he came to live
These words by Rachel Held Evans, in Inspired (which I HIGHLY recommend), were so impactful to me:
There is nothing Jesus talked about more than the Kingdom. It is by far his favorite topic. "Jesus went through all the towns and villages," Matthew reported, "teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness" (9:35).
And yet you'd never know it from the way many modern Christians talk about the gospel. "Jesus came to die," they often say, referring to a view of Christianity that reduces the gospel to a transaction, whereby God needed a spotless sacrifice to atone for the world's sins and thus sacrificed Jesus on the cross so believers could go to heaven. In this view, Jesus basically shows up to post our bail. His life and teachings make for an interesting backstory but prove largely irrelevant to the work of salvation. Dallas Willard called it "the gospel of sin management."
What happened on the cross has been the subject of wonder and debate for centuries, with Christians of good faith employing different metaphors and language to articulate its significance, but any view that reduces Jesus to a sort of deus ex machina, necessary only for a single moment of rescue, strips the incarnation of all its power and tells a far simpler story than the one the Bible actually gives us. Jesus didn't just 'come to die'. Jesus came to live- to teach, to heal, to tell stories, to protest, to turn over tables, to touch people who weren't supposed to be touched and eat with people who weren't supposed to be eaten with, to break bread, to pour wine, to wash feet, to face temptation, to tick off the authorities, to fulfill Scripture, to forgive, to announce the start of a brand-new kingdom, to show us what that kingdom is like, to show us what God is like, to love his enemies to the point of death at their hands, and to beat death by rising from the grave.
Jesus did not simply die to save us from our sins; Jesus lived to save us from our sins. His life and teachings show us the way to liberation.
This was so convicting for me. I never really realized that this has long been my mindset- I have so often turned the gospel into a mere formula- sin is the problem, and Jesus is the cure. He died, we're covered, heaven awaits.
Um, wrong???
.... As if the story of Christ's life, death and resurrection could be limited to a + b = c! Sure, the formula is biblical and true, but I'm missing out on so much with this reductionist view. By focusing solely on salvation and life after death, I have prevented the ways of Jesus to saturate my every word, step and breath.
Moreover, by limiting heaven to something that awaits me, I too easily forget that we get glimpses of the Kingdom HERE and NOW. Moments of reconciliation, healing, beauty- these are the things which remind us that the gospel story is ongoing, that it didn't end on Calvary or at the resurrection, but that God is in the process of bringing His counter-cultural kingdom of hope into this world. At this very moment, He is at work, making all things new. This is good news! He came to live, and He lives on!
So, as I thank God for loving me all the way to death- I will remember to also thank Him for loving me all the way to the incarnation too. I will thank Him for embodying a physical body and showing me how to live- and live well. I will dwell on the stories of his earthly existence, and pray that they show me how to become like Him, so my life would somehow, by His grace, reflect this story which has changed the meaning of my life and that of so many others.
I will remember to acknowledge and relish the Kingdom stories around me today. They're everywhere, not just something to expect down the line once our lives on earth are over.
And, lastly, I will pray bold prayers for restoration and hope.
Every day, may this prayer spill off my lips- Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.
There is nothing Jesus talked about more than the Kingdom. It is by far his favorite topic. "Jesus went through all the towns and villages," Matthew reported, "teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness" (9:35).
And yet you'd never know it from the way many modern Christians talk about the gospel. "Jesus came to die," they often say, referring to a view of Christianity that reduces the gospel to a transaction, whereby God needed a spotless sacrifice to atone for the world's sins and thus sacrificed Jesus on the cross so believers could go to heaven. In this view, Jesus basically shows up to post our bail. His life and teachings make for an interesting backstory but prove largely irrelevant to the work of salvation. Dallas Willard called it "the gospel of sin management."
What happened on the cross has been the subject of wonder and debate for centuries, with Christians of good faith employing different metaphors and language to articulate its significance, but any view that reduces Jesus to a sort of deus ex machina, necessary only for a single moment of rescue, strips the incarnation of all its power and tells a far simpler story than the one the Bible actually gives us. Jesus didn't just 'come to die'. Jesus came to live- to teach, to heal, to tell stories, to protest, to turn over tables, to touch people who weren't supposed to be touched and eat with people who weren't supposed to be eaten with, to break bread, to pour wine, to wash feet, to face temptation, to tick off the authorities, to fulfill Scripture, to forgive, to announce the start of a brand-new kingdom, to show us what that kingdom is like, to show us what God is like, to love his enemies to the point of death at their hands, and to beat death by rising from the grave.
Jesus did not simply die to save us from our sins; Jesus lived to save us from our sins. His life and teachings show us the way to liberation.
This was so convicting for me. I never really realized that this has long been my mindset- I have so often turned the gospel into a mere formula- sin is the problem, and Jesus is the cure. He died, we're covered, heaven awaits.
Um, wrong???
.... As if the story of Christ's life, death and resurrection could be limited to a + b = c! Sure, the formula is biblical and true, but I'm missing out on so much with this reductionist view. By focusing solely on salvation and life after death, I have prevented the ways of Jesus to saturate my every word, step and breath.
Moreover, by limiting heaven to something that awaits me, I too easily forget that we get glimpses of the Kingdom HERE and NOW. Moments of reconciliation, healing, beauty- these are the things which remind us that the gospel story is ongoing, that it didn't end on Calvary or at the resurrection, but that God is in the process of bringing His counter-cultural kingdom of hope into this world. At this very moment, He is at work, making all things new. This is good news! He came to live, and He lives on!
So, as I thank God for loving me all the way to death- I will remember to also thank Him for loving me all the way to the incarnation too. I will thank Him for embodying a physical body and showing me how to live- and live well. I will dwell on the stories of his earthly existence, and pray that they show me how to become like Him, so my life would somehow, by His grace, reflect this story which has changed the meaning of my life and that of so many others.
I will remember to acknowledge and relish the Kingdom stories around me today. They're everywhere, not just something to expect down the line once our lives on earth are over.
And, lastly, I will pray bold prayers for restoration and hope.
Every day, may this prayer spill off my lips- Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.
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