My Weblog

The Wrong Gospel?!

Have we fundamentally missed the point of what Jesus and, later, Paul were saying?!

There have been recent postings (on this new website and on our previous one) which point us to articles dealing with the very definition of the Gospel: "What is the Gospel", and "The Challenges of Evangelism in the 21st Century".

Gimmic: I don't know about you, but my first inclination when I see those titles is to view them as a gimmic to grab my attention so that I will click and then read yet another article representing a traditional gospel perspective - perhaps spiced up with new illustrations or ideas about applications.

Good News / Bad News:  Pardon the pun, but the good news (about the articles) is that I was completely wrong.  These are not gimmic titles at all; rather, these are serious pieces of work. But the bad news is that some of this material - coming out of such trusted places as FTS - really are stating flat out that we may have some fundamental misreadings buried deep within our traditions about what the Gospel is really all about! 

In Fuller's "Theology News & Notes" 2004 (the second article linked above), Brian McClaren's very first recommendation to us in rethinking our evangelism strategy is to "Admit we may not actually understand the good news, and seek to rediscover it."  This is serious stuff.

Is it really Bad?  Anything that can challenge the very core of what we have believed over time can be hugely disturbing.  But if we dare to wade into the waters of this discussion we might just find that all that we believed before is still there, but that there are new and breathtaking perspectives available that we've never seen before which offer tremendous new power and inspriation to our understanding - and which provide a new and palpable sense of relevence to many around us in the postmodern mindset.

Thank You!  I personnaly want to thank Pastor Mark D. Roberts for the depth and courage of his preaching and teaching this past year at Irvine Presbyterian Church.  It was Mark's teaching, and his direction to other teachers and writers that have led me into the waters of this discussion.  And the refreshment and invigoration I have known have been like living waters.

More links which can lead your toes and feet into these wonderful waters:

Mark D. Roberts, "What Was the Message of Jesus?"

N.T. Wright, "The Challenge of Jesus" (and just about everything else that Bishop Wright has written and said which illuminate how the Gospel is really all about God rescuing his world, new creation, his kingdom on earth, a new way of being human as image bearing people, and that finally it is all about the truly wonderful news that Jesus is Lord!)

The P.A.I.N. of Evangelism

A lot of Christians identify evangelism as a stressful, discouraging process -- a really pain-full experience. Yet we are called upon by Jesus to be, not gospel gunslingers, going out to put more notches in our Bibles or scalps on our belt. Rather, as those who have experienced the love, and grace, and forgiveness that Christ gives, we have the opportunity to share good news -- the gospel ... euangelion ...That's what "evangelism" means -- telling good news.

Irvine Presbyterian Church has found it helpful to think of evangelism in terms of PAIN. Yes, P . . . A . . . I . . . N.  P.A.I.N stands for:

Prayer
Availability
Invitation
Neighborliness

"What is the Gospel?" Great Online Articles

Fuller Seminary's Theology News & Notes (June 2004) has an excellent series of articles on the question: "What is the Gospel?"

The Evangelism Toolbox

A website with tons of helpful tools for evangelism. Contains materials from a large number of respected evangelistic organizations. Something for everyone here. Well worth checking out by clicking here.

From the Field, For the Field

The  Office of Evangelism of the PCUSA has a new and very helpful website.  It's called "From the Field, For the Field." This page  is a collection of great evangelism ideas, gathered from a variety  of churches and denominations. It's well worth a visit on a regular  basis. You can also send in some of your best evangelism ideas.

First Post from the Committee Moderator

I am excited that we now have this available for our Presbytery. My hope is that many churches will participate in sharing evangelism ideas with others. The harvest is ripe, let us join together as workers in the harvest to build the kingdom of God in Christ's name.

Good News

The Evangelism and Witness program  area of our denomination publishes a quarterly newsletter with lots of helpful information for evangelism. It's called, appropriately enough, Good News.

The most recent issue of Good News contains some fascinating information about what distinguishes growing PCUSA churches from those that aren't growing.

You can download issues in a PDF form from the PCUSA website.

Welcome

Welcome to Evangelism Connection, the new and improved website of the Los Ranchos Presbytery Evangelism Committee. (Our former website is still available by clicking here.) This new website will allow members of the Evangelism Committee to put up their suggestions and ideas. And it will give you a chance to add your comments, including your suggestions and ideas.

The Committee hopes that this website will encourage lots of conversation about evangelism, so that we might more faithfully and effectively fulfill the Great Commission.