Context & Calling

One of the greatest gifts of cross-cultural ministry is discovering that we don’t just learn about another culture, we begin to see our own more clearly.

This week, during conversations with pastors from Japan and Southeast Asia, I was struck by the value they place on preserving relationships. They spoke about the importance of patience, humility, and avoiding unnecessary confrontation. Their perspective challenged me. As someone shaped by Western culture, I often assume that speaking the truth directly is the most loving response.

Yet, as I reflected on Scripture, I realized that Jesus never asks us to choose between truth and relationship.

The church can be tempted to idolize truth separated from relationship, where being right becomes more important than loving well. But we can also idolize relationship separated from truth, where preserving peace becomes more important than faithfully following Christ.

The gospel calls us to neither extreme.

Jesus came “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). He welcomed sinners without compromising holiness. He corrected His disciples without abandoning them. He restored the broken while calling them to repentance. Truth and relationship were never enemies in His ministry.

Traveling in Japan has reminded me that every culture, including my own, reads Scripture through certain assumptions. Sometimes those assumptions help us see aspects of God’s character more clearly. Other times, they can quietly shape the way we apply Scripture in ways we don’t even recognize.

Rather than asking whether one culture is right and another is wrong, I’m learning to ask a better question:

How can the gospel affirm what is beautiful in every culture while transforming what does not reflect the heart of Christ?

Would you pray for me as I continue learning? Pray that I would have humility to listen before I speak, wisdom to discern where culture ends and Scripture begins, and a heart that reflects both the grace and the truth of Jesus. My prayer is not simply to understand another culture better, but to become more like Christ in the process.

Grace and Peace,

Sandra