When I was a young child, as soon as I could talk, my parents taught me a little bedtime prayer. It was a rhyming prayer, the words of which I still remember vividly…
Now I lay me down to sleep
I pray the Lord my soul to keep
If I should die before I wake
I pray the Lord my soul to take.
Even as a child I remember that this prayer evoked some deep theological thinking. Each night I went to bed with a profound sense of my own mortality…I might die before I wake. I also remember thinking that this life doesn’t really matter…what matters is what happens if I die. And I recall more than one night pulling the covers up over my head and wondering if God would take me if tonight was the night I died. That’s why I “got saved” 100,000 times before I turned 10…I was never quite sure if God would take me if I died.
It’s been a while since I’ve prayed that prayer at bedtime, and I even taught my kids a kinder, gentler version of the prayer. I am older now but that childhood prayer still evokes some serious theological reflection in my mind. It captures, in a nutshell, another key point about the evangelical gospel that I was taught.
The gospel, according to this prayer, is not about here and now; it is about then and there. In other words, the gospel has very little to say about this life or this world. It is really about issues related to eternity…specifically the “H” words…heaven and hell.
Sinful people are doomed for hell. And hell is hot and eternity is long, I remember hearing preachers say as a young church goer. Of course, nobody wants to go to hell. That’s why the gospel is good news. Jesus came and died so you won’t have to go to hell. If you believe in him, you will get to go to heaven.
There are lots of shortcomings with this message, not the least of which, is that Jesus never talks about his own gospel using terms of heaven or hell. There is not one place where he calls someone to believe in him or follow him where he threatens them with hell if they decline or entices them with heaven if they accept. In fact, this view of the gospel totally misses out on the essence of what Jesus taught.
Questions:
What is your understanding of heaven and hell? How do these fit with the message of the gospel you’ve heard?
How does this view of the gospel impact the spiritual journey of a Christian?
What’s missing from this view of the gospel?
If the essence of Jesus’ teaching isn’t heaven and hell, what is it?
Came across a post on The Christian Coaching Center blog. Here’s the excerpt that I thought was so insightful regarding listening in the third way.
Three ways of listening:
1.) Agree with listening. This listener is operating from “I already know and I am right.” How lucky for you we agree, I don’t even need to really listen, let’s move on. Recall a time when someone listened to you in this way, nodding his or her head in agreement, do you feel you were listened to?
2.) Disagree with listening. Again, this listener is operating from “I already know and I am right.” Shaking their head no, arms crossed, formulating rebuttal in disagreement, telling why they disagree and why they are right. Would you feel listened to in this situation?
Usually people who listen in these first two ways, aren’t even aware of the way they are listening to people.
Now look at this third way to listen:
3.) Be with listening. This means exactly what it sounds like. Be. Here. Now. In the moment. Be here physically, emotionally, mentally. Truly be with the person you are listening to. How would you like to be listened to in that way?
We can be better listeners when we really want to; it is a matter of our attitude and commitment. Ears to us listening in the third way.
I grew up in an evangelical church environment. I have always been taught that the message of Jesus is the good news or the gospel. For me, the understanding of what that means goes something like this…
God is holy. He created the world and humanity to reflect that holiness. Humanity fell from this holiness when they sinned in the garden. This sin separates a fallen humanity from their holy God. This is the bad news.
Humanity, no matter how heard we work or try, cannot fix its own sin problem. In other words, you can never be good enough on your own to erase the effects of sin or somehow earn your way back into relationship with God. This is worse news.
But God, looking down on a fallen, helpless humanity, sent his son to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves. Jesus came, lived a perfect life, and gave his life as payment for our sins. By believing in him, humanity can be forgiven of their sin, and reconnected to God. This is the good news.
This is the good news as it relates to sin and forgiveness. I’d like to affirm the truth of this message, while at the same time suggesting that this is not all the good news is about. The good news is that we can be forgiven of our sin, but it goes beyond that to something even more significant.
In the upcoming days, I hope to blog about this idea and flesh out some more ideas about the good news…how we view it or have been taught to view it, and how Jesus views it. I want to invite you to join the discussion, and I’ll encourage you to do that by asking two or three questions at the end of each post. Respond to these questions in the comment section. Let’s refresh our perspective on the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ…or perhaps see it clearly for the very first time!
Questions:
What has been your understanding of the bad news of humanity/good news of Jesus?
How does this typical evangelical understanding of the gospel impact the spiritual journey of a Christian?
Extreme global poverty is one of the biggest issues facing our world. The stats can be staggering and the problem can seem impossible to solve, so we get overwhelmed and we do nothing. Fight the urge to do nothing. Stand up for the world’s poor. Give one day’s wage…0.4% of your annual salary…to fight global poverty.
Let’s do something to help our world become different and better!
A friend brought this miniature wonderland to my attention. Take a few minutes to be amazed at the work this team has done and the hours they have put into this creation.
Foundations of Church Administration: Professional Tools for Church Leadership...today I am reading chapter 6 - "Organizational Behavior: G… 3 days ago
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