For example, it would be inappropriate to greet a stranger with a kiss in America. Our culture has defined this as an inappropriate way to show “Christian love” and so we must let the culture define what is appropriate in this case. A handshake or hug are appropriate ways to show love and are in line with the truth presented in the gospel. In this case, we have still let the Bible be the ultimate source of truth and knowledge, while depending on the culture to know how to implement that truth most effectively.
Curse words are another great example of this. We cannot know what a curse word is outside of a cultural context. Curse words may differ from place to place, but all places have words that are considered inappropriate or offensive. I know some try to argue that these are just words and they are no different from others in order to justify using them; but the bottom line is that they have been defined by our culture as offensive. Words are never just words; they have meaning, which has been defined by the culture. Understanding this helps us to best understand which words we should use. This applies to all words not just curse words. Dogmatic has a negative connotation in our culture, so regardless of its definition it is probably best to avoid its use, especially if you are trying to communicate something in a positive manner. If you call someone dogmatic, regardless of how you meant it to be taken, it will likely be in a negative way and effective communication will not be achieved.
Lastly, our culture has defined different activities to be good or bad, moral or immoral, and we need to consider what the culture has to say about each action. As Christians we want to make sure we give no one any reason to talk badly about us and doubt our love for God and his call for purity. I say this because there are many Christians who try to defend their activity by saying the Bible does not condemn it, and though this may be true, if the activity you are doing has been given negative associations by non-Christians then you are not glorifying the Lord by doing it. Partying, and I mean, like the kinds you see in movies and on many college campuses, is not seen by the majority in our society as morally good. Therefore, we can conclude that it is not appropriate for a Christian in America to do. Not to mention the fact that drunkenness is huge part of these parties and drunkenness is clearly a sin, as it is written in the Bible (Eph 5:18, Gal 5:21, I Cor 6:10, Tit 2:3, Prov 23:20, and the list could go on).
Many of the morals of our culture actually concur with what is written in the Bible. So, if the Bible tells us something is wrong (or gives us the general idea that it is) and our non-Christian culture tells us something is wrong it is most definitely wrong and there is no use trying to excuse the behavior, even when the Bible doesn’t explicitly say it is wrong. Likewise, we should consider what is defined as kind and loving by our culture and seek to show kindness in those ways. I want to say once again, that I am in no way suggesting we let the culture take precedent over the Bible, but that we consider the culture when seeking out how to live according to the truth set before us in the Bible. Culture is a major factor in my life and it doesn’t help anything to continue ignoring it because I think it is evil. In fact, considering what the culture has to say on many different matters has proved rather insightful and I think helped me to better serve and glorify the Lord.