One of the interesting things about culture is that we usually are unaware of its effect on our lives. A fish has no good way to evaluate the culture of water in which it lives because it is all it has ever known. Culture affects people in a similar way, and church culture is no different. We get used to our church’s or denomination’s or association’s way of seeing and doing things. We think it not only is the best way, but also, perhaps, the only way. Sometimes it is shocking for us to find out that others see and know things of which we may have been oblivious. I want to share some insights into the gospel that you may have overlooked.
For most of my readers, I imagine you grew up understanding, explaining, and sharing the gospel using a guilt-innocence model or paradigm. This is one Paul used in his letter to the Romans, which many consider to be the greatest theological work ever written. I believe we can sum up Paul’s message under the title “Justification by Faith.” Justification is the reversal of our guilt by Christ’s death and resurrection. God declares that those who put their faith and allegiance in Christ are “justifiied,” “not guilty,” and made right with God. In our culture, it is easy for us to grasp this way of seeing things. We have all watched lots of TV shows illustrating courtroom drama. We get it.
But there are other ways of understanding and presenting the gospel, and all of them are legitimate. Some of them have far more relevance to people coming from other cultures. Jesus presented himself as much more than our legal defense lawyer. I will list below some of the other beautiful facets of the gospel.
Understanding how Jesus fulfills each of these will equip us to share exactly what is needed with those we meet.
I will explain the first one is some detail, but will leave it up to you to search out the truth about the others.
- Unclean – Clean. Some cultures, such as the Jewish one of his day and modern Islamists, view life more from the context of ritual cleanness than legal guilt. Jesus presented himself as the antidote to uncleanness. In the Old Covenant law, whatever was unclean had the power to make whatever it touched unclean. The scriptures gave elaborate rituals for handling such situations. For example, anyone who had an issue of blood or some other bodily fluid was considered unclean, and those around them had to avoid touching them. In cases where a disease caused a fluid discharge, such as leprosy, those afflicted with that terrible disease had to separate themselves from society. Jesus, however, was not affected at all by anything unclean. In fact, he completely reversed it. The woman with the discharge of blood touched his garment and was healed. Jesus reached out his hand and touched the leper, making him whole. The gospel can be presented effectively to anyone from a clean-unclean cultural paradigm with great effectiveness and force.
- Condemned – Vindicated
- Shamed and Disgraced – Honored
- Abandoned and Alone – Loved and Belonging
- Weak and Defeated – Strong and Victorious
- Dead – Alive
- Sick – Healed
- Oppressed and Enslaved – Redeemed and Free
- Barren – Fruitful
- Widowed or Divorced – Married
- Orphaned – Part of the Family
- Cast Down – Comforted
- Depressed – Full of Joy
- Fearful – Full of faith, peace, and rest
One of the keys to being a good fisher of men is to ask the Holy Spirit to show us how to properly present Jesus so that our hearers can understand that the Lord can meet the deepest longings and needs of their hearts.
Think about these things, meditate on the Scripture, and be ready to pull out the gospel “lure” that will catch a fish for God’s eternal kingdom. Then help them become a follower of Christ who will disciple others. That is the mission.
