A civilization does not survive by accident. It survives because ordinary people decide that what they inherited is worth defending.
This series has traced fourteen centuries of conflict between Islam and the Christian West. We have seen conquest, subjugation, resistance, forgetting, and adaptation. We have seen how jihad advanced by the sword and how it now advances through law, culture, and intimidation. We have seen how Christendom fought back when it remembered who it was and how it faltered when it forgot.
The final question is not historical.
It is present. What does resistance look like now? Christian resistance has always been distinct because Christianity is distinct. Jesus did not call His followers to conquer the world by force. As documented, we have often had to bear the sword to protect our homes, families, churches, and our survival.
Christ calls us to be faithful, courageous, and truthful. The defense of Christendom has never required abandoning the Gospel. It has required living it publicly.
Jesus tells us the answer in the Sermon on the Mount
"You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven." -Matthew 5:14-16 (ESV)
Jesus tells us that we must know who we are and be courageous in shining that light, regardless of how dark the world is.
This is why the most powerful weapon used against the West in modern times has not been terror or immigration. It has been amnesia.
People who do not know who they are cannot defend what they believe. A generation taught only the sins of its ancestors will surrender the achievements that made repentance possible in the first place.
Christians must recover historical memory, not as nostalgia but as truth. Then, we must shine that truth out for all to see. We must remember that Christianity built the moral framework the modern West takes for granted. Human dignity. Equality before the law. Compassion for the weak. Limits on power. Forgiveness instead of vengeance.
These were not inevitable. They were hard won.
Remembering this does not make us superior. It makes us responsible. One of the great failures of modern Christianity has been theological timidity.
In an effort to be polite, the Church often avoids making truth claims. In an effort to be loving, it avoids moral distinctions. In an effort to be inclusive, it refuses to say no. But Christianity is not merely one spirituality among many. It is a truth claim about God, man, sin, redemption, and authority.
And our refusal to boldly proclaim as much violates Jesus' command to shine our light for all to see. We have forgotten who we are, and many who remember have hidden that light.
Islam makes its own claims about truth. They are not compatible with the Light, and the Light is what built the West.
Pretending otherwise does not create peace. It creates confusion. Christians must recover the courage to say that Jesus Christ is Lord.
He is not one option among many. Truth is not relative. Love does not require surrender. This clarity must be taught again in pulpits, classrooms, and homes. It is not an option; it is a command of Christ.
Next, we must turn our attention to the family. No civilization outlasts its families.
The family is where the worldview is transmitted. It is where faith becomes a habit. It is where children learn authority, responsibility, and love.
When families weaken, institutions fill the gap. When institutions are hostile, children are lost.
Christian resistance begins with marriage honored, children welcomed, fathers leading, mothers nurturing, and homes ordered around faith rather than chaos. This is not glamorous. It does not trend on social media. It works.
Islam understands this. It builds through family and fertility. The West must relearn the same lesson without abandoning Christian virtue.
In fact, in that same verse, we see this is the case. The lamp illustration represents each Christian as an individual.
The illustration of the city, however, represents many Christians gathered together in families passing the light down and grouping as a church to shine so that the whole world can be lit.
Next, we must address our systems of education. Education is never neutral. Every curriculum teaches a moral vision. Every school shapes loyalties.
For generations, Christians assumed public institutions would reinforce shared values. That assumption no longer holds.
Christian parents must take responsibility for how their children are formed. Whether through Christian schools, homeschooling, or serious engagement with public education, formation cannot be outsourced to hostile systems.
This is not a retreat. It is stewardship.
A generation formed in truth will not be easily intimidated. Organizations like Turning Point Academy are building schools across the country to combat the secularization and mass amnesia rampant in our schools. It must be done.
But these alone are not enough if we do not address immigration.
Nations exist for a reason. God Himself establishes them at Babel.
Borders are not expressions of hatred. They are expressions of responsibility. A government that cannot control who enters its territory cannot protect its people.
Christian teaching affirms both compassion and order. Charity without boundaries becomes chaos. Hospitality without law becomes exploitation.
Mass immigration without assimilation undermines social trust and invites conflict. If we do not deport, denaturalize, and close our borders for the long term, we will become a different nation altogether, likely one under Sharia.
This leads us to shining our light specifically against the conquering ideology of Islam. One of the most damaging developments in the modern West is the criminalization of honest speech towards Islam.
Criticizing Islam is increasingly treated as hate. Criticizing Christianity is treated as comedy. This asymmetry reveals a more profound fear. Fear of violence. Fear of social reprisal. Fear of being labeled.
But the truth that cannot be spoken cannot be defended. "Shine your light for all to see."
Christians must recover the courage to speak plainly and boldly and denounce lies.
Ultimately, Christendom cannot be defended by policy alone. Nor by government and secular institutions. It has never been enough. It must be defended by faith.
No law can replace repentance. No border can substitute for prayer. No argument can compensate for spiritual emptiness.
The greatest victories of Christian civilization followed revival, not bureaucracy. When hearts were reformed, societies followed.
If the West is to endure, it will not be because it perfected diversity training or passed another regulation. It will be because Christians returned to their first love.
Prayer. Scripture. Worship. Obedience. Everything else flows from that. Christendom is not a relic. It is an inheritance.
It is the reason hospitals exist. The reason charity is expected. The reason power is questioned. The reason mercy matters.
Those who do not share its values are free to live peacefully within it. But they are not entitled to remake it. A civilization that forgets this will lose both freedom and peace.
That leaves us with a choice. Every generation decides whether it will be a steward or a squatter.
Stewards preserve, strengthen, and pass on what they received. Squatters consume and leave ruin behind.
The generations before us held the line. Sometimes imperfectly. Sometimes bravely. Sometimes at great cost.
In the days of Nehemiah, the greatness of Jerusalem lay wasted. Nehemiah sought to rebuild it in honor of the Lord. But there was constant opposition, and the people had largely forgotten who they were. Nehemiah knew that two things must happen at once.
First, the men must defend. So they took up their swords and manned the wall. Second, the wall must be rebuilt. So they took their other hand and put it to the trowel.
They defended, and they built—a sword in one hand and a trowel in the other.
Now it is our turn. We must shine our light for all to see. We must defend and build.
We must fight, fight, fight to restore Christendom. Fear must go, faith must remain.
Here is my call to everyone who lives in what was once known by all to be Christendom.
Stand. Remember. Teach. Build.
Defend what is good precisely because it is good. Christendom will be saved by Christians who know who they are and live accordingly.
That is the line. And it is worth holding. Christians, shine your light.
