The
most horrifying thing in the world is to be without an adventure, we
ex world boxing champion George Foreman said recently as he considered a
come back to boxing at age 55. The Christian need never feat that horror.
The Church need never fear that horror. Being a Christian and being the
church offers more challenging and exhilarating adventure ever. Whey ?
We are called to love and share the gospel. What is the gospel ?
In the broadest terms is it the unchanging love of God as seen
in Jesus Christ ? A couple of weeks before my installation the midweek
fellowship gave me a wonderful surprise, all fourteen volumes of Church Dogma tics
the thirty year labour of love by Karl Barth, Swiss pastor and
theologian. Pope Pius XII described him as the most important
theologian since Thomas Aquinas whatever like him or loath him he certainly
had been influential. Interviewed on one occasion he was rather
cheekily asked he could summarize all fourteen volumes in a sentence 'Yes'
he replied :Jesus loves me this I know for the Bible tells me
so' The unchanging love of God a seen in Jesus Christ in the
broadest of terms that is the gospel. And says Paul, 'I am not ashamed
of the gospel' here is a pride that is permissible. Why ? It is
the power of God for salvation - here is a power that is effective. There is
more: it is 'for everyone who believes' - here is a grace that
is unlimited.
A
pride that is permissible 'not ashamed of the gospel' It is a figure of
speech affirmation be negation of the contrary. Ashamed ? absolutely not
in fact just the very opposite as Eungene Peterson in the Message translates
'I can't wait to get to you in Rome, preaching this wonderful good news of
God. It is news I am most proud to proclaim' I am so proud of this
Gospel I can't wait! Can you hear the excitement ?
Perhaps
for those of us who are more restrained in our emotions the translation 'I
am eager' is enough! But I have to say I ke 'I am so proud of this
Good News I can't wait' Paul was so confident about the Good News that
he felt he could not wait to get to Rome to tell it. He was so excited about
the good news.
Earliest
this year we had the opportunity to visit Steve Irwin's Australia Zoo.
For the uninitiated Steve Irwin is best known as the as the presenter of a
highly unconventional but extremely successful documentary series called The
Crocodile Hunter, Irwin's on screen persona is not unlike the fictional
character played by Paul Hogan in the movie Crocodile Dundee. He goes to
exotic locations finds various pieces of dangerous local wildlife like killer
crocs, venomous snakes, and treacherous spiders. Then, in front of the
camera, often with his wife Terri narrating gets up to various scary antics.
Our arrival was just weeks after he caused a storm of controversy when a
public show at the Zoo had been carried his month old son in the one arm
while feeing a dead chicken carcass to a four-meter crocodile with the other
hand! We sew the crocs! We saw the lots of other dangerous animals and
reptiles but we did not see Irwin. Yet the passion, drive and enthusiasm of
the man that you see in the TV documentary are evident everywhere. From
slick presentations and use of the latest electronic wizardry, through top
match buildings and design lay out, to the staff in the shows and on
the turn stiles the clear message is we are excited about this.
As
I stood there it hit me again. Am I like that about the Good news of God ?
Do I share Paul's excitement, 'I can't wait to get to you in Rome, preaching
the wonderful good news of God. It is news I am most proud to proclaim
? Am I excited about the Good News > Are you excited about the Good
News ? Are there passion and drive and enthusiasm within you about the
Good News ? Des the world around us see we are excited about the
Good New > It is not about crocs, its about the unchanging love of
God as seen in Jesus Christ ? Not ashamed of the Gospel, no, I cant
wait
In
Damascus, )where it all began) you were smuggled out in a basket in peril of
your life. In Philippi, you were thrown into jail, In
Thessalonica you were run out town. In Athens you are laughed
at. In Corinth (where you are now) some think you have lost the plot,
and others that you are a heretic and a blasphemer. All of this is the
direct result of you passion, excitement and enthusiasm for this
Gospel Could your confidence be misplaced ?
Drawing
from Corinthians I imagine his reply. You are right about the things that
have happened to me because of this gospel but you have missed a few!
I have been in prison more frequently than anybody else, I have been flogged
more severely and faced death again and again. Five times I received the
from the Jews 40 lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once
I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day on
the open sea. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in
danger from my countrymen, in danger from Gentiles, in danger in the city in
danger in the country, in danger at sea. I have laboured and toiled
and have often gone without sleep. I have known hunger and thirst and
have often gone without food. I have been cold and naked. Besides everything
else, I face the daily pressure of my concern for the churches. You
are right all of these things happened because of this Gospel. Often I have
felt surrounded and battered by troubles. There have been times when I have
been unsure and at my wits end, I have been 'spiritually terrorized.
Yet I am not ashamed of the gospel, I cant wait to get to you at Rome.
My confidence is not misplaced. I am proud of this gospel Why ?
The gospel is the power of God unto salvation that is why!
A
Power that is effective - the Power of God for salvation
Here
Paul's confidence is in the gospel as Professor James Dunn observes 'rests
on what is for him a clear and simple that : the gospel is the
effective means by which God brings about the wholeness and preservation of
the whole person. Now that is a different take on power It
has been said that power is one of the basic idolatries of any age. One
contemporary writer comments :
Political
leaders give more energy to jockeying for position than serving the public
good.
Business
executives care more for keeping on top of the heap than for producing a
useful product
University
professors seek sophistication more than truth.
Religious
leaders care more for this image than for the Gospel
A
jaundiced view and a little harsh, perhaps! For Paul the power of God
is a recurring thought In 1 & 2 Corinthians there are at least
eight references to power, he refers to the power of God, the power of
Christ, the power of the Cross and the power of the Spirit.
What
kind of power is This ? It is the effective means by which God brings
about the wholeness and preservation of the whole person. This is the power
that creates rather than destroys. It is the power that brings life and joy
and peace. This power does not reside in its sophistication or its appeal to
the rational mind. It is n about philosophy or codes of ethics. It is
the spiritual power of the gospel. The divine dynamite that is the
transforming power of God. Do we believe in that power ? Are we
convinced of its effectiveness ?
What
does it look like in working clothes > Let me suggest three
examples.
It is the power to bring
change : I can hear Paul : Remember me ? How I hated those
Nazarenes How dare they suggest that Jesus from Nazareth was God's anointed
? A crucified Nazarene! How utterly preposterous ! But what else
might you expect from such ignorant Galileans. No one with my
credentials has been fooled by it at all . In terms of status my
credentials are