Sometimes I think that, rather than focusing on simple church, we should really be focusing on the true simplicity of the Gospel. We often work so hard to complicate the truth, power, and pure wonder of the simple, undiluted Good News of Jesus Christ. We explain it, teach on it, expound on it, discuss it, listen to teachers who are gifted at bringing it to life, strategize how to make it relevant and meaningful to others, contemporize it, write books on how to live it, and expound on it some more.
My friend, Kevin Sutter of YWAM’s Church Planting Coaches, has a gift of keeping it simple. He recently wrote:
It seems our instructions are pretty simple.
In Matthew 10:7 (New Living Translation), Jesus says:
“Go and announce to them that the Kingdom of Heaven is near.”
Is this to be our message?
Is this to be the theme of all the stories we tell?
Is it as simple as the King and His Kingdom constantly reinforced in word and demonstrated in action?
Is there any part of our life or its needs that are not abundantly met by the simple reality of the King and his Kingdom in our life and the meaning that comes from joining with him in sharing that Kingdom in word and action?
Comments
6 responses to “The Uncomplicated Gospel”
Ahh… your speaking my language. What good news message did Jesus preach? Is it possible that that is the gospel message that we should also be preaching? That He is King. I believe the message that Jesus, the ruler of all, wants rule in our lives… that sin can be put to death and no longer rule over us… that is the message Jesus came to preach… and that is the message our world needs to hear.
(It does sound simple… but I think it is more challenging to live out than simply believing an atonement theory.)
May His kingdom come here and now, and may we live under our Lords rule – now and forever.
Your post was very timely for me, especially this part…
“Sometimes I think that, rather than focusing on simple church, we should really be focusing on the true simplicity of the Gospel.”
My wife and I were discussing this very thing a few days ago. We had independently come to the same conclusion- it’s time to focus less on “church” and more on Jesus.
I’ve addressed a lot of issues concerning “church” on my website and through song, but in the end church was never meant to be the focus that we as Christians should have. So although discussing church and desiring that it might be more what God intended it to be is all fine in it’s place (and I believe God called me to address these issues for a season) in the end, for me at least, I see the church emphasis becoming much less now and Jesus being front and center of my music and blogging. I’m excited about that! And was excited to get independent confirmation that my wife was hearing the Lord say the same things to her.
Thanks for your post today as it’s just one more voice this week joining the others pointing me to Jesus!
Just this week the Lord has also been speaking about living in & being/bringing/preaching the gospel of the kingdom.
The one thing He’s really on about with this at the same time & that’s missing in your post is the related COMMAND to demonstrate that kingdom by healing the sick, casting out demons & raising the dead…our obedience in this demonstrates the reality which is being preached.
I’m increasingly convinced that obeying Him in both the preaching & the demonstration is a must…one without the other is not sufficient for people to be fully converted to Christ & born again (ie: Ja. 1:18, 1 Pet.1:23).
I’m happy to be learning much about obeying the gospel of the kingdom in this amazing time we live in as He’s so beautifully restoring these things to us!!
Roger. This is brilliant. I have been pondering these very things in the last days, weeks and months.
The simplicity of Christ. We preach His Kingdom has come and HE builds His church.
Oh how complicated we (1700 years of Christians) have made it!
Is Father now bringing this emphasis again?
The “sure mercies of David” – the establishment of the Kingdon of God on the earth. Hallelujah.
Thanks so much.
I serve as a missionary linked with the org that the thread writer (Floyd M) is associated with. I just came back from 10 years in Honduras.
God is knitting together the ‘4Corners’ in a curious manner across the earth. One set of 4Corners = (Ecclesiastical-intellectual-political-Finance)
Is Acts 2-4 ‘genetically’ pure spirited Church emerging local to global founded on ‘circle of quiet’ friendships?
As circles widen they steward lands that produces new society based on ‘Aslan’s’ Kingdom rules, or principles, where Babylon’s system of economics ‘(‘Buying and Selling’) is replaced in our hearts and lives with Heaven’s eternal system of ‘economics’ (‘Giving and Receiving’) Psalm’s 94 “… How blessed the man you train, God, the woman you instruct in your Word, providing a circle of quiet within the clamor of evil,…”
‘Abbeys of Work and Prayer Emerge. ‘Your kingdom come here on earth as it is in Heaven.
Pertinent Web sites I discovered:
http://www.starfishportal.net
http://www.clairvauxmanifesto.com
‘Circle Of Quiet’ Part 1: 1 hour http://www.mynewday.tv/tv-show/2011/02/23/circle-of-quiet—part-1/
‘Circle of Quiet part 2: 1 hour http://www.mynewday.tv/tv-show/2011/02/25/circle-of-quiet—part-2/