Category: Sharing Good News

This post is a continuation of thoughts and questions regarding evangelism. If you have not read my previous posts you do so HERE and HERE.

Although not directly mentioned in my initial post, I am of the opinion that our view of salvation will significantly influence why and how we share good news. The subject of salvation arose from a 2008 post, shared In part below:

Written By Jason Zahariades,  the post is related to his journey and its path to Eastern Orthodoxy .You might enjoy reading the entire post. The excerpt below relates to salvation, thus the connection my post today. Jason first describes the judicial view of salvation which is has been my prevailing belief about salvation for most of my life.

For most of my Christian life as a western Evangelical, I lived and operated under the judicial view of salvation that is common to western Christianity. In addition, I had fully embraced the reduced popular version that one hears in many witnessing opportunities. It goes something like this:

“God loves you and has created you for a wonderful purpose. However, humanity rebelled against God and therefore all people are born and live under the guilt of sin, compounded by their own disobedience. We are all guilty of breaking God’s Law and because the wages of sin is death, every human being is condemned to die. But because God loves you so much, he sent his son to die on your behalf. On the cross, Jesus took upon himself the wrath and judgment reserved for you. So if you accept Jesus’ gift simply by believing it in faith, you are forgiven of your of guilt and God now views you with Jesus’ righteousness.”

Or to reduce it further into how most western evangelicals think, salvation means we’re forgiven of all of our sins and as a result, we will go to heaven when we die. This viewpoint focuses primarily on the individual and treats salvation as an event and a commodity regardless of the actual state of one’s life.

Jason then describes salvation as he has come to understand it as a result of his theological reconstruction.

Salvation is the process of restoration to what humans were created to be. Rather than sin being the breaking of God’s Law, the root of sin is the movement from being to non-being. Sin is the distortion of our humanity, of who we are supposed to be as God’s image on earth. Rather than being truly human, sin makes us subhuman. So the problem of sin is much deadlier and sinister than mere guilt or disobedience. It is the warping, distortion and brokenness of who we are as human beings. It is the full corruption of my mind, heart, body, soul and relationships. In this light, I don’t just need to be forgiven. I need to be healed. I don’t just need assurance of admittance into heaven in the future. I need assurance that who I am in the present is being transformed out of my desperate and destructive subhuman existence and into the image and likeness of God as I was divinely intended to live.
So salvation isn’t primarily about guilt and forgiveness. It’s about brokenness and healing. It’s about delusion and illumination. It’s about distortion and transformation. It’s about death and life in the here and now. As a follower of Jesus, I truly cannot say, “I am saved.” I can only say, “I am being saved.”
Christ’s crucifixion has conquered evil, destroyed death, reconciled creation, redeemed the human nature, and released God’s forgiveness. In other words, Jesus has made God’s salvation completely available to all people. But as St Paul exhorts the Philippians, “work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” Salvation is something that is worked out progressively with God.

(From my original post): As is usually the case, I am much clearer about where I’ve come from than where I am going. Jason’s understandings are deeper than I have delved before but they reflect a direction in which my thinking is moving. I am confident that salvation is more than just having assurance of eternal life in heaven. What we believe about salvation has profound implications on our understanding of God and our relationship with him as well as how we live out our daily lives in the Kingdom of God ..and how we share that news with the world around us.

It is not my intention to lapse into discussion about the views of salvation Jason presents, though a conversation would  be in order. What struck me, as I re-read,  was the potential implications to how and why we share good news. Each perspective has potential to shape our message. As Jason describes the western Christian view, I cclearly hear the echoes of disenchantment. His Eastern Orthodox view embraces enchantment and tickles my progressive tendencies. 

Thinking on this produces several challenges for me, and, any others so disposed:

1. Re-examine presuppositions and understandings of salvation. ( I suggest writing them out) I understand this is no small matter, but neither is sharing good news.
2. Submit all presuppositions and understanding to critical examination. (I encourage serious conversation with serious followers of Jesus)
3. Upon finding any presuppositions or understanding of salvation to be incorrect or incomplete, revise the previous documentation accordingly.
4. Determine to what extent, if any, new understandings might change why and how good news should be shared.

I do not see this as THE issue or solution to concerns regarding sharing good news. There are numerous issues related to the challenge of sharing good news in today’s culture. I increasingly resist solutions that rely on guilt to motivate and nostalgia to define methods. Modernity has made many presuppositions about how to share good news doubtful. 

In succeeding posts I will continue to raise, what I see as, underlying issues and ideas to stimulate thinking and initiate meaningful and appropriate change. 

Prayer is always welcomed.

Prompted by a current class and some one on one discussion, I’m pondering evangelism, sharing the Gospel, seeking the lost, being missional, winning the lost, et al, In this post I want to share some observations and pose some questions, which will likely require additional posts. Here we go, in no particular order:

It is my perception there is very little disagreement among most Christians that sharing our faith is important, if not mandatory, as disciples of Christ. Assuming I am correct, why then, does the subject elicit personal resistance? (I am no exception).

Very few people I know are reluctant to share good news , experiences or products in their lives. We often do so spontaneously, even to strangers on occasion. That being the case, why then, if the Gospel is really good news in our lives, don’t we share that news? ( I can feel the guilt creeping in)

I am under the impression that, generally, evangelistic efforts are not highly successful. (Please don’t ask how much one soul is worth) I do believe, in the past decade or so, there has been a resurgence of emphasis on evangelism, particularly in church plants and para-church ministries.

I wonder how much our reluctance to evangelize is related to the current polarized and divisive culture where disagreement often devolves into angry conflict? THe old adage “you don’t talk about religion and politics” has become an inviolable rule.

Similarly, to what extent does the prevailing cultural ethos of tolerance, acceptance, individual rights, etc restrain our engagement with unbelievers?

Are progressive Christians the problem? “The progressive impulse toward tolerance and inclusion, along with a post-modern stance on truth, leaves progressive Christians in an awkward position in regards to evangelism, sharing the gospel with non-believers. Evangelism smacks of judgementalism, I’m right and you are wrong. Worse, evangelism can tend toward colonialism, the history of white missionaries being sent to save dark pagan savages.” (Beck)

Could uncompromising, evangelism zealots be the problem? “ Compelled by an urgency of doom and gloom… turn or burn.. fear, fueled by “you can”t go to heaven alone”; sharing the Gospel becomes an ultimatum to the human will. Choose Christ and live or deny Christ and go to hell.

How important is our motivation for sharing the Gospel? Does it really matter why if souls are being saved?

Do church growth strategies foster the idea that evangelism is the responsibility of staff, primarily the preaching pastor?

You have probably have had other thoughts and/or questions. My list is not intended to be exhaustive. I am certain that sharing the Gospel should be a priority for all believers. I am equally sure that current efforts are not yielding abundant fruit.

What I believe is critically important is that we understand the reality we face and re-examine our theological, ecclesiastical, spiritual and culture assumptions to begin transformational change. Hopefully, this conversation can move us in that direction.

Questions and comments are welcome.