefully comes the ability to look back and reflect on the changes that have taken place over many decades. A century ago in the West you were viewed as being somewhat odd and a bit of a misfit if you were not a Christian. Today you are viewed the same way if you are a Christian.


Some Christians were able to clearly see all this early on. They had the insight and perception to know that the Christian is the real counterculturalist. One notable example of this was the English Christian leader and biblical expositor John Stott (1921-2011). If you are unfamiliar with him, see this piece: https://billmuehlenberg.com/2011/07/28/notable-christians-john-stott/
Back in 1978 he released the book, The Christian Counter-Culture (IVP). In 1984 it was re-released as The Message of the Sermon on the Mount in “The Bible Speaks Today” series. So nearly a half century ago Stott was aware that believers are the real counterculturalists.
If the Bible is a countercultural book, the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) is especially so. God’s people have always meant to be distinct from the world, stand out from the world, and convict the world. Early on Stott says this:
Insofar as the church is conformed to the world, and the two communities appear to the onlooker to be merely two versions of the same thing, the church is contradicting its true identity. No comment could be more hurtful to the Christian than the words, ‘But you are no different from anybody else.’
For the essential theme of the whole Bible from beginning to end is that God’s historical purpose is to call out a people for himself; that this people is a ‘holy’ people, set apart from the world to belong to him and to obey him; and that its vocation is to be true to its identity, that is, to be ‘holy’ or ‘different’ in all its outlook and behaviour. (p. 17)
He goes on to write:
There is no single paragraph of the Sermon on the Mount in which this contrast between Christian and non-Christian standards is not drawn. It is the underlying and uniting theme of the Sermon; everything else is a variation of it. Sometimes it is the Gentiles or pagan nations with whom Jesus contrasts his followers….
At other times Jesus contrasts his disciples not with Gentiles but with Jews, not (that is) with heathen people but with religious people, in particular with the ‘scribes and Pharisees’….
Thus the followers of Jesus are to be different – different from both the nominal church and the secular world, different from both the religious and the irreligious. The Sermon on the Mount is the most complete delineation anywhere in the New Testament of the Christian counter-culture. Here is a Christian value system, ethical standard, religious devotion, attitude to money, ambition, life-style and network of relationships – all of which are totally at variance with those of the non-Christian world. And this Christian counter-culture is the life of the kingdom of God, a fully human life indeed but lived out under the divine rule. (p. 19)
In his discussion on the command for believers to be salt and light (Matt. 5:13-16), Stott says this:
Christian saltiness is Christian character as depicted in the beatitudes, committed Christian discipleship exemplified in both deed and word. For effectiveness the Christian must retain his Christlikeness, as salt must retain its saltness. If Christians become assimilated to non-Christians and contaminated by the impurities of the world, they lose their influence. The influence of Christians in and on society depends on their being distinct, not identical. Dr Lloyd-Jones emphasizes this: “The glory of the gospel is that when the church is absolutely different from the world, she invariably attracts it. It is then that the world is made to listen to her message, though it may hate it at first.” Otherwise, if we Christians are indistinguishable from non-Christians, we are useless. We might as well be discarded like saltless salt, ‘thrown out and trampled under foot by men’. ‘But what a downcome,’ comments A. B. Bruce, ‘from being saviours of society to supplying materials for footpaths!’ (p. 60)
And again:
There is a fundamental difference between Christians and non-Christians, between the church and the world. True, some non-Christians adopt a deceptive veneer of Christian culture. Some professing Christians, on the other hand, seem indistinguishable from non-Christians and so deny their Christian name by their non-Christian behaviour. Yet the essential difference remains. We might say that they are as different as chalk from cheese. Jesus said they are as different as light from darkness, as different as salt from decay and disease. We serve neither God, nor ourselves, nor the world by attempting to obliterate or even minimize this difference.
This theme is basic to the Sermon on the Mount. The Sermon is built on the assumption that Christians are different, and it issues a call to us to be different. Probably the greatest tragedy of the church throughout its long and chequered history has been its constant tendency to conform to the prevailing culture instead of developing a Christian counter-culture. (p. 63)
As I say, for all of my adult life I have been a counterculturalist. First it was with the utopian, idealistic yet ultimately defective hard left version of events, built on the sinking sands of relativism, humanism, envy and hate. But then, by God’s grace, I found the real deal, built on the solid rock of Jesus Christ, his unchanging Word, love and forgiveness. I know which I prefer.
Who will join me in being a real rebel, a real outsider, and a real counterculturalist?
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Great article, Bill. I grew up as a kid in the 60’s. Even at a young age I saw the rebellion as destructive. I liken it to sailors drilling holes in the bottom of their boat. However, I’ve never been a raw conformist. One thing that appealed to me about Christianity is that one has to be a rebel against the cosmos world system. That’s really what the culture war is all about. I’m proud to call myself your fellow rebel with a cause.
Thanks Dave.
Bill, I, too, grew up in the 60s and have a counter culture heart, but not always bold enough to express it as I don’t see rebellion as productive. Even though sometimes it is necessary to destroy to rebuild, the Rebuilder isn’t ready yet. It is a lonely place to be, so know you are not alone. We need to remain united in His Will as He has already won the victory. We just need to keep encouraging each other as the battle keeps raging. Thanks for your column.
Many thanks Bev.
Hi Bill,
Great question on being a counterculturalist or not.
I have been ready for this for years, especially if being forced “underground” like in so many other parts of the world.
My goal is to memorise scriptures, for prayer and teaching purposes.
As our famous sister in Christ, Corrie Ten Boom often reminded the Christian believer of;
“Nobody can take away from you those texts from the Bible which you have learned by heart”.
Cheers & blessings Bill,
Eric Hansen
When Russia put Sputnik into Orbit the West was caught unprepared. The West then threw away Cultural ties on the Bible and introduced Evolution into Society, in Austraia in 1961.
The rise in Atheism, Male Youth Suicide and Property Crime as well as the flight from Childhood Church Attendence was almostimmediate.
Today very few Bible Colleges or Denominations (If any) will teach a 6 x 24 hr Creation thus destroying the Creation narrative.
Dr Don Batten from Creation Ministries International has the Statistical data on this topic.
‘If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?’ Ps 11:3
Os Guiness’ (1973) book: Dust of Death: A Critique of the Establishment and the Counter and the Proposal for a Third Way. (InterVarsity Press) was a ground-breaking analysis of both mainstream and counter-culture worldviews. From a Christian perspective of course.
Yes it is a classic work Paul.
Hi Bill (…and everyone else)
Was a new left ’68 and culture warrior who wants to change the world with guns, but at my own “radical” conversion in 1972 I became a culture warrior but with different weapons and a different message.
There we have something similar, Mr. Muehlenberg
RÖ
Sweden – down over ?
Good to hear your story Rolf.