The "common gospel" cont'd
In my sermon on Sunday, I used the phrase “the common gospel” to distinguish between what I believe to be the actual Christian good news from those popular renditions of the Jesus story you will likely hear if you attend a garden-variety Protestant church, especially one of evangelical bent.
As I understand it, the Christian good news is that in Christ God is reconciling the whole world to himself.[1] By his life, death, and resurrection Jesus has defeated sin, death, and the devil, and one day he will return to usher all of creation into eschatological glory, including all people.[2]
By contrast, the common gospel reduces the Jesus story to an if/then transaction. While it can be told in a number of different ways, the basic framework is the same: Jesus did a thing and if you believe he did that thing you will receive a reward.
And just to assuage myself of the concern that perhaps this is an unfair caricature, I heard (actually read) a megachurch pastor communicate the Jesus story in exactly these terms as recently as this Easter.[3] One line from the sermon summary is, “Jesus conquered death and has made a way for us to be forgiven and to experience eternal life.” As I mentioned in my sermon, the average listener won’t bat an eye at that kind of language. Forgiveness, after all, is a central feature of the Jesus story. But this kind of language not only reduces Jesus’ ministry to brokering a transaction between us and God, but it also imagines God having some kind of forgiveness problem. The was only possible for God to forgive us IF Jesus died. Prior to Jesus’ death, God either didn’t want to forgive us but now he must (IF we believe) or he couldn’t forgive us but now he can.
Either way, it implies that God’s essential character is changeable and that is far from good news.
But I know why this common gospel is so attractive: it’s easy to do.
And we like easy.
To borrow language from the prophet Ezekiel, the common gospel functions like a “magic charm.”[4] Prior to your acceptance of Jesus as your Lord and savior you are “dead in your sins,” awaiting judgment and condemnation. But then the pastor or priest waves over you the “Jesus died for you” wand and all is magically well, or at least it can be. All you have to do is say the magic words.
Or to borrow different imagery, also from Ezekiel, the common gospel produces a faith that is like a flimsy, whitewashed wall.[5] Saying yes to Jesus “covers” with you with a fresh coat of paint, making you look acceptable to God where before you did not, even though the wall is structurally unsound.
In either case, you say the magic words. You accept the covering. And immediately you do experience catharsis that is based in a very real truth: you are forgiven. It is true. God does not hold your sins against you. But that was true before you heard about Jesus and believed the message. You just didn’t know it was true before you heard the message about Jesus and believe the message.
But the point of hearing the message about Jesus is not to receive a forgiveness that was previously being denied to you. Forgiveness is yours in Christ whether you presently realize it or not. The purpose of hearing the message about Jesus and believing it is that having been forgiven you might begin to live faithfully with the God of love who has forgiven you.
The point of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection was/is not to facilitate a transaction whereby saying some magic words you can be assured that despite how you have lived, are currently living, or will continue to live that all will be well for you in the end. Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection is the revelation of God inviting you to join your life with his.
Yes, just as two people getting married have to say the words, you have to respond to the Jesus story with an Amen (yes), but the point of the yes is to accept a covenantal relationship. It is to reorient yourself to reality, now as someone who pledges his allegiance to Jesus.
That is hard. And we don’t like hard.
We want to cash in on the transaction by saying the words, and we’re happy to go on using God to prop up a life that may actually have nothing to do with him, but we don’t want to reorient our lives according to him.
There’s a simple litmus test to identify the common gospel. Is the implied problem God? In other words, did Jesus life, die, and rise to reconcile you to God or God to you? Pay attention. In most popular renditions of the Jesus story the implication is that Jesus lived, died, and rose to reconcile God to you. But God doesn’t need to be reconciled to you. God is not the problem and God does not have a problem. In addition, if you believe what you’re hearing, are you promised to receive something FROM God, or are you promised to receive God? The good news is never that you get something FROM God. That is the common gospel. The real good news is that you get God.
Ezekiel railed against religious leaders who told people a false story. It is still happening.
