Today’s gospel seems a far cry from the one that the apostle Paul taught about when he was writing to the church in Rome. He talked about a gospel that, when applied, transformed the human heart so radically that he used a unique word to describe it: “Metamorphosis.” The idea he is trying to convey is that when Christ comes into your heart and soul you are completely changed from what you were to what God intended. Transformation takes time but it starts when your heart yields to the Lordship of Christ.
Romans 12:2
And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
Because many pastors and teachers don’t want believers to feel condemned about their lack of change, they water down the gospel to mean more about comfort and forgiveness than confrontation. Remember, when Jesus started his earthly ministry the first word out of his mouth was “Repent” for the kingdom is at hand. This may not sound like a kind way to talk to unsaved people, but Jesus was not trying to make people feel worm and fuzzy, but rather to challenge the way people were living in rebellion to the creator of the universe.
Much preaching and teaching today conveys far less than what Jesus or Paul defined as “Good News.” Today the idea is more about being forgiven than about transformation. When the real gospel is presented to lost people we should not desire to make them feel terrible, but rather to wake them up to the fact that their lives are in jeopardy. That, although God loves them, they will experience his judgement if they don’t turn the course of their lives around through Christ.
When I grew up, the church generally was more about judgement and less about God’s love. The church needed to change it’s approach to communicating the gospel. But the church has now, for the most part, adopted a gospel of feelings and comfort without transformation. Consider 2 Corinthians 5:17 and what Paul says happens when a person surrenders to Jesus.
2 Corinthians 5:17-19
Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. 18Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, 19namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.
Paul states very plainly that when a person comes to Christ it’s for reconciliation. The idea of and word used in reconciliation is a “Mutual Change” on both parties. We change from being in rebellion towards God and God changes towards us from judgement to a loving father relationship. Both of these positions happen simultaneously or they don’t happen at all. Some would say, “But doesn’t God love us before we are saved?” The answer is, “yes,” however he is limited in how far his love will extend toward us if we refuse his offer of repentance and forgiveness. Many people wrongly believe that God’s love will cover all our sin because he is a loving God, even when we don’t repent. The Bible does not teach that. In fact, from the book of Genesis to Revelation the scriptures clearly communicate that without repentance we don’t receive grace. Even believers who fail in specific ways and sin need to repent or God does not extend his forgiveness.
1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
The apostle John in his later books, just before the book of Revelations, brings home the point that keeping our relationship with God alive hinges on our choices and our purpose in seeking the kingdom of God. Like a marriage, if you don’t continue to invest in and refresh your relationship, regardless what you said to each other during the marriage ceremony, it will wither and die. Relationship is only as good as the investment made by both parties. God is consistent and reliable to his commitment, but we often falter. The wonderful thing is God pursues us throughout our lives to persuade us to keep investing and receiving his love. Look what Paul says about the kind of repentance that God seeks from us.
2 Corinthians 7:10
For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation, but the sorrow of the world produces death.
The gospel doesn’t want to make us feel bad, but rather to make us consider the danger we are in and the hope of experiencing God’s abundant grace. A gospel without the challenge of changing the course of our lives from rebellion to submission is not a gospel God will back up. Too many dear souls are believing in a gospel that does not transform, but merely white washes their conscience. They believe falsely that they are in God’s grace and forgiveness.
Remember that when we follow Jesus we stop walking in darkness. The idea is that our life and purpose is converted from walking and living against God and his kingdom, to one of walking with and in harmony to our savior.
John 8:12
Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”
Remember that the gospel must include transformation or it is a false gospel. The real message from God is that he wants to and needs to transform us into the likeness of Jesus.
2 Corinthians 3:18
But we all, with unveiled faces, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.
Let me leave you with this, a sobering word from one of the great teachers in the body of Christ who speaks from the grave. I used his picture and quote to start this topic.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the great German pastor, theologian, martyr, spy, was asked in 1943 how it was possible for the Church to sit back and let Hitler seize absolute power. His firm answer: “It was the teaching of cheap grace.”
“Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, communion without confession, absolution without personal confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ.” – Dietrich Bonhoeffer
We live in a time and culture that not only teaches cheap grace but praises it.
Questions:
1) Have you embraced grace as an excuse instead of the empowering presence of God? Let grace transform you
2) Are you struggling with where you are vs where you should be in the transformation process? Let repentance reach the inner person that Jesus is ready to transform.
Loving God with our minds
Pastor Dale
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