Recent Comments ARCHIVE - Love writes a letter to Hate - 19 things I want RUF to be about - Time to Start - Casa Hogar 2 - Casa Hogar 2 - Casa Hogar 1 - End of the Semester Report - A poem by Nicole Rowlette - Mexico - Poem by Anthony Plopper - My Poem - Patty Griffin Rocks My House - End of the Decade - The Gospel by Tim Keller - Sex by Marva Dawn - The Interviews - Becky Robertson - The Interviews - Katie Willis - The Interviews - Ian Puffenberger - The Interviews - The Moyni - The Interviews - Chris Schaefer		The Gospel by Tim Keller 12/2/09 The gospel means “good news.” It is the basic message that God made [Christ], who had no sin, to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Cor 5:21). The gospel says we are so sinful, lost and helpless that only the life and death of the Son of God can save us. But it also says that those who trust in Christ’s works instead of their own efforts are now “holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation” (Colossians 1:22-23). The gospel tells us that our root sin is not just failing in our obedience to God but relying on our obedience to save us. Therefore, the gospel is the “third way,” neither religion nor irreligion. The religious person may say, “I am dong the right things that God commands” and the irreligious person may say, “I decide what is right and wrong for myself.” But both ways reject Jesus as Savior (though they may revere him as Example or Helper). Both ways are strategies of self-salvation – both actually keep control of their own lives. So the gospel keeps us from legalism and moralism on one hand, and from hedonism and relativism on the other. The gospel is not just the A-B-C but the A-Z of the Christian life. The gospel is not just the way to enter the kingdom, but is the way to address every problem and is the way to grow at every step. If we believe we can find our worth and meaning through performance, then we will become either proud and disdainful of others (if we reach our goals) or else discouraged and self-loathing (if we fail our goals). But the gospel creates an entirely new self-image. First, it tells us we are more wicked than we ever dared to believe, but more loved and accepted in Christ than we ever dared to hope – at the same time. In fact, if the gospel is true, the more you see your sin, the more certain you are that you were saved by sheer grace and the more precious and electrifying that grace is to you. So the gospel gives us enormous power to admit our flaws. Then secondly, the knowledge of our acceptance in Christ makes (for the first time) the law of God a beauty instead of a burden. WE come to use it to delight in the One who has enriched us so mightily, instead of using it to get his attention or win his favor. The first way makes the moral and sacrificial life a joy; the second way makes it a burden. Therefore, the gospel changes everything. It brings down racial barriers by melting away racial pride or inferiority. It brings down psychological problems by melting away self-inflation or self-hatred. It brings down personal facades, for we are free to admit who we are. It affects the way we do everything, how we motivate people, how we help them work through problems, how we worship, how we take criticism. The context for a gospel-centered life is never merely individual. The gospel creates a new community, a unique community. “One of the immediate changes that the gospel makes is grammatical; we instead of I; our instead of my; us instead of me.” (Eugene Peterson, Reversed Thunder). This type of new community is not an optional thing, an “extra” for the Christian; instead it’s a part of the overall purpose of God’s kingdom. A new community is both the end of the gospel and also the means of spreading the gospel. God’s promise in salvation is to create his “holy nation,” a people that dwell with him forever. “I will be your god and you will be my people” (Lev 26:12, Jer 30:22). So Christians, who are eternally united to Christ, are therefore eternally united to one another. We are all ministers of the gospel for the sake of one another. Since our culture knows very little about true community, we will have to work hard at following a biblical vision. What is the biblical vision? What does true community look like? We are to be: - An accepting community reflecting the grace we’ve been given from Christ. - A holy community that urges one another to live God-pleasing lives. - A truth-telling community that is free to repent and free to allow others to repent, because of the gospel. - An encouraging community that builds one another up. - A sacrificially generous community that spends its life and wealth on the needs of others. Name: (optional)