Over the last several months, I’ve been working hard on writing a new book. Today, for the first time, I get to tell you what it’s all about! I couldn’t be more excited to share the news with you!
It’s called When Culture Hates You: Persevering for the Common Good as Christians in a Hostile Public Square.
There are so many people both in and out of the church today trying to convince Christians that we need to keep our voices and values to ourselves—and that when we don’t, we’re “imposing” our values on others, we’re being too “political,” people won’t want to hear the gospel because they won’t like us, we’re trying to change society even though Jesus didn’t tell His followers to change the Roman Empire, and all kinds of other problematic (and unbiblical) ideas.
In short, my new book is here to say that thoughtful and committed Christian influence in the public square is needed more than ever—even when we’re hated for it, as is increasingly becoming the case.
Here’s the full description from the back cover:
Jesus Warned the World Would Hate Christians
“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you” (John 15:18).
As cultural hostility toward Christianity intensifies, many Christians have grown more reluctant to advocate for biblical values in the public square. But our perseverance for the common good—a good defined by God alone—is more important than ever in a culture that embraces darkness.
When Culture Hates You is a call for Christians to unashamedly pursue righteousness in society out of our love for others. In this timely resource, author Natasha Crain will help you
- make sense of cultural hostility by better understanding the roots of secular outrage on issues like Christian nationalism, social justice, abortion, transgenderism, and sexuality
- advocate for the godly functioning of society with greater biblical, cultural, and civic understanding
- take concrete action for the common good with more than 35 practical ideas to get you started
As Christians, our calling is to speak truth in the face of hostility. Not because we want to “war” with culture but because we love both God and others.
The book hasn’t been designed yet, so I don’t have a pretty table of contents to share, but I want you to see what’s inside so I’ll just share the table of contents here in this post:
Foreword by Frank Turek
PART 1:
UNDERSTANDING THE HATE
1. Jesus Said It Would Happen
“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you” (John 15:18).
2. God Defines the Common Good
The definition of good isn’t up for debate…as much as culture may think it is.
3. When the Common Good Is Political
Advocating for the common good out of our love for others sometimes includes the “political.”
4. Should Christians Impose Their Views on Others?
…And four other objections to public Christian influence
5. Persevering in the Public Square
Know your (biblical) authority, strengthen conviction, and maintain tenacity (ACT).
PART 2:
RESPONDING TO AND PERSEVERING THROUGH
TODAY’S MOST PROMINENT CHARGES
6. Dangerous Christian Nationalists
The View from Mainstream Media
7. Power-Hungry Oppressors
The View from Secular Social Justice Activists
8. Controlling Misogynists
The View from Pro-Choice Activists
9. Cruel Rights-Deniers
The View from Transgender Activists
10. Hateful Bigots
The View from the Sexual Revolution
Epilogue: Letting Your Light Shine in Spite of Hate
“Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them” (Ephesians 5:11).
When Culture Hates You doesn’t release until March 11, which I know sounds like the very distant future, BUT if you know you’ll want it in paperback, please pre-order now so it starts getting ranked in various Amazon categories. That helps more people find out about it! (I’m pretty sure Kindle and audio versions will be available, but they aren’t there yet.)
For those of you who are podcast listeners, I’ll be back with new episodes soon. I just had to go heads down over the last couple of months to get the book finished and couldn’t produce new content during that time.
Thank you for reading, and I hope you’re looking forward to the book!
