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Do I want to say that about bin Laden? I don't see God's giftedness operating in his life. But if I could talk to him, my common-grace theology would say that it's worth having the conversation because there just may be something of God's Spirit at work in his consciousness.

Some evangelicals tend to divide the world into the redeemed and the unredeemed, the church and the synagogue of Satan, such that their only point of contact with people on other side is as targets for evangelism. How does common-grace thinking help people who have grown up in particularly dualistic forms of evangelicalism?

Common-grace thinking says clearly to me that God isn't exclusively focused on saving souls. Obviously, I don't know whether Barry Bonds is going to end up in heaven, but I think God likes it when he sees him hit a really fine home run. And I don't know whether Tom Hanks is going to end up in heaven, but I do believe that when I take delight in a good acting performance that I'm taking delight in something that God wants me to, that God himself delights in.

And so, while I care deeply about whether these people are going to be saved, my interest in them cannot be exhausted purely in soteriological terms. I can enjoy good musical performances, good works of art, good pieces of writing, because I think God takes delight in them, because the God who called his creation good also says let there be good music and let there be good art, and on occasion looks down on the works of some unbeliever and says, That's good; I like that.

Would that apply more broadly, say, to political life as well?

That's exactly right. A good piece of legislation in Iran is something that God takes delight in. God takes delight in justice and, in fact, takes credit for it. And so we ought to take delight in it and give God credit for it.

Copyright © 2002 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.

Also appearing on our site today:

Why God Enjoys BaseballA new book by Richard Mouw argues that we can glory in even unredeemed creation.

Read more about Richard J. Mouw at Fuller Seminary's Web site.

Previous Christianity Today articles by Mouw include:

'You're Right, Dr. McIntire!'In the world of ecumenical Protestantism, some owe Carl McIntire an apology for dismissing his warnings. (May 17, 2002)

Resisting Church DivorceDenominational conflicts may arise from views of God rather than competing worldviews. (June 18, 2001)

The Chosen People PuzzleWhen it comes to relating to the Jewish people, should we dialogue, cooperate, or evangelize? (March 9, 2001)

Fundamentalism RevisitedEvangelicals would do well to remember fundamentalism as family history. (November 11, 2000)

This World Is Not My HomeWhat some mainline Protestants are rediscovering about living as exiles in a foreign culture. (May 5, 2000)

Mormon MakeoverAn effective evangelical witness hinges on understanding the new face of Latter-day Saints. (March 9, 2000)

Abraham Kuyper: A Man for This SeasonThe surprisingly relevant advice of a Dutch statesman for engaging postmodern culture. (Oct. 5, 1998)

To the Jew FirstWitnessing to the Jews is nonnegotiable. (Aug. 11, 1997)

Mouw's He Shines In All That's Fair received an Award of Merit in the 2002 CT Book Awards and is available from Christianbook.com.

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July 8 2002, Vol. 46, No. 8