[1] 1 Cor 15
[2] Philippians 2:10-11, John 12:32
[3] See the “He is Risen” sermon excerpt from Rolling Hills Community Church in Frankling, TN. https://rollinghills.church/media/
[4] Ez 13:20
[5] Ez 13:10
As I understand it, the Christian good news is that in Christ God is reconciling the whole world to himself.[1] By his life, death, and resurrection Jesus has defeated sin, death, and the devil, and one day he will return to usher all of creation into eschatological glory, including all people.[2]
By contrast, the common gospel reduces the Jesus story to an if/then transaction. While it can be told in a number of different ways, the basic framework is the same: Jesus did a thing and if you believe he did that thing you will receive a reward.
And just to assuage myself of the concern that perhaps this is an unfair caricature, I heard (actually read) a megachurch pastor communicate the Jesus story in exactly these terms as recently as this Easter.[3] One line from the sermon summary is, “Jesus conquered death and has made a way for us to be forgiven and to experience eternal life.” As I mentioned in my sermon, the average listener won’t bat an eye at that kind of language. Forgiveness, after all, is a central feature of the Jesus story. But this kind of language not only reduces Jesus’ ministry to brokering a transaction between us and God, but it also imagines God having some kind of forgiveness problem. The was only possible for God to forgive us IF Jesus died. Prior to Jesus’ death, God either didn’t want to forgive us but now he must (IF we believe) or he couldn’t forgive us but now he can.
Either way, it implies that God’s essential character is changeable and that is far from good news.
But I know why this common gospel is so attractive: it’s easy to do.
And we like easy.
To borrow language from the prophet Ezekiel, the common gospel functions like a “magic charm.”[4] Prior to your acceptance of Jesus as your Lord and savior you are “dead in your sins,” awaiting judgment and condemnation. But then the pastor or priest waves over you the “Jesus died for you” wand and all is magically well, or at least it can be. All you have to do is say the magic words.
Or to borrow different imagery, also from Ezekiel, the common gospel produces a faith that is like a flimsy, whitewashed wall.[5] Saying yes to Jesus “covers” with you with a fresh coat of paint, making you look acceptable to God where before you did not, even though the wall is structurally unsound.
In either case, you say the magic words. You accept the covering. And immediately you do experience catharsis that is based in a very real truth: you are forgiven. It is true. God does not hold your sins against you. But that was true before you heard about Jesus and believed the message. You just didn’t know it was true before you heard the message about Jesus and believe the message.
But the point of hearing the message about Jesus is not to receive a forgiveness that was previously being denied to you. Forgiveness is yours in Christ whether you presently realize it or not. The purpose of hearing the message about Jesus and believing it is that having been forgiven you might begin to live faithfully with the God of love who has forgiven you.
The point of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection was/is not to facilitate a transaction whereby saying some magic words you can be assured that despite how you have lived, are currently living, or will continue to live that all will be well for you in the end. Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection is the revelation of God inviting you to join your life with his.
Yes, just as two people getting married have to say the words, you have to respond to the Jesus story with an Amen (yes), but the point of the yes is to accept a covenantal relationship. It is to reorient yourself to reality, now as someone who pledges his allegiance to Jesus.
That is hard. And we don’t like hard.
We want to cash in on the transaction by saying the words, and we’re happy to go on using God to prop up a life that may actually have nothing to do with him, but we don’t want to reorient our lives according to him.
There’s a simple litmus test to identify the common gospel. Is the implied problem God? In other words, did Jesus life, die, and rise to reconcile you to God or God to you? Pay attention. In most popular renditions of the Jesus story the implication is that Jesus lived, died, and rose to reconcile God to you. But God doesn’t need to be reconciled to you. God is not the problem and God does not have a problem. In addition, if you believe what you’re hearing, are you promised to receive something FROM God, or are you promised to receive God? The good news is never that you get something FROM God. That is the common gospel. The real good news is that you get God.
Ezekiel railed against religious leaders who told people a false story. It is still happening.
[1] 1 Cor 15
[2] Philippians 2:10-11, John 12:32
[3] See the “He is Risen” sermon excerpt from Rolling Hills Community Church in Frankling, TN. https://rollinghills.church/media/
[4] Ez 13:20
[5] Ez 13:10
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