What Is  The Gospel?

Installment #7 — The Blink Of An Eye! — The Store

In writing these installments I want to stress emphatically that my purpose is in no way to bring Christ down from his place of absolute God, and Redeemer. Jesus does and will forever be completely unique. He is by definition of what makes life, life — uncreated God and we are his redeemed. My intention is to exalt to the proper place it deserves the perfect work he accomplished through the Gospel. Besides the fact that he has done all that he has done for us freely, he has also, as a part of the Gospel package, made us his ministers of reconciliation. Think about how incredible that concept is. In order for us to do what he did we have to be like he was in this world. One place in Scripture it says, it does not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when he appears we shall be like him for we shall see him as he is. A popular song declares over and over the phrase, in a moment, in the blink of an eye that’s why I’m alive for the blink of an eye.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is something that we need to declare to one another and ourselves each day until we actually change through the incredible grace that resides it its truth. I am talking about thinking about this incredible good news everyday until we go through a metamorphosis that will turn us into his ministers of reconciliation. The thought of being reconciled to God is staggering by itself, but then for that reconciliation to have with it so much trust and honor that he would actually make us his ministers of reconciliation goes beyond my ability to understand and embrace the magnitude of that kind of love.

The Gospel is declaring, that not only are we not pond scum, but we are of such incredible value that God would brutally sacrifice his only Son for us that he may love us with the same love that He and Jesus shared. But it doesn’t stop there, he then goes on to say not only do I love you this much, but because love by its very nature must give itself away to someone else, I am entrusting you all with the ministry of reconciliation. Wait a minute, that’s not the end of it. In order that you will have guaranteed success, and bear much remaining fruit, I will give you everything you need to accomplish this — my very own life shall come and dwell in you. This is not just a figure of speech, a beautiful thought to be shared at Easter time, or a grand illusion, but a living reality that has burned in God’s heart before the beginning of time. For us to be his helpmeet, the very Bride of Jesus Christ standing beside him without shame or inferiority now and in the age to come, is the passionate desire not only of his heart, but of every Christian who has laid hold on the understanding of the Gospel. Oh what good news this is! It is definitely not something to be looked at as religion 101 and then moved on from, but should be the main and daily pursuit of our existence.

In closing out these installments I only wish you could feel the pain and passion that burns in my heart as I write these words. It is impossible for pen and paper, the tongues of men or angels or anything in all of creation to adequately express the glorious love and grace of our God, which he extended to us through Jesus Christ. We are not some creative whim of a bored omnipotent creative force. We were the reason for his creation. I cannot love a worm like I can love my wife and on the evolutionary scale that is what we as natural beings are compared to God. But, the good news is that with God all things are possible and because of his great love with which he has loved us he has allowed us to actually partake of His divine nature.

Just what does that mean? To actually house within these clay vessels such unimaginable glorious treasure should take our breath away. And if the impact of what he has freely given to us ever grips us, it possibly will. Maybe that is why I have seen so many people pass out on the floor, overcome by the glory of God. Their minds cannot comprehend what his Spirit and divine nature are doing, but you can be certain, he is at work within us both to will and to work his good pleasure. I personally think that the Mount of transfiguration was not just God showing off or trying to amaze us, but a taste of things to come.

I believe as the transforming power of the Gospel grows in its manifested strength in the days ahead in preparation for the greatest harvest the world has ever seen that the glory hidden in these jars of clay will from time to time not be able to retain or conceal him who has become our life. Remember to keep your lamps full. Remember as well that the oil in that lamp has a purpose and that is to burn, to burn so brightly that it gives light to all around it. Burn in me, as the song says, Burn in me, let the fire of the Holy One burn in me. We all share the same Spirit, the same life and we all have one Father and God of all, so let us embrace love and forgiveness that when Jesus returns he will find faith on the earth — for faith works through love! No matter what one day corruption will put on incorruption and mortality will put on immortality — in the blink of an eye!

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