Will Willimon is insightful and has an ability to cut through a lot of fog:

Unfortunately, too often Christians have treated the modern world as if it were a fact, a reality to which we were obligated to adjust, rather than a point of view with which we might argue.

When we speak of reaching out to our culture through the gospel, we must be reminded that the gospel is also a culture. In the attempt to “translate” the gospel into the language of the culture, something is lost. We are learning that you have not said “salvation” when you say “self-esteem.” “The American Way” is not equivalent to “the kingdom of God.”

The rest is here: https://stertin.wordpress.com/2011/09/20/william-willimons-the-culture-is-overrated/

HT: Trevin Wax