Nov
17
2009
Worth a Look 11.17.09
Ed Stetzer interacts with my “Gospel Definitions” series, offering his own definition and some commentary on some of the other proposals.
There is a lot of talk about the gospel these day. Yes, it’s all gospel and gospel-centeredness, and yet many are still fuzzy when it comes to defining the good news of Jesus Christ.
In my Missional Church class at ReTrain this week, I share some thoughts on the gospel. Why? Well, I believe that what you believe about the gospel will be the foundation for your understanding of the mission.
Andy Crouch links to an article that promotes the idea of a universal language, and then explains why he disagrees.
As Lamin Sanneh and others have shown, Christian mission has been the main engine of language preservation, and I don’t think that we can be quite as sanguine as McWhorter about languages dying out. Such diversity is arguably a crucial part of fulfilling the human call to “be fruitful and multiply.”
Collin Hansen writes an excellent article about the recent push to “Christ-centered sermons” in which the gospel is prioritized over moral imperatives. I am glad he referenced the recent review by Jason Hood that rightly critiques the excesses of the Christ-centered movement. Our churches need a strong dose of what Christ has done for us, yes. But let’s not leave out equally biblical notion of imitating Christ as well.
Michael Kelley: “When Darkness Reigns”
God let it reign because of the bigger truth of redemption at work. God was not overcome that moment in the garden. Oh, the light of good might have seemed dim, but God was simply trimming the wick. In just a matter of hours, its light would shine forth like the dawn – the dawn of a Sunday morning – and chase away the haughty darkness that was so sure of its triumph.
There have been time in our lives when darkness seems to reign. We look for the light and there doesn’t seem to be any. But in those moments, God is just trimming the wick. And the light will shine forth like the dawn.
Hold on. Morning is coming.