What Does God Want Now?

A passion of mine is listening to the preaching of the Word of God. If you were to borrow my iPod, you’d be disappointed if you were hoping for music. It’s filled with Sunday sermons and leadership messages. A mentor of mine taught me that I don’t have to work so hard if I continually sharpen my axe. That’s what I do when I have time alone (driving, mowing, etc,).

But not all preaching is wonderful. Sadly, I have listened to many pastors present the gospel as purely a sin problem in the present. “You’re a sinner…You deserve punishment…You can’t save yourself…Jesus, who is God, paid the price Himself…If you put your trust in Him, He will save you from your punishment…[maybe something in here about repentance, depending on the ‘flavor’ of the church]…Now you can look forward to a wonderful future place with God.” Don’t misunderstand. I believe this all to be true. However, is that the fullness of the message of the Bible? That’s a rhetorical question. The answer to anyone who has seriously considered God’s Word is a resounding “No!”

The sad thing is that, although we do a great job of distilling the message of salvation down to “Four Spiritual Laws” or a few verses in Romans, that is not God’s entire plan, and we generally do a pathetic job of communicating the full message of the Word. What’s worse, we call that “the gospel.” Well, the term we translate as “gospel” (euangelion) literally means “good news.” Now, news that helps you deal with your sin problem is good indeed. However, the term was used to identify a message concerning victory in war or the birth or enthronement of a king. When Jesus spoke of the gospel, it was usually concerning the Kingdom of God. Also, in the New Testament epistles, the gospel is much broader than the solution to the sin problem of individuals. Even in Romans, Paul’s presentation of the gospel goes well beyond our familiar Romans Road version.

If Christ is King, what is expected of His subjects? Did God save you because He simply couldn’t imagine spending eternity without you? [Again, a rhetorical question… “No!”] If the gospel message is about God’s Kingdom being established and the powers of darkness being defeated, if Christ has redeemed you from enslavement and established you among His people with a place in His Kingdom, are there any expectations that naturally flow from those truths? Our salvation is not the equivalent of a “Get out of jail free” card. So, what does God want from you now?