“What has Jesus done?” becomes more important than “What would Jesus do?”

How to Avoid Christless Christianty
Mon, Nov. 22 2010 09:16 AM EDT


Scripture is of no use to us if we read it merely as a handbook for daily living without recognizing that its principle purpose is to reveal Jesus Christ and his gospel for the salvation of sinners. All Scripture coalesces in Christ, anticipated in the OT and appearing in the flesh in the NT.

In Scripture, God issues commands and threatens judgment for transgressors as well as direction for the lives of his people. Yet the greatest treasure buried in the Scriptures is the good news of the promised Messiah.

Everything in the Bible that tells us what to do is “law”, and everything in the Bible that tells us what God has done in Christ to save us is “gospel.”

Much like medieval piety, the emphasis in much Christian teaching today is on what we are to do without adequate grounding in the good news of what God has done for us in Christ. “What would Jesus do?” becomes more important than “What has Jesus done?”

The gospel, however, is not just something we needed at conversion so we can spend the rest of our Christian life obsessed with performance; it is something we need every day – the only source of our sanctification as well as our justification.

The law guides, but only the gospel gives. We are declared righteous–justified – not by anything that happens within us or done by us, but solely by God’s act of crediting us with Christ’s perfect righteousness through faith alone.

Preachers, read that paragraph over and over.

As I’ve said here before, don’t make the mistake of assuming that people understand the radical nature of gospel indicatives, so that your ministry is focused primarily on the imperatives.

The commands in the Bible are like a set of railroad tracks. The tracks provide no power for the train but the train must stay on the tracks in order to function. The law, in other words, never gives any power to do what it commands. It shows us what a sanctified life looks like but it has no sanctifying power. Only the gospel has power, as it were, to move the train. This is why the Bible never tells us what to do before first soaking our hearts and minds in what God in Christ has already done.

The fact is, that any obedience not grounded in or motivated by the gospel is unsustainable. No matter how hard you try, how “radical” you get, any engine smaller than the gospel that you’re depending on for power to obey will conk out in due time.

Preach the gospel!

William Graham Tullian Tchividjian (pronounced cha-vi-jin) is a Florida native, the new pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Fort Lauderdale, a visiting professor of theology at Reformed Theological Seminary, and a grandson of Billy and Ruth Graham. A graduate of Columbia International University (philosophy) and Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, Tullian is the author of Do I Know God? Finding Certainty in Life’s Most Important Relationship (Multnomah), Unfashionable: Making a Difference in the World by Being Different (Multnomah) and Surprised by Grace: God's Relentless Pursuit of Rebels (Crossway). Tullian is also a contributing editor to Leadership Journal. He speaks at conferences throughout the U.S. and his sermons are broadcast daily on the radio program Godward Living.

The two enemies of the Gospel

Are You Holding Back?
By Colin Smith

"Through him and for his name's sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith." Romans 1:5

God calls you to a life of obedience through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. God calls you to find in Christ what you do not have, to receive from Christ what you cannot offer, to accomplish through Christ what you cannot do.

The two enemies of the Gospel

The Gospel always lives in the presence of two enemies-one is called "legalism," the other is called, "antinomianism." Legalism says, "Obey God's command, so that you may believe His promise." But if you have to clean up your life before you come to Christ, how will anyone ever be able to come?

Antinomianism says, "Believe God's promise, so that you can ignore God's command." There will be some in every church who, having made a decision for Christ, live carelessly and sin presumptuously. There are others who, falling many times by the same temptation, are overwhelmed by the sense of their own unworthiness.

The Gospel says something radically different, "Believe God's promise, so that you may obey His command." The gospel answer to antinomianism is that God calls you to a life of obedience. The gospel answer to legalism is that God calls you to a life of faith.

Are you holding back because you think you cannot change?

Come to Christ and you will find you begin to love what you used to hate, and you begin to hate what you used to love. The obedience that is beyond you by nature, is possible for you through a living union with Christ that the Bible calls "faith." Through this bond He will give you new desires, new strength and new life that you did not have before.

Are you holding back because you have problems and wounds?

Stop looking at yourself. You won't find the answer there. God is calling you to a faith in Christ and a life of obedience that flows from His life in you.

Are you holding back because you have doubts and questions?

Come to Christ with your doubts and questions, "Lord, I believe. Help me overcome my unbelief" (Mark 9:24).

Are you holding back because you do not think you need Christ?

Your obedience is far from complete. God commands you to repent and obey the Gospel (1 Peter 4:17).

Are you holding back because your sins are many?

Look at the cross. The Savior is there for sinners. He is there for you. The blood of Christ has the power to cleanse you from every sin. This Savior is able to take you from a slimy pit and set your feet on the rock (Psalm 40:2). He is able to present you faultless and with great joy in the presence of Almighty God (Jude 1:24). Come to Him and find hope in Him today. Christ calls you to the obedience of faith.

What are u proclaiming?

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I'm not shouting "I'm clean livin'."
I'm whispering "I was lost,
Now I'm found and forgiven."

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I don't speak of this with pride.
I'm confessing that I stumble
and need Christ to be my guide.

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I'm not trying to be strong.
I'm professing that I'm weak
And need His strength to carry on..

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I'm not bragging of success.
I'm admitting I have failed
And need God to clean my mess.

When I say... "I am a Christian"
I'm not claiming to be perfect,
My flaws are far too visible
But, God believes I am worth it.

When I say.... "I am a Christian"
I still feel the sting of pain.
I have my share of heartaches
So I call upon His name.

When I say.... "I am a Christian"
I'm not holier than thou,
I'm just a simple sinner
Who received God's good grace, somehow!