The message of the Gospel is that God invades us with new life, and that life changes what we presently are. He is not a means by which we solve problems. He is not a means to avoid problems. He creates new life. He is not a problem solver but a person creator.
53 words
Eugene Peterson is a pastor and author, best known for his paraphrase of the Bible, The Message. This quote comes from his book, Every Step an Arrival, which I found quoted by Philip Yancey.
Sometimes to hear the gospel correctly, we must also hear what it is not. The gospel is about who God is and what God has done. We reduce God when we treat him like a superhero that we call on to fix our problems. Or when we subconsciously make a deal with God, that if we do things for him, he will prevent problems for us.
Either way, we demote the Creator and King of the universe to a repair technician who makes house calls. But the gospel is about God promoting us. God “invades us with new life” and we become a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17).
I hope Peterson’s final sentence stays with you all week. “He is not a problem solver but a person creator.” Let that sink in.
Next post: Friday, January 19, 2024, “The Four ‘R’s of the Gospel” from Matt Smethurst
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