“Living in Babylon” conference teaches living fruitfully in post-Christian society

By Bella Agnello

On Tuesday, September 9, Answers in Genesis’ (AiG) “Living in Babylon” touring conference made its first United States stop at Cedarville University. Ken Ham, AiG’s founder, and Martyn Iles, chief executive officer of AiG, spoke about what it looks like to evangelize and live in a continually anti-Christian world. The two-hour conference began at 6 p.m. in the Dixon Ministry Center, where both Cedarville students and Ohio residents filled the seats.

Ham started the evening sessions talking about evangelizing in a world that no longer knows who God is. He called Christians to preach the Gospel by starting in Genesis to define who God is, who humans are and what sin is before addressing humanity’s need for a savior.

“How about sharing the Gospel the way that Jesus does it in the Bible – starting at the beginning?” Ham said.

Ham also encouraged Christians to use God’s Word as the foundation of all arguments against abortion, same-sex marriage and other controversial issues of culture, rather than using conservative or right-leaning arguments that only attack the surface level of the issue.

Rachel Daghfal, a sophomore Allied Health major at Cedarville University, came away from the conference understanding that she can freely use God’s Word when defending her beliefs.

“You can answer with Scripture when it comes to talking with non-believers,” Daghfal said. “Your worldview being centered on Scripture doesn’t negate your witness.”

In the second session, Iles talked about living boldly in a world that resembles the Babylonian world Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego lived in.

Jimmy Winterbotham came from West Milton, Ohio to attend the conference. He left the conference encouraged by the way Iles spoke about Daniel’s faith in the midst of persecution.

“Iles was excellent,” Winterbotham said. “He really brought Daniel to life and brought out some really good points to think about that you generally don’t think about.”

“I’m from Australia – we’re 10 years ahead of this whole post-Christian wave,” Iles said. “To get a massive revival, you need to get on with learning how to live fruitfully and faithfully for God in a new world.”

Even in a society of growing intolerance toward God, Iles reminded Christians of the hope they have in Christ and to keep living fruitfully for him.

“I get it, there are bad things happening, but it’s kind of a wrong emphasis for the Christian,” Ilses said. “No matter what happens around us, God is in control and he has something for us to do in the very place where he’s put us. And if we’re all pessimistic and doom and gloom we can lose sight of the constructive thing that we’re supposed to do, that is actually in the service of Christ and in the advancement of the kingdom of God.”

Iles sees that God is teaching and convicting him even through the message he preaches about what it means to live boldly in modern Babylon.

“It is the fiery furnace moments, it’s the lion’s den moments, where God does his greatest work in Babylon,” Iles said. “God never intended to deliver Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego from the fiery furnace. He actually wanted them to go through it. And it was by being prepared to die – to give everything up to serve God – that he was able to do tremendous work. Because it’s in those extreme moments that the witness of the gospel and the witness of Christ shines the brightest.” 

Bella Agnello is a junior Broadcasting, Digital Media and Journalism major with a concentration in Journalism. She enjoys thrifting, listening to records and reading classic Russian literature in her spare time.