food for thought - the effect of the gospel message

July 26, 2011

45“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it. (Matthew 13:45-46)

Lately, I've been thinking about what it means to outreach, how it 'works', how are we portraying the gospel and what exactly is the effect we're looking for. I often hear people say things like "I don't want to make it look legalistic, like Christians have a lot of 'do's & don'ts' when some of those things aren't even in the Bible." Or "if I do *insert gray activity name here* with them, it'll be easier to outreach to these people."

I guess I understand not making it super difficult for people to come to Christ. I mean after all, it was Paul who talked about not forcing circumcision on the Gentiles and making it a legalistic thing. And of course, Christianity isn't about legalism. But I think I've realized another mindset, a dangerous one, behind many of our attempts to spread the gospel. It's not just that we don't want to make it too hard for people to come to Christ, but we want to make it easy for other people to accept Christ's teachings.

But since when was it about making it easy for other people to transition into the Christian life? It was never about making it easy for other ppl to swallow or accept Christ's teachings. It's always been about showing others that we have something BIG enough to make a change for, no matter how difficult. That we have something worth turning our entire lives around for! That we have something worth dying for, and hence living for. THAT should be what truly draws people to this good news. That we've found the ultimate One who gives meaning, purpose, and value to our lives. It's not about making Christianity look like the next nice thing that people can add on to their nice little lives as the cherry on top. It was never about making it culturally relevant and tolerable for the masses to accept. It's always carried a message intended to turn our lives 180, our perspectives inside out, our treasures into garbage, our 'knowledge' into foolishness, and our priorities in this world upside down.

The question for us then is, do we live like Christ is everything to us, and that everything else in light of that is but dung?

What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ (Phil. 3:8)

Do we TRULY consider everything as loss, as nothing when compared to knowing Jesus? Do we seek to consider everything nonessential, rubbish that we may gain Christ? If we lived like people who had just found the greatest treasure there is, would not our excitement, our passion, our indifference to all the material successes and happiness this world has to offer to us, and our genuine love be so infectious and apparent that people would want it? This then is how I'd love to see outreach. It's not about being culturally relevant, or making it seem like we've got something that they could add to their lives with and keep their lives as is, but that we have something worth losing their lives for. Are we all still keeping our lives the way it was? Or are we daily dying to ourselves, getting rid of the old life, and losing our lives for the sake of gaining Christ?

Does the world see in us something worth living for, something worth dying for?

Forty Soldiers: a true story that has made me seriously consider if I truly know and live like Christ is worth my dying for.