When Christians show concern for weak presentations of the gospel, we usually hear someone claim that we need to quit talking about sin and simply talk about Christ's love. This happened when many of us showed concern about the vague and misleading message of the "He Gets Us" Superbowl Ad.
It's true that we'll probably make more friends if we avoid talking about sin, but we'll never bring people to Christ. Christ's love, His mission, His message, and His sacrifice are all related to the damage of human sin.
Jesus is our Savior, not our self-esteem coach. We don't need to feel comfortable in our sins. We need to be set free from them (John 8:34-36).
We must share the gospel gently and respectfully, but we also must emphasize repentance in the same way Jesus emphasized it (Luke 13:1-5; Matthew 4:17; Luke 5:32).
And when we are criticized for talking about sin, we can remember how Christ described our mission:
“Then [Jesus] opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. He told them, ‘This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things’” (Luke 24:45-48).
If Christ says repentance for the forgiveness of sins is a necessary part of our message, then it's a necessary part of our message.
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Saw the ad that should have been broadcast. Powerful message.
ReplyDeleteA very well worthwhile post Gail. Such a good reminder. And it takes more courage to mention sin + repentance too.
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