I've sat under 3 different pastors in the past 12 years, and each of them focused on the centrality of the Gospel in our lives. But they weren't focusing on the Gospel in the way that my old SBC pastors did. There was never an alter call, and they rarely talked about Heaven or Hell. (That's not to say that they didn't, and Hell is a very real place that holds a lot of people.) Instead, they were talking about the fact that God, through Jesus, is making all things new and that he loves us because of Christ. There is nothing we can do or not do to make God love us less, and there is nothing we can do or not do to earn more of His favor.
If this isn't what you hear every Sunday, think about that for a moment. I heard this for 12 years, but it still didn't sink in. And now that I've been without a church home for a couple of months it has.
Over the past few years I have been a generally unhappy man. Some people have described me as full of rage. I've felt a need to be right. And I've given in to much more temptation than I would have liked.
But the last few weeks have been very different. Despite a very overwhelming work situation, sick kids, and a dead car, one of my few friends described me as a changed man. He had no idea I was under so much stress. And I have found temptation less inviting over the last few weeks. This is a huge change, and I'm not doing anything. No quiet times. Less worship and teaching. No more prayer than usual. How is this possible? How can God be working in my life?
The Gospel.
The answer is that God is working in my life. I'm not working. Christians don't have to work; that's the Holy Spirit's responsibility. And the more we recognize that and allow Him to work, the more like Christ we are.
Yes, I want to go back to church. And we're still church shopping. But I'm not going there looking for a solution. I'm going there to worship with other people who have realized the same thing. Jesus is the solution.
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