Are you prepared for what is to come?

“It’s a more polarised society, it’s a lonelier society.” said Stephen McAlpine about what life will be like, 50 years down the track.

Stephen is a Perth pastor, social commentator and acclaimed author.

His latest book Futureproof wants to help us live for Jesus, now and then.

Stephen’s predictions about Western Societies in half a century are based upon where we are at and where that could take us.

“Culture Wars” will be more extreme in 50 years, Stephen told Hope Mornings.

Along with climate concerns, the ongoing search for meaning and purpose will not be resolved, either.

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“The idea of what it means to be human will be more contested than ever.”

“Christians will have to hold the line on not just what it means to be human, but who a human is for. 

“You’re going to see technology ramp up some of these issues and dial up the heat in our culture, as well as dial up the isolation.”

Futureproof encourages Christians to buck this trend and invest in committed community that is countercultural.

Thicker and richer

A church family that is “thicker and richer” rather than fleeting or superficial. 

“For a culture that is very mobile and spread out and doesn’t do relationships for long periods of time… What does it look like to do church community together with the same people for 30 or 40 years?” Stephen said.

In a fast-changing world, deepening the sense of community within the church could increase its appeal and assist in anchoring the Christian faith of members.

This vision of organised Christian community harks back to a biblical model of fellowship, where the church isn’t just a stopover.

Instead, it is a lifelong family where diverse generations are intertwined, serving and growing together. 

Back to The Book

Such a vision of a “thicker and richer” church community is only part of what the Bible provides to futureproofing.

For anyone claiming the Bible is increasingly irrelevant, Stephen explained that God’s Word always outlines how to live well – now and ongoing.

In an age of emerging technologies which threaten to redefine humanity, for example, the Bible upholds principles which cherish human connection and value the sanctity of life.

“AI isn’t mentioned in the Bible, and transhumanism isn’t mentioned in the Bible, but an embodied experience of humans speaking to each other face-to-face and the word becoming flesh and words actually mattering… all those things are there,” Stephen said. 

The future is known and assured

Also in the pages of Scripture is the key component of a futureproofed future.

Futureproof affirms Jesus has won the ultimate victory against sin and death. 

The end point of everything is Jesus (Phillipians 2 NIV, Colossians 1 NIV), and Stephen said that this should calm, direct and empower us into the future.

“What I wanted to do in Futureproof was say, just remember your apocalyptic literature in the Bible, the parts of the Bible which unveil the unseen stuff and show where the future is going from God’s perspective,” Stephen said.

“Christians should be the least anxious people in the setting, the least reactive people, and the most proactive in terms of knowing how to forgive, knowing how to build costly community – because it’s not all riding on what we get here. 

“I’ll take myself as an example. I get grumpy and angry about things that I see happening, when I put all my store in my comfort, my rightness or my vindication now.

“I think we’re not told [in the Bible] that we get that. 

“The purpose of Christianity is not to give [anyone] ‘the good life’.

“The purpose of Christianity is to point [each person] to eternal life that starts now but will not be completed till the age to come.” 

Listen to the full interview with Stephen McAlpine in the player above.


Featured image: Cover image supplied

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