CONCLUSION TRUTH
CONCLUSION Where there is no vision, the people perish. Proverbs 29:18 (KJV)
Our aim throughout this report is to help Christians articulate a hopeful vision for the kind of society they want to see in the UK. At a time of considerable change, with uncertainty in politics and a lack of confidence in public life, there is great need for Christians to raise their voice. We do not attempt to provide all the answers to the manifold challenges we face as a country, but offer this as a starting point for Christians to work out what that vision might look like. There is considerable work to be done in every sector and area of society to ask what this means and what our response should be. In some areas this might lead to specific policy responses from government, but probably in many more it will require action from everyone rather than laws made by a few. What can you do in your community to bring about the kind of society you want to see? We may not be able to change our nations but we can make a difference to our neighbours. And a changed nation is made up of changed neighbourhoods. Hope runs through our vision for society, we believe that things can be better, we believe that a vision of society grounded in Christian values is good for all, and we want Christians to have confidence in giving voice to that vision. We are not seeking a return to Christendom, but want a plural public space where we can live together and thrive, and we believe that Christian foundations provide the roots that we all benefit from. The UK has benefited over centuries from the fruit of Christianity, but
the roots have not been nourished in recent years and the tree has withered. We unashamedly believe that the greatest hope for the world is Jesus, and the greatest act of love a Christian can perform is to introduce people to him. We believe that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life.69 That is why ensuring we continue to have the freedom to speak of our faith and live it out is at the heart of the kind of society we want. We want a society where the good news of Jesus is confidently spoken and widely heard, and where people have the freedom to accept or reject the message of hope and salvation. This is a risky business. God gave people the freedom to accept or reject His love, He took a risk with us, and the society we want to see is a plural society where religious freedom leads to flourishing, but freedom also means accepting the prospect of rejection. We believe that freedom from sin and its consequences is the eternal hope that orders our life, but it is not just a faraway hope. It is both the beginning of a Christian’s story and the end, and in between we believe there is an application for all of creation, we have a role demonstrating the goodness and glory of God to all of society. That means we love the world we live in and the society around us, it means we stand up for justice, defend freedom and speak truth. While we hope that many will know the permanent freedom, perfect justice, life giving truth and unsurpassable love offered by God, we work for a society for all that reflects some of that now. As we work for the good of society we know that God is with us, we know that it is His love that enables us to
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