Christmas 101 = Gospel 101
Luke 2:10-11. The angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord."
These words announced by an angel that first historic Christmas night (and reiterated by Charlie Brown and millions of others since) provide for us the heart of the gospel. As a matter of fact, the word gospel means good news. The actual Greek rendering of this phrase employed by the angel is: "I evangelize or pronounce to you great joy." The heartbeat of the Christmas story is the announcement of a message of great joy.
And notice the gospel is a message of great joy intended for all people: shepherds, Magi, unwed mothers, insecure fathers, politicians, beggars, moral people, immoral people, blue collar workers, alcoholics, prostitutes, soldiers, auditors, children, victims, liars, poor people, religious leaders, angry people, bitter people, greedy people, jealous people, sweet people, forgiving people, generous people, and content people. The gospel is intended for people who are hurt, healthy, disappointed, happy, broken, ugly, attractive, dissatisfied, militant, aggressive, humble, passive, proud, or curious. The message is for all types of people - regardless of personality, skin color, nationality, upbringing, dialect, size, shape, or tendencies. It is for ALL people - that's part of what makes it good news - it is more inclusive than exclusive.
What is this gospel of good news provided for all people?
Here's what the gospel is NOT:
- Straighten up
- Shape up
- Clean up
- Sober up
- Go to church
- Be good
- Stop doing ________
- Start doing ________
- Try to be ________
- Try to not ________
The gospel message announced to the world via a bunch of messy renegades that first Christmas night is not about condemnation but about redemption. Luke's rendition of the event emphasizes the dawning of something new and redemptive (salvation begins TODAY ~ both fulfillment and initiation start now). Twenty times in his 2 books Luke utilizes the word translated today to underscore the emergence of a new era that focuses more on our redemption and less on our condemnation. "Thou shalt nots" do not redeem - every religion is filled with its own set of rules and regulations. What separates the gospel is that it is not about what we do or do not do. Instead it is about what He has done. And that is good news!
So guess what? If those of us who claim to follow Jesus place a greater emphasis on condemnation than we do redemption, we have missed the heart of the gospel proclaimed that night. If people feel more condemned than loved, we have misrepresented the message. I'm not sure if you know the history of shepherds, but let's just say that they were not the most respected and moral people in the community. And yet this group of outlaws were the audience God chose when He provided a soundbite of His eternal plan. When you understand the gospel, you understand why.
What was the message initiated that night? "A Savior has been born" This same memo was sent earlier when another angel instructed the earthly parents of Jesus to name their child Jesus. Why? Because, the angel revealed, the name means "God saves" and Jesus will save His people from their sins.
There we have it - the gospel in a nutshell: God sent a Savior into the world to save people from their sins. Why did God send a Savior? Because we are sinners - we can't save ourselves. Our feeble attempts at goodness fall short of his perfect standard. We can't keep a rigid enough list to earn favor with God. We need Someone to bridge the gap between our sin and God's perfection. We need Someone to do what we cannot do. We need Someone to save us from our sins and that is what Jesus came to do - save us from us. God sent a Savior because that is exactly what we needed.
God did not send a helper. He did not send a supplement. He did not send an addendum or a complement. He did not send Someone to help us get to God. Salvation is not my goodness + Jesus. The gospel is not my moral efforts + Jesus. We need a Savior to save us from our sins.
The good news of God is about salvation. The gospel is about redemption. It is the same message that was declared by an angelic army to a band of ragtag sinners on a hillside overlooking Bethlehem and it is the same gospel that continues to transform sinners into followers today.
Christmas is about Jesus - not just the 7 pound, 6 ounce golden-fleeced baby Jesus laying in that sanitized manger in our nativity scenes. But the Jesus who came to do what we can't do ourselves - save us from our sins. And that is the heart of the gospel.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Thursday, December 08, 2011
Repent (and continue to do so)
At its most root level, the word repentance means a change of mind. In the original language, the NT word is related to turning - specifically turning from sin and turning to God. Repentance includes a change of heart that results in a change of action (that may or may not always be appreciated instantaneously).
Other concepts related to the idea of repentance include: sorrow over our sin, forsaking our sin, pursuing what is right, and right decision-making. Other natural feelings often related to an attitude of repentance include: guilt, remorse, regret, sorrow, hurt, and a multitude of other human emotions.
