Being relevant?

There seems to be this new movement in churches to be relevant. Well, maybe it's not new, but there is a new angle. It seems to me that some are submursing themselves into the culture for the sake of being "relevant." I struggle with this method.
As I consider the words of Jesus he called people to a higher standard. While I believe He abhored "morality" without mercy, I also think Jesus would be bothered by allowing current culture almost completely unchecked access to our hearts and minds. Whether it's music, movies, TV, lifestyle, or any number of other areas, I wonder how Jesus would live in America today.
I do not have an answer to the questions below; they are simply food for thought.
Would Jesus spend his evenings watching American Idol or Survivor?
How often would Jesus go to out to eat at restaurants?
What would Jesus have in His iPod?
I guess I could go on and on.
I will admit that I am a fan of culture. I enjoy a good movie. I listen to music quite a bit. I enjoy Olive Garden, Chili's, and a host of other places. But I struggle with the balance between cultural awareness and cultural acceptance.
I know that Paul said, "Yes, I try to find common ground with everyone so that I might bring them to Christ." (1 Corinthians 9:22) But Paul also said one verse earlier, "But I do not discard the law of God; I obey the law of Christ."
So where do we find the balance? How do we reach the world without looking like the world? How do we follow the mandate of James which states that, "Pure and lasting religion in the sight of God our Father means that we must care for orphans and widows in their troubles, and refuse to let the world corrupt us." (James 1:27)
We are called to compassion AND purity.
God demands mercy AND holiness.
We seek to reach the lost AND remain faithful.
I want to reach the lost - especially teens - but what does that look like in the year 2006? The words of Dan Stockstill (my YM professor at Harding University) still ring in my head. "What you win them with is what you win them too."
Are we trying to win the lost with culture plus Jesus? Are we seeking to be relevant at the expense of holiness?
I often fear that we sometimes make Jesus in the image of our culture as opposed to letting Him shape our interaction with culture. For example...
Jesus the action figure who is at our disposal when we need Him.
Jesus the social activist who seeks to addresses issues without a call for holiness.
Jesus the lucky charm who helps us when we are in trouble or need luck.
Jesus the drive-thru window who gives us our house, our car, and other material items.
While Jesus does help us in times of need, calls us to help the poor and outcasts, and provides for us, He first and foremost calls us to be completely sold-out and dedicated to Him. This is a goal that all of us should strive for, but none of us will ever achieve completely. Sin will continue to trip us up.
The question at hand is that do we sometimes seek to be so relevant that we give sin an outlet into our innermost being?
Yeah, you may think of the easy targets, like sexual impurity and violence. But what about the ways that we are gently, subtly shaped in the image of our consumerist culture?
(I am about to indict myself severly.)
How many families in Africa could be fed by the money I spend on a dinner for three at Texas Roadhouse?
How many poor children in America could actually have a week's worth of clothes for the cost of one outfit from Old Navy?
How many American inner-city single mothers could pay one (or more) month's rent for what it costs for an iPod?
Yes, I believe the church in America has a long way to go before we realize the dream of God. I am beginning to more vividly understand the words of Jesus when He says, "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!" (Matthew 19:24)
I think that while Jesus is primarily talking about eternal life, there is certainly a sense in which this applies to our lives in this world. How can we fulfill the dream of God when our vision is blurred by the culture we live in?
I write the words above as a challenge to me and others as we seek to be the body of Christ in the world we live in. Being a true follower of Christ in the richest nation in the world is certainly challenging. And the more I get to know Jesus, the more I realize how much I need a merciful Savior who loves me in spite of my failings and misunderstandings. I an thankful that God remains faithful to me as I continue to fail Him.

shine!
Jason