Last month, I introduced a new series of articles on Christian writing based on a breakout session I led at a small writing conference earlier this year. In that breakout session, I argued that Christians should promote our word-centric faith by stewarding what God has shown us in His word through content that edifies and encourages the church.
The first article in this series introduced this idea of seeking presence with an audience (as opposed to seeking a platform) and treating Christian writing as an act of stewardship. I believe that approaching writing in this way helps Christian writers remain humble and honor the Lord with their writing, regardless of who reads it or how many read it.
In order to talk about how Christians writers can do this, though, I believe it’s important to first define Christian writing.
What is Christian writing?
Simply put, Christian writing is that which promotes our word-centric faith.
The Christian faith is “word-centric,” which means the Bible is central to how we view all of life. From the beginning, God spoke. He spoke creation into being. He spoke through the prophets. He spoke through Christ—the Word made flesh—and He spoke through His Spirit, who inspired the written word we have now.
The Bible, then, tells us who God is and about His work in the world through Christ. It also tells us who we are and how to live rightly before Him. This is so striking—our God allows us to know Him personally, as a Father. Our God made a way for us to live rightly before Him—through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. And He told us all about it in His word.
Christian writing, then (to borrow language from David Mathis at Desiring God) illumines, explains, and celebrates God’s words. To say it another way, through Christian writing we steward all that God has given us through the Bible—who He is, what He has done, who we are, and how we should live. The Bible is the foundation and roadmap for all that we do in life.
Note that this approach to writing assumes something very important— it assumes that we are pouring ourselves into studying God’s word first, before we write a single thing. There are lots of reasons we should study the Bible. In this case, we must represent God’s word accurately in our writing. We cannot do so without in-depth study of what He has said. Every time we write, we must ask if we are being faithful to God’s word.
What sets Christian writing apart from all other writing is that the Bible is our starting point.
Christian writing promotes our word-centric faith.
To put all my cards on the table, I believe that Christian writing is directed primarily to the Church. While I believe that there is a space for evangelistic writing, evangelism should primarily occur through verbal proclamation or in written conversations between individuals (for example, through text message or other forms of written correspondence).
That said, then, Christian writing promotes our word-centric faith to other Christians. The word “Christian” does not only describe the kind of content we produce. It’s our identity. Therefore, our writing is the outpouring of who we are in Christ as He has shown us in Scripture, directed to other Christians.
This is another reason why we must be immersed in the Bible before we write. God’s word shapes our perspective and informs our attitudes. In order to seek stewardship and presence in our writing, we must start with the words that help us maintain this outward focus. This is where I think Colossians 3 and Philippians 2 give vital directives for all aspects of our life, including writing.
Colossians 3:1-3 says: So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
Philippians 2:3-4 says: Do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility consider others as more important than yourselves. Everyone should look not to his own interests, but rather to the interests of others.
Our writing should center first on the “things above” and second on others. When we seek to steward God’s word through our own words, then we will naturally move away from seeking a platform for ourselves and instead seek to promote God in all of our writing, for His glory and the good of our readers.
Stewarding God’s Word in Our Writing
When we approach Christian writing as an act of stewardship, we share what we know about God’s words directly and indirectly. Directly, we share what we know about God’s word through our education—whether formal (such as a seminary class), or informal (through personal devotions, a sermon, or Sunday school lesson). Indirectly, we can write about what we’ve learned through experiences and circumstances in light of God’s word.
In all cases, we must be led by the Spirit and accountable to the church so that we represent God’s word accurately. God’s word should inform everything we write so that we may pass His words on to the church. In writing this way, the Lord becomes central and we will consider ourselves on equal footing with our audience, which gives us a spirit of presence with them instead of lording over them.
Photo by Rachel Strong on Unsplash
