A ‘Gospel Bite’ – a short answer to a commonly raised objection to the gospel.
Pluralism – the belief that all religions point to God – is one of the major challenges put to modern Christians. It appears in so many forms: ‘You Christians are so arrogant as to think you alone have the truth!’ or ‘My own view is more open: I like to think of all religions as containing their own truth’, or ‘What makes your religion so special when there are so many Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists in the world?’
A ‘Gospel Bite’ – in other words a short answer to a commonly raised objection to the gospel.
Many people today regard themselves as mostly ‘good’ and therefore, without need of God’s forgiveness or commandments. It is often stated like this: ‘I might not be perfect, but I am a fairly good person’.
A ‘Gospel Bite’ – in other words a short answer to a commonly raised objection to the gospel.
I wish I had a dollar for every time someone has said to me, ‘I’m just not the religious type!’
Gospel Bite: A Criticism of Self Righteousness
Last ‘Gospel Bite’ we looked at how we could use Luke 7:36-50 to answer a question about sin and forgiveness. To demonstrate how flexible a ‘gospel bite’ may be, this week we are going to use the same passage to respond to a different criticism. Please read the passage before reading on.
How might you respond to a friend who declares:
‘I haven’t got much time for religion; it often seems so judgmental and self-righteous.’?
Imagine a friend declares (either with sincerity or a touch of pride): ‘I’ve done too many wrong things ever to be a Christian’. How might you respond?
I was at the Adelaide Show and somehow found myself in a sheep pen!
Well, not quite in the pen, but in the hall where they were auctioning off the sheep – merino bulls to be exact.
Reading Ezekiel 34 – God’s Shepherd and his Sheep got me thinking. Is it derogatory to be compared to a sheep? After all, in Ezekiel 34 it is clear that there was the one true Shepherd and that would be Jesus – and he cared for his flock – his sheep. Now if we each are following that shepherd, then we are the sheep! Is it a bad thing to be labelled a sheep?
‘Then they will know that I am their Lord’ (Ezekiel 28:26)
One of the clearest ways that we know that God is Lord is when we feel the consequence of his judgement. We are in common company here. Time and time again throughout the Old Testament, both Israel (God’s people) and the foreign nations felt the wrath of God as a consequence of his judgment – and in it realized that the God of Israel was in indeed Lord.
Ezekiel 18 showed us how the nature of sin tempts one to blame others rather take responsibility for one’s own sin.
Israel were slow learners and we should make sure that we have not missed the same lesson.
I am a sinner and so are most people I know! I do not want to sin, I don’t aim to sin, yet despite my best efforts I do sin! Thank God for Jesus.
I have been thinking this week about my sin!
How are you so influenced by the gospel, that your ‘walk in the Spirit’ demonstrates your thankfulness?
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