Three Kinds of Christians
Oct 30, 2026 by Dr. Kent DelHousaye
When it comes to cultural engagement, there are three kinds of Christians: those who are waiting for the world to burn, those who are wanting the world to burn, and those who are unwilling to let the world burn.
Contrary to what most people think, the difference between them is not their theology, or more specifically, their eschatology. Most presume that it is the postmillennialists who care about culture and the premillennialists who don’t.
But that is simply not accurate. There are many dispensational premillenialists who are culturally engaged and politically active. Likewise, there are also many theonomic postmillennialists who are culturally disinterested and apolitically libertarian.
For those who are unfamiliar with their competing eschatologies, premillennialists generally anticipate widespread cultural decline before Jesus returns while postmillennialists generally foresee a broad culture reconstruction before He does.
The key difference between their belief is whether things must get worse or better before the second coming of Christ and the realization of his Kingdom. For the premillennialists who generally expect things to get worse, the cultural decline is not only expected but welcomed.
After all, if the world burning down around us only hastens the arrival of Christ and the rapture of the church, then why would they bother or even care about how bad culture degrades around us?
On the other hand, if the world burning down is only a temporary delay of the inevitable millennial kingdom, then why wouldn’t the postmillennialists prefer cultural retreat and societal hibernation until that happens?
You see, the difference between those who engage culture and those who don’t isn’t necessarily their eschatology. It’s their soteriology and ecclesiology—or what is commonly referred to as cultural theology.
Whether someone is pre or postmillennial doesn’t really matter. It also doesn’t matter if they are reformed or dispensational. Instead, what matters is what they believe about the Cultural Mandate and the Great Commission.
Those who believe that Genesis 1:26-28 and Matthew 28:18-20 are both divine cultural commissions to build God-glorifying societies on earth have a biblically defined cultural theology that drives their engagement.
Those who hold to this kind of cultural theology regardless of their affiliation are those who are unwilling to just watch or simply wait for the world to burn. They are compelled by the cultural mandate of the Great Commission and not by their eschatological differences.
This being the case, whatever your denominational or eschatological differences may be, don’t let those theological allegiances determine YOUR cultural convictions.
Contrary to what most people think, the difference between them is not their theology, or more specifically, their eschatology. Most presume that it is the postmillennialists who care about culture and the premillennialists who don’t.
But that is simply not accurate. There are many dispensational premillenialists who are culturally engaged and politically active. Likewise, there are also many theonomic postmillennialists who are culturally disinterested and apolitically libertarian.
For those who are unfamiliar with their competing eschatologies, premillennialists generally anticipate widespread cultural decline before Jesus returns while postmillennialists generally foresee a broad culture reconstruction before He does.
The key difference between their belief is whether things must get worse or better before the second coming of Christ and the realization of his Kingdom. For the premillennialists who generally expect things to get worse, the cultural decline is not only expected but welcomed.
After all, if the world burning down around us only hastens the arrival of Christ and the rapture of the church, then why would they bother or even care about how bad culture degrades around us?
On the other hand, if the world burning down is only a temporary delay of the inevitable millennial kingdom, then why wouldn’t the postmillennialists prefer cultural retreat and societal hibernation until that happens?
You see, the difference between those who engage culture and those who don’t isn’t necessarily their eschatology. It’s their soteriology and ecclesiology—or what is commonly referred to as cultural theology.
Whether someone is pre or postmillennial doesn’t really matter. It also doesn’t matter if they are reformed or dispensational. Instead, what matters is what they believe about the Cultural Mandate and the Great Commission.
Those who believe that Genesis 1:26-28 and Matthew 28:18-20 are both divine cultural commissions to build God-glorifying societies on earth have a biblically defined cultural theology that drives their engagement.
Those who hold to this kind of cultural theology regardless of their affiliation are those who are unwilling to just watch or simply wait for the world to burn. They are compelled by the cultural mandate of the Great Commission and not by their eschatological differences.
This being the case, whatever your denominational or eschatological differences may be, don’t let those theological allegiances determine YOUR cultural convictions.
