Christians and Culture

I have observed several instances lately of Christians who are retreating from culture rather than engaging culture. As followers of Christ, I believe we are called to be a force of cultural transformation. We are to be ambassadors of the Redeemer by redeeming the culture around us, yet it seems that too often Christians retreat away from the world for fear of being tainted with even the smell of sin. I'm certainly not advocating that we dive head first into sinful practices and attitudes...I guess my frustration is that Christ, our ultimate example, didn't shut himself off from 1st century culture, so why do we? A friend recently expressed these thoughts in more simple way that rang true with me. We don't necessarily have to be the "trendy" person in our spheres of influence, but how can we expect to reach broken and hurting people with the gospel if we are never engaging those people and the culture around us. Christ's death isn't just our ticket to heaven, it is the redemptive work of God to set all of His creation, including you and me to rights. My prayer is that I will do more to proclaim the redemption of God in our culture. Prayerfully consider joining me...