Reading the Gospel

One of my Facebook friends posted a comment a couple of weeks ago about the Gospel. He basically said that one should not pick and choose what one believes about the Gospel because then the story becomes more about you than about God. One of his friends responded that he hasn't anything to do with the Gospel because he's lied to himself much less frequently than the Gospel has lied to him. I went back to the thread a few days later to check further comments. The same man said that he gave up on the Gospel when he was eight years old.

It's clear that someone who gave up on the Gospel at the age of eight has never really read the Gospel -- at least not the one written in the Bible. I've been thinking of this string of Facebook comments ever since.

Anyone who's been a Christian for very long has probably heard something along the lines of, "You may be the only Gospel someone ever reads." Well... here's the proof. The man's bitterness about the Gospel has nothing to do with Jesus and everything to do with his followers (and don't worry... I know that if I point my finger outward, that there are three pointing back at me).

God says in the Bible, "Be holy, for I am holy." One thing is for certain: God wants us to adopt His character - His holiness. Just to be clear, I don't mean He intends that we be holier than thou or judgmental. Instead, we're to look like Jesus.

Now if you have read the Gospels you know that Jesus made friends with all kinds of people. His life was characterized by love, forgiveness, grace, healing. He knew how to meet people of all walks of life right where they were and love them just as they were. In fact, the only ones who seemed to have a problem with Jesus were religious types (of the holier than thou variety).

"Be holy for I am holy." Become like Jesus. That's the mission of each Christian. It's what spiritual formation is all about. Being made over is hard and messy. It's not for sissies, and perhaps that's why so few have a real appetite for it. It's easy to judge others - to be holier than thou. It's simple to confess to some beliefs and follow a few rules that allow you to pass a "Christian" litmus test. It is something altogether different to have Christ formed in your personality. That requires a total overhaul. It's painful.

But it is critical that transformation happens. The stakes are high. It's not simply for our benefit, but for the benefit of those who truly won't read the Gospel except in the lives of Christians.