by Frank Viola
What happened? If experience has taught me anything, I would guess that they simply stopped pursuing Him. They got stuck. They clung to the Christ they had been given by the greatest servants of God, and they stopped there.
To put it another way, their Christ was too small!
I will close this chapter with a question: How well can you know the Lord? You can know Him in proportion to the poverty that’s within your heart. “Blessed are the poor in spirit” (Matt. 5:3). The opposite of that statement is what the Laodicean church said of herself: “I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing” (Rev. 3:17 NKJV).
A sure mark of spiritual poverty is a wide heart. If you have a narrow heart, you will recognize Christ only through some of His people. And you will be blinded to find Him through others. Jesus Christ is a lot larger than what most of us have thought, and He works through a lot more people than we would expect.
In C. S. Lewis’s Prince Caspian, Aslan tells Lucy, “Every year you grow, you will find Me bigger.” This is a wonderful description of authentic spiritual growth. We know we are growing in the Lord when Jesus Christ is becoming bigger in our eyes.
Is your Christ too small? May we rescript our lives in a way that opens our hearts to the fullness of Jesus.
Please, Lord, revise us again.
Notes
1To read more about what it means to pursue Jesus corporately, see my book Reimagining Church.
2This is what the Greek text says. See Leon Morris, The Gospel According to John (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1995), 741–43.
3For details, see my book The Untold Story of the New Testament Church.
AFTERWORD
THE THREE GOSPELS
Now to him who is able to establish you by my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ.
—Romans 16:25
When it comes to the matter of living out the gospel, most believers can be divided up into two camps: the libertines and the legalists.
Here is a description of the libertines: They have accepted Jesus as their Savior. They go to church, own a Bible, and believe in God. However, they appear to have no vital relationship with the Lord. In addition, they hold to many of the same values as non-Christians.
If you were to examine their lifestyle, you would discover the behavior of libertines to be scarcely different from non-Christians. Their attitude is that God wants us to believe in Him, be nice to others, and try our best to be good. Beyond that, the Almighty doesn’t particularly care how we live. So long as a person mentally assents that God exists and Jesus is Savior, they are worthy to bear the name “Christian.”
The libertine is a product of a certain kind of gospel. Note that I am using the word gospel in a very specific sense to describe one’s message about Christ and the Christian life (Rom. 2:16; 16:25; 2 Tim. 2:8). I am not using it in the more general sense to describe the gospel story as it is presented in the New Testament (Mark 1:1).
In broad strokes, the gospel of libertinism can be described as follows: Believing in Jesus is intellectual assent to certain faith propositions. God has little interest in the way people live their lives; He simply expects us to do the best we can. Believing in Jesus has little impact on a person’s lifestyle or values. It’s more of a privatized intellectual belief system. Here are some libertine statements:
“We are all sinners, and we all sin. God understands.”
“The Bible isn’t completely relevant for us today. We can’t expect to hold to the same values as people did in biblical times. We live in a different world with different values.”
“I live the way I want. God loves me, and I am saved, so I can do anything I please.”
“Yes, I’m a Christian. But regarding my sin, that’s just the way I was made. I don’t want to change, I can’t change, and I won’t change.”
The gospel of libertinism is aimed primarily at the flesh. Its message gives the fallen nature free rein to do whatever, whenever it pleases. At the same time, this gospel suppresses the voice of one’s conscience.
On the other end of the spectrum is the legalist. Like the libertines, legalists are the product of a certain kind of gospel. Legalists have a strong desire to please God. Their conversion to Christ has produced a change of values and lifestyle. They take God seriously, they take His Word seriously, and they try to honor Him in their conduct.
However, they have added a bundle of man-made rules to the Scriptures, and they tend to be judgmental toward those who fail to keep those rules. Yet they are intent on fulfilling the Christian standard; they may not always make it, but they’ll die trying.
The gospel of legalism can be described as follows: God is holy, and He has made clear demands on the human race. We must warn, exhort, rebuke, and admonish ourselves and others to fulfill those demands. What follows is the language of the legalist:
“You must …”
“You need to …”
“You have to …”
“You had better …”
“If you do … then God will be happy with you.”
“If you don’t … then God will be angry with you.”
The implication of such vocabulary is that if we fail to obey God’s laws, then He will be displeased with us. Embedded in the gospel of legalism is the tacit threat that the Lord’s love and acceptance of His children are tied to their conduct. This is rarely stated explicitly, but actions and behavior speak louder than words.
The gospel of legalism is aimed directly at the will. It gives human volition the illusion that it can keep the standards of God. At the same time, it weakens the conscience, causing it to believe that certain practices are sinful when they are not (1 Cor. 8; 10; Rom. 14—15.) Theologian Alister McGrath rightly calls legalism “the dark side of evangelicalism.”
There are obviously degrees of legalism, from mild to extreme, just as there are degrees of libertinism. I have probably described the extremes, but edit the descriptions slightly, and I believe you’ll agree that the overwhelming majority of Christians can be put into one of these two camps.
Thankfully, there is a third gospel. Unfortunately, however, it’s rarely preached today. This gospel is the one we find dominating the letters of Paul. It is the gospel of the new creation, if you will. It is neither libertine nor legalistic.
Instead of focusing on the demands of God, Paul’s gospel focuses on the spiritual reality of what actually happens to those who have trusted in Christ when He died and rose again. It takes its view from behind the eyes of God—not from the earth but from the heavenlies.
Paul’s gospel confidently proclaims that Jesus of Nazareth is this earth’s true Lord. It declares the glories of Jesus and unflinchingly proclaims what God has done for all who submit to His lordship. The gospel that Paul preached includes salvation by grace through faith. It includes the call to repent, believe on Christ, and be baptized. It is a call to leave the world system and enter the kingdom of God—to move from the old fallen order into God’s order. It includes the promise of the forgiveness of sins, eternal life, and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
In Paul’s gospel, the standards of God are neither ignored nor rationalized into irrelevant oblivion (as in the gospel of the libertine). On the other hand, the standards of God are never presented as demands by which our acceptance by God is tied (as in the gospel of the legalist).
Contrary to the gospel of libertinism, Paul’s gospel doesn’t reduce faith to intellectual assent. (If you affirm the right propositions, you have “faith.”)
Contrary to the gospel of legalism, Paul’s gospel doesn’t reduce good works to legalistic compliance. (If you perform these prescribed actions, you have “good works.”)
Instead, Paul’s gospel is rooted in the unconditional acceptance, security, and wealth that those who have trusted in Chris
t as Lord and Savior enjoy. For this reason, whenever Paul presents a standard of God, he always presents it from this vantage point: It is the conduct that those who are in Christ naturally exhibit.
In his epistles, Paul never teaches the standards of God as universal rules or laws to be obeyed. Rather, he mentions the Christian standard only when he is addressing a highly specific problem wherein God’s people are not living according to who they are in Christ.
To the nonbeliever, Paul’s gospel is aimed directly at the conscience. To the Christian, his gospel is aimed directly at the renewed spirit of humans, the new creation. Its message strengthens the spirit to take charge of the mind, the will, and the emotions. At the same time, it strengthens the conscience, causing it to be responsive to the Holy Spirit.
A crucial but little-accepted fact is that the New Testament is not a book of rules to regulate human behavior. Instead, the New Testament is a spiritual narrative made