Defining repentance on paper is easy. And it is also simple for us to prescribe what repentance looks like for other people: stop doing __________ and start doing __________. When it comes to other people's sins, repentance is fairly black-and-white for us. I am a "bottom-line" type person so it is easy for me to assume what repentance looks like for others. I was never a very good counselor because I normally just looked at the person seeking my help and said something like "just stop doing that and start doing this" (which is true repentance at its core level). My sympathies for sin struggles different than my own were often limited and heartless. To be honest, I simply could not identify with people who struggled with certain sins that looked different than my own. And for that reason, it was easy for me to define repentance in their life with little or no room for the process often required to reach a place of full repentance.
Enter life.
For the past year of my life, I have been the person on the "this is what you need to do" side of this equation. If you were truly repentant, you would ______. And herein lies the tension: the only basis we have to judge what is going on in someone's heart is their actions (a biblical principle). Yet at the same time, sin is still a reality with which we struggle. It is the Romans 7 tension with which we all live (I do what I do not want to do and I don't do what I want to do).
Let me give you a common example. I have talked to dozens and dozens of men who struggle with pornography (and most of us have). I have talked to married men, single men, church leaders, pastors, elders, new believers, long-time followers, young guys, older guys, fathers, husbands, etc. I have talked to men who struggle with porn occasionally, consistently, weekly, daily, even hourly. I have talked to men whose friends and family know of their struggles and many who have never told a single person about their secret outside of our conversation. Statistics reveal that most Christian men struggle consistently with the sins related to pornography. And the reality is that I have only talked to a small percentage of those who called me pastor or friend who actually struggle with this sin. Statistics don't lie. When I was teaching every Sunday, I assumed that most of the men who were listening struggled with some type of porn at some level.
So what does repentance look like in the life of the man who wrestles with this type sin? Ideally repentance means that this person turns from his sin and stops looking at pornography completely, never has another lustful thought, and surrenders his thought life to the control of the Holy Spirit and only thinks on things that are pure and holy. That would be true and genuine repentance. Is that reality? I am sure it has been on occasion. But the more common reality is that a man who has wrestled with this sin will continue to struggle with its power in his life and will most likely only fully overcome this sin through consistent repentance, true accountability, and a constant surrender of his heart and mind to Jesus. In this instance, repentance is an ongoing process of constant confession and consistent victory that hopefully leads to a life more clearly marked by holy thinking than impure thoughts and actions. Repentance is an ongoing process.
Name any sin you want and the repentance process is often the same. Let me give you another example. Guess how many people through the years have approached me and asked me to forgive them for gossip or slander? Less than one (translated zero). Does that mean gossip or slander have never occurred? Of course not. Gossip and slander among Jesus followers toward other people and/or Christians (particularly leaders) is commonplace. Does that mean the gossip or slanderer has repented of his/her sin? I don't know. But evidently not to the point he/she felt compelled to ask for forgiveness for their sin to the person he/she sinned against. What does genuine repentance look like in this person's life? Is it instantaneous? Or is it an ongoing process in the life of the genuine believer that leads us to gossip less and encourage more?
What about greed or pride or jealousy or anger or gluttony? What about cutting corners on our taxes or telling half truths or stealing God's tithe? What does genuine repentance look like in these everyday sins that are more widespread and easier to dismiss?
So what does genuine repentance look like for the person who has an ongoing struggle with porn? What does it look like for the gossip? the liar? the cheat? the adulterer? the pastor neglecting his family for his ministry? the critic? the dad/mom neglecting their children because they are chasing bigger and better stuff? What does repentance look like in everyday life for the Jesus follower who finds him/herself struggling again with the same sin over and over?
I don't have the final answer to this tension. It seems to be an issue with which a lot of sincere God followers struggle and with which a lot of people in the Bible wrestled. What I do know is this: repentance is an ongoing process. Turning from our sin and to God is a daily battle. The call to die to oneself and live for Jesus is a never ending journey. The need to confess our sin is constant.
I am a sinner. I sin. You are a sinner. You sin. It is often easier for me to define repentance in your life than it is mine. That's why repentance must begin in my own heart. It must begin with me being real with God and with others. It must begin with God doing a transforming and ongoing work in my heart. How long does that process take? I'm not sure it ends in this lifetime.
In recent months, God has exposed the depth of my own depravity in a way that has brought me to my knees and has led me to a deeper and fresh understanding of my own repentance and His unconditional forgiveness. He continues to reveal my sinful heart and my constant need for true repentance and divine grace. And as He purges my heart and transforms my soul, repentance takes on a new perspective. And what I am learning is that it is not always as simple as I sometimes want to make it which causes me to realize just how deeply I need his grace.
