Current Blog Series : Biblical Vision Explanation
“Never be content with your current
grasp of the gospel. The gospel is the life-permeating, world-altering,
universe-changing truth. It has more facets than a diamond. It's depths man
will never exhaust.” – C.J. Mahaney
We took our youth group and some
college students to Ridgecrest retreat center in North Carolina for a Centrifuge
camp in which my Pastor Landon Dowden was the camp pastor. After one sermon
most of the youth realized the Gospel was sweeter than they imagined. Sadly I
and the other pastoral staff had forgotten the impact of a gifted Gospel
centered, exegetical Sermon.
Our grasp of the Gospel and ability to
preach the Gospel should always be growing. The Gospel preached changes not
only a non-believer’s life but it should continually grow the believer too. If
you think that the Gospel is as simple as God saving Man then you lack a
wholesome view of the Scripture.
Sadly the vast majority of Churches
lack in gifted Gospel preaching. Due to the lack of giftedness and theological
training many pastors preach what the people desire to hear, the lie called
“Prosperity Gospel.” We are called to proclaim the Gospel to the World (Mathew
28:19-20), until all believers are spiritually mature (Ephesians 4:12-13).
It is not the U.N. that will bring
peace in any country; it is the Gospel that can break the terrorist’s heart
from his pursuit of killing. It is the Gospel that can liberate our cities from
the depravity that our news is littered with, and the Gospel that can grow all
believers to maturity.
The Gospel is indeed Christ and Him
crucified. The whole of Scripture is filled with this Gospel reality, and the
implications for our lives. Through the Gospel, parishioners begin to live like
Christ, care like Christ and dedicate themselves to one another. Preaching the
Gospel correctly is a calling for all preachers.
