In the Lord's Prayer, Jesus taught His disciples to pray, “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10).

What a magnificent petition! When we pray this prayer, we pray for a world where righteousness prevails, justice is honored, truth is embraced, and God's will is done. More than half a century ago, the late minister Theodore F. Adams shared a prayer his brother, Dr. Earl Adams, offered. One line has stayed with me: “Grant us a vision of the world that is not yet but ought to be.”

That is precisely the vision Christians should carry in their hearts.

Yet everywhere we look, the world falls far short. Violence, addiction, broken families, injustice, political corruption, and moral confusion remind us how deeply sin has affected human life at every level. Our greatest need is redemption through Jesus Christ. Nevertheless, does that mean Christians should concern themselves only with saving souls, leaving society's moral and political direction to others?

Certainly not. The same Savior who commanded us to preach the gospel also called us to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world (Matthew 5:13–16). His lordship extends beyond the church's life and worship to every sphere of human existence, and His followers are called to bear witness to His truth wherever God has placed them.

This does not mean God's kingdom can be established through legislation or political victories. Only Christ can accomplish that. Nor should the church ever become subservient to any political party. But Christians are called to bear witness to God's truth in every sphere of life, including the public square.

Jesus said, “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it” (Mark 8:35).

Although these words concern the cost of discipleship, I believe they suggest three principles for Christians seeking to influence a corrupt world desperately in need of the light of God's truth.

During my years as a pastor, I wrestled with whether to address controversial social issues from the pulpit. I feared offending people, causing division, or even losing my position as pastor. Yet I grew increasingly troubled by the moral decline around our church. My congregation was grappling with difficult cultural questions and needed biblical guidance.

Eventually, I felt I had to decide. Like Esther, who declared, ‘If I perish, I perish’ (Esther 4:16), I knew I had to act despite the possible consequences. So I began speaking out on these issues.

To my surprise, the response was overwhelmingly positive. People expressed gratitude that their pastor was willing to address the issues affecting their families. Our congregation actually grew.

I don't share that experience to suggest faithfulness always produces visible success. Sometimes obedience costs us dearly. I do believe, however, that many people in the pews are hungering and thirsting for preaching that courageously and faithfully applies God's Word to the pressing moral questions of our time.

Most importantly, I learned that we can become so afraid of what it might cost us to speak the truth that we risk losing something far greater by remaining silent. A church that sacrifices its witness to preserve its comfort may discover it has preserved very little worth keeping.

God has entrusted Christians with the eternal truths of His Word, truths that speak to every dimension of life, including human dignity, justice, mercy, the sanctity of life, marriage, family, and moral responsibility. These truths were never meant to be kept to ourselves, but to be faithfully proclaimed, shared, and applied to the profound ethical and spiritual challenges confronting our world.

History reminds us that those who courageously stand for what is right may never see the full fruits of their labor, yet their efforts can have consequences far beyond the present. Consider John Quincy Adams, who returned to Congress after serving as president and became a relentless opponent of slavery. For eight years, he fought the congressional rule that prevented consideration of antislavery petitions. He finally prevailed in 1844, but slavery remained deeply entrenched.

Adams died in 1848, seventeen years before the abolition of slavery throughout America. Nevertheless, his efforts helped keep the issue before the nation.

Consider also the decades-long struggle to overturn Roe v. Wade. For nearly fifty years, countless Christians labored, prayed, and fought valiantly for the unborn. Many passed away before the Supreme Court finally overturned that decision in 2022. Though they never lived to see the fruits of their efforts, history reminds us that their labor was not in vain.

Sometimes God calls us to labor for victories that may be far in the future. But the apostle Paul wanted believers to take heart, remain steadfast, and never lose sight of the eternal value of their efforts. He wrote, “Forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord” (I Corinthians 15:58). We must not measure faithfulness merely by immediate results. Sometimes we plant seeds that others will harvest. As Paul reminds us elsewhere, “I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase” (I Corinthians 3:6).

Remember the little boy whose five loaves and two fish seemed utterly inadequate to feed thousands? Yet placed in Christ's hands, that small lunch became sufficient for a multitude of thousands.

Remember David confronting Goliath? The giant was a seasoned warrior, armed from head to toe, whose enormous size and terrifying threats had struck fear into the entire army of Israel. By contrast, David was only a young shepherd, without armor, military experience, or any weapon more formidable than a sling and a few smooth stones. Yet David remembered how God had delivered him from the lion and the bear while tending his father's sheep. He knew that the same God could deliver him and all of Israel from this Philistine giant. While everyone else saw an overwhelming enemy, David saw an Almighty God. And while others thought Goliath was too big to defeat, David's attitude might be described this way: “He's too big to miss!”

With nothing more than a sling, a stone, and unwavering confidence in the living God, David prevailed against overwhelming odds.

Christians today sometimes look at the enormous cultural and political challenges they face and conclude that their influence is too insignificant to matter. But consider the remarkable aspect of David's victory. He simply used what God had placed in his hands. It didn't seem like much—just a sling and a few smooth stones. Yet when he put what little he had at God's disposal, a giant who had struck fear into an entire army fell to the ground. The thud of that giant's fall has echoed through the centuries, reminding every generation what God can accomplish through those who trust Him.

What has God placed in your hands? If you think about it prayerfully, I believe you'll discover that you have something. Perhaps it's a voice, a vote, an opportunity to speak, or a position of influence. Maybe it's simply the chance to encourage someone who is courageously standing for what is right. Whatever it is, God can use it. The question is whether you're willing to step out in faith and place it in His hands.

The whole of the matter is not what we wish we possessed, but whether we have surrendered to God what He has already given us.

We cannot create heaven on earth. Only Christ can bring His kingdom to its glorious fulfillment. Nevertheless, until that day, we must neither retreat in fear nor surrender in despair.

Instead, let us live and labor with courage, conviction, and pray for a world that is not yet, but ought to be.

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