The Message that Saves

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If we are going to share the Gospel in a post-Christian culture, we have to be clear on what exactly the Gospel is ourselves. We’ve spent the previous two installments of our teaching series, When Faith Isn’t Assumed, talking about the reality of truth and the person of Jesus. Today we are rounding out this sequence by coming back to Jesus again. This time, instead of focusing so much on who He is, we are giving our attention entirely to what He does: Jesus saves. Let’s talk about it.

The Message that Saves

If you were to walk up to a random stranger on the street and tell them you think they are a sinner in need of salvation, you may get one of a variety of reactions, but none of those will likely be very positive. They may just roll their eyes and walk away from you. They may tell you where to take your opinion of them. They might even punch you in the nose for saying something so offensive to them. Simply put: They won’t like it. But just because they won’t like hearing it does not for that reason make it any less true. 

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Digging in Deeper: Genesis 2:24

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“This is why a man leaves his father and mother and bonds with his wife, and they become one flesh.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Well, here we are at another Friday when I didn’t have any idea what I was going to write about as I finished the day and got into bed, but then just before going to sleep something dropped straight into my metaphorical lap that I just couldn’t avoid. One of the things that I tell my church as often as I can make it come up naturally is that being a follower of Jesus doesn’t mean completely disengaging from any media sources that are not fully supportive of the Christian worldview. Rather, it means engaging wisely and with their worldview radar on high alert so they can identify ideas that are contrary to the truth and consciously reject them. They should do this they are engaging with various media by themselves, of course, but they should be especially vigilant about doing it when engaging with their kids both so that they are teaching them what is correct, but also so they are teaching them how to engage critically and through the lens of the Christian worldview. Well, the most recent episode of Abbott Elementary that we watched last night gave me the opportunity to do just that. Let’s talk about it.

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Morning Musing: Romans 16:25-27

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“Now to him who is able to strengthen you  according to my gospel and the proclamation about Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept silent for long ages but now revealed and made known through the prophetic Scriptures, according to the command of the eternal God to advance the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles—to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ—to him be the glory forever! Amen.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

This has been quite a journey. As I sit early writing this little opener, I’m not sure yet when I’ll actually write the rest of this post, but I think it’ll wind up being sometime in January. That’ll make just over a year that we have been walking together through Paul’s letter to the Roman believers. We have covered a lot of ground—a lot of good ground. Thank you for coming on this journey with me. I’m looking forward to our next. Here at the end, Paul offers a final benediction. Let’s wrap up our journey by walking through the rich theology he lays out for us here.

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Morning Musing: Romans 16:19-23

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“The report of your obedience has reached everyone. Therefore I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise about what is good, and yet innocent about what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you. Timothy, my coworker, and Lucius, Jason, and Sosipater, my fellow countrymen, greet you. I, Tertius, who wrote this letter, greet you in the Lord. Gaius, who is host to me and to the whole church, greets you. Erastus, the city treasurer, and our brother Quartus greet you.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

What are you known for? Is it a particular habit? A personality trait? Your vocation? There are all kinds of things people wind up being known for. Not all of them, though, are good. The same thing goes for the church. Churches have reputations. Some are known to be contentious and unwelcoming. Some are just known for being large. Some are known because of all the effective kingdom-advancing work they do. Paul commends the church in Rome here for something they were known for. I’ve got to say: theirs isn’t bad. Let’s talk about it and what follows as the letter draws to a close with the next post.

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Digging in Deeper: Romans 16:17-18

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“Now I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who create divisions and obstacles contrary to the teaching that you learned. Avoid them, because such people do not serve our Lord Christ but their own appetites. They deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting with smooth talk and flattering words.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

I am a committed believer that the church should be a place for everyone. When the church is operating properly, no one should not be able to find their place there. It doesn’t matter how rich or poor a person is. It doesn’t matter how educated or simple they are. It doesn’t matter whether they are black or white or brown or red or yellow or any other color on the palette. National origins make no difference. Politics don’t matter. Even sports affiliation is something we can learn to have grace for. Everyone is welcome in the church…except for some people. Let’s take a minute today to talk about some people we don’t want in the church.

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