What does repentance look like in your life? At its most basic level, it means that you are turning from your sin and to God. What does that look like in everyday life where we continue to struggle with our own sin? That's what God is teaching me.
So the next time we hear someone playing the grace card, maybe we should assume less that they are trying to justify their sin and assume more that God is leading them to a place of deep and meaningful repentance which results in a natural celebration of and reflection on His grace.
I believe in repentance. I believe in its necessity. And I believe that it is an ongoing process of the heart that makes us more like Jesus and less like us.
I love God's promise in 1 John 1:9 - a promise written to Jesus followers. "But God is faithful and fair. If we admit that we have sinned, he will forgive us our sins. He will forgive every wrong thing we have done. He will make us pure." And that's just the kind of God we serve!
Other concepts related to the idea of repentance include: sorrow over our sin, forsaking our sin, pursuing what is right, and right decision-making. Other natural feelings often related to an attitude of repentance include: guilt, remorse, regret, sorrow, hurt, and a multitude of other human emotions.
Defining repentance on paper is easy. And it is also simple for us to prescribe what repentance looks like for other people: stop doing __________ and start doing __________. When it comes to other people's sins, repentance is fairly black-and-white for us. I am a "bottom-line" type person so it is easy for me to assume what repentance looks like for others. I was never a very good counselor because I normally just looked at the person seeking my help and said something like "just stop doing that and start doing this" (which is true repentance at its core level). My sympathies for sin struggles different than my own were often limited and heartless. To be honest, I simply could not identify with people who struggled with certain sins that looked different than my own. And for that reason, it was easy for me to define repentance in their life with little or no room for the process often required to reach a place of full repentance.
Enter life.
For the past year of my life, I have been the person on the "this is what you need to do" side of this equation. If you were truly repentant, you would ______. And herein lies the tension: the only basis we have to judge what is going on in someone's heart is their actions (a biblical principle). Yet at the same time, sin is still a reality with which we struggle. It is the Romans 7 tension with which we all live (I do what I do not want to do and I don't do what I want to do).
Let me give you a common example. I have talked to dozens and dozens of men who struggle with pornography (and most of us have). I have talked to married men, single men, church leaders, pastors, elders, new believers, long-time followers, young guys, older guys, fathers, husbands, etc. I have talked to men who struggle with porn occasionally, consistently, weekly, daily, even hourly. I have talked to men whose friends and family know of their struggles and many who have never told a single person about their secret outside of our conversation. Statistics reveal that most Christian men struggle consistently with the sins related to pornography. And the reality is that I have only talked to a small percentage of those who called me pastor or friend who actually struggle with this sin. Statistics don't lie. When I was teaching every Sunday, I assumed that most of the men who were listening struggled with some type of porn at some level.
So what does repentance look like in the life of the man who wrestles with this type sin? Ideally repentance means that this person turns from his sin and stops looking at pornography completely, never has another lustful thought, and surrenders his thought life to the control of the Holy Spirit and only thinks on things that are pure and holy. That would be true and genuine repentance. Is that reality? I am sure it has been on occasion. But the more common reality is that a man who has wrestled with this sin will continue to struggle with its power in his life and will most likely only fully overcome this sin through consistent repentance, true accountability, and a constant surrender of his heart and mind to Jesus. In this instance, repentance is an ongoing process of constant confession and consistent victory that hopefully leads to a life more clearly marked by holy thinking than impure thoughts and actions. Repentance is an ongoing process.
Name any sin you want and the repentance process is often the same. Let me give you another example. Guess how many people through the years have approached me and asked me to forgive them for gossip or slander? Less than one (translated zero). Does that mean gossip or slander have never occurred? Of course not. Gossip and slander among Jesus followers toward other people and/or Christians (particularly leaders) is commonplace. Does that mean the gossip or slanderer has repented of his/her sin? I don't know. But evidently not to the point he/she felt compelled to ask for forgiveness for their sin to the person he/she sinned against. What does genuine repentance look like in this person's life? Is it instantaneous? Or is it an ongoing process in the life of the genuine believer that leads us to gossip less and encourage more?
What about greed or pride or jealousy or anger or gluttony? What about cutting corners on our taxes or telling half truths or stealing God's tithe? What does genuine repentance look like in these everyday sins that are more widespread and easier to dismiss?
So what does genuine repentance look like for the person who has an ongoing struggle with porn? What does it look like for the gossip? the liar? the cheat? the adulterer? the pastor neglecting his family for his ministry? the critic? the dad/mom neglecting their children because they are chasing bigger and better stuff? What does repentance look like in everyday life for the Jesus follower who finds him/herself struggling again with the same sin over and over?
I don't have the final answer to this tension. It seems to be an issue with which a lot of sincere God followers struggle and with which a lot of people in the Bible wrestled. What I do know is this: repentance is an ongoing process. Turning from our sin and to God is a daily battle. The call to die to oneself and live for Jesus is a never ending journey. The need to confess our sin is constant.
I am a sinner. I sin. You are a sinner. You sin. It is often easier for me to define repentance in your life than it is mine. That's why repentance must begin in my own heart. It must begin with me being real with God and with others. It must begin with God doing a transforming and ongoing work in my heart. How long does that process take? I'm not sure it ends in this lifetime.
In recent months, God has exposed the depth of my own depravity in a way that has brought me to my knees and has led me to a deeper and fresh understanding of my own repentance and His unconditional forgiveness. He continues to reveal my sinful heart and my constant need for true repentance and divine grace. And as He purges my heart and transforms my soul, repentance takes on a new perspective. And what I am learning is that it is not always as simple as I sometimes want to make it which causes me to realize just how deeply I need his grace.
What does repentance look like in your life? At its most basic level, it means that you are turning from your sin and to God. What does that look like in everyday life where we continue to struggle with our own sin? That's what God is teaching me.
So the next time we hear someone playing the grace card, maybe we should assume less that they are trying to justify their sin and assume more that God is leading them to a place of deep and meaningful repentance which results in a natural celebration of and reflection on His grace.
I believe in repentance. I believe in its necessity. And I believe that it is an ongoing process of the heart that makes us more like Jesus and less like us.
I love God's promise in 1 John 1:9 - a promise written to Jesus followers. "But God is faithful and fair. If we admit that we have sinned, he will forgive us our sins. He will forgive every wrong thing we have done. He will make us pure." And that's just the kind of God we serve!
Thursday, December 01, 2011
God isn't Done with Us
One of the fascinating aspects of the Jonah story is the fact that even after Jonah's face-to-fish encounter, he still does not seem to get it. Jonah is regurgitated on the seashore and instructed by God to fulfill his original calling - go preach to the Assyrians. So after receiving a monumental second chance (and quite the fish tale in the process) and after what appears to be a heartfelt time of repentance, Jonah heads to Ninevah and proclaims God's message. But from all indications, he does so not because he has a heartfelt desire for the Assyrians to turn to God. He does so because life in the intestines of a giant fish is the opposite of pleasant.
Even after God's incredible work of salvific grace in Jonah's life, he is still a disgruntled prophet who obeys more out of fear of what could happen than out of an intense love for God or a passion to see people far from God turn to God. In essence, Jonah is still a work in progress. As a matter of fact when the book of Jonah ends, there is no indicator of any sort that the prophet's attitude changed in any way. If anything, he is still pouting and ticked at God.
The story of Jonah teaches us so much about our tendency to be mad at God for being God (see my earlier post here) & the reality that repentance and sanctification are often an ongoing process. I believe that we tend to trust God's grace and work for salvation but have difficulty trusting God's grace and work for sanctification. In other words, we are all about salvation-by-grace-through-faith-plus nothing-minus nothing (full blown Reformation sola fida theology) when it comes to a person being made right with God in terms of their justification. But when it comes to sanctification, we tend to trust more in our human-created lists and rules. After all, the external is easier to judge and simpler.
And yet the Bible is filled with people who are constantly stumbling their way through life and yet God used them in a tremendous way to accomplish His purposes. When you read the actual and raw stories of the flannelgraph heroes of Sunday School, it reads like a Most Wanted list. God uses imperfect people. Church history is also filled with them.
Jonah was "under construction" when God used him to deliver a message that brought an entire city to its spiritual knees. And how did Jonah celebrate this spiritual awakening? He sat on the hillside outside of the city, broke out the popcorn, and waited to watch Sodom and Gomorrah: the sequel. Does that sound like a man whom God had just used to influence thousands of people?
Justification is instant. However, Sanctification is a process. Spiritual growth is a process. Repentance can be a process. At salvation, we are instantly and eternally justified before God. But also at salvation, we begin a process of BEING transformed into Christ-likeness.
As I learn to live in grace-motivated obedience, I am made more like Jesus and less like me. And yet there are moments and even seasons where our humanity surfaces in ways that can cause people to question our faith itself. It is during those seasons that we can find ourselves so far from God that we can even limit our usefulness in His kingdom. Jonah landed in the belly of a fish because he was running from God. He was ineffective for a time because God was refining His prophet - He was transforming him. Yet God was not finished with Jonah. He did not leave him in his temporary refinery. He did not leave him lying on the beach in whale vomit. Jonah's repentance was not complete (as evidenced at the story unfolds) but God still had a purpose for Jonah - a purpose that was bigger than the human instrument himself.
And that is a brutal reality that each of us must face at times: God's purposes are bigger than us. His calling is never about us. His story is never about us. It is always about Him. The hero of the Jonah story is not Jonah, or the whale, or the Assyrians who turned from their wicked ways. The hero of the Jonah story is God - a God who provides second chances - second chances for depraved people in need of a Savior, second chances for God followers who are being transformed into His image, and second chances for people just like you and just like me.
As I learn more about God's grace and the depth of His unconditional forgiveness, I have a deeper desire to follow this God who pursues us with this type of love. Grace is not an excuse to live in sin. Grace is an escape from sin - from both its eternal consequences and its daily stranglehold. And yet when we do allow sin's power to imprison us - when we do find ourselves lying in the puke of our own sinful decision making, God's relentless grace is there to pick us up, clean us up, and prepare us for use in His bigger picture. And that's just the kind of God we serve.
Even after God's incredible work of salvific grace in Jonah's life, he is still a disgruntled prophet who obeys more out of fear of what could happen than out of an intense love for God or a passion to see people far from God turn to God. In essence, Jonah is still a work in progress. As a matter of fact when the book of Jonah ends, there is no indicator of any sort that the prophet's attitude changed in any way. If anything, he is still pouting and ticked at God.
The story of Jonah teaches us so much about our tendency to be mad at God for being God (see my earlier post here) & the reality that repentance and sanctification are often an ongoing process. I believe that we tend to trust God's grace and work for salvation but have difficulty trusting God's grace and work for sanctification. In other words, we are all about salvation-by-grace-through-faith-plus nothing-minus nothing (full blown Reformation sola fida theology) when it comes to a person being made right with God in terms of their justification. But when it comes to sanctification, we tend to trust more in our human-created lists and rules. After all, the external is easier to judge and simpler.
And yet the Bible is filled with people who are constantly stumbling their way through life and yet God used them in a tremendous way to accomplish His purposes. When you read the actual and raw stories of the flannelgraph heroes of Sunday School, it reads like a Most Wanted list. God uses imperfect people. Church history is also filled with them.
Jonah was "under construction" when God used him to deliver a message that brought an entire city to its spiritual knees. And how did Jonah celebrate this spiritual awakening? He sat on the hillside outside of the city, broke out the popcorn, and waited to watch Sodom and Gomorrah: the sequel. Does that sound like a man whom God had just used to influence thousands of people?
Justification is instant. However, Sanctification is a process. Spiritual growth is a process. Repentance can be a process. At salvation, we are instantly and eternally justified before God. But also at salvation, we begin a process of BEING transformed into Christ-likeness.
As I learn to live in grace-motivated obedience, I am made more like Jesus and less like me. And yet there are moments and even seasons where our humanity surfaces in ways that can cause people to question our faith itself. It is during those seasons that we can find ourselves so far from God that we can even limit our usefulness in His kingdom. Jonah landed in the belly of a fish because he was running from God. He was ineffective for a time because God was refining His prophet - He was transforming him. Yet God was not finished with Jonah. He did not leave him in his temporary refinery. He did not leave him lying on the beach in whale vomit. Jonah's repentance was not complete (as evidenced at the story unfolds) but God still had a purpose for Jonah - a purpose that was bigger than the human instrument himself.
And that is a brutal reality that each of us must face at times: God's purposes are bigger than us. His calling is never about us. His story is never about us. It is always about Him. The hero of the Jonah story is not Jonah, or the whale, or the Assyrians who turned from their wicked ways. The hero of the Jonah story is God - a God who provides second chances - second chances for depraved people in need of a Savior, second chances for God followers who are being transformed into His image, and second chances for people just like you and just like me.
As I learn more about God's grace and the depth of His unconditional forgiveness, I have a deeper desire to follow this God who pursues us with this type of love. Grace is not an excuse to live in sin. Grace is an escape from sin - from both its eternal consequences and its daily stranglehold. And yet when we do allow sin's power to imprison us - when we do find ourselves lying in the puke of our own sinful decision making, God's relentless grace is there to pick us up, clean us up, and prepare us for use in His bigger picture. And that's just the kind of God we serve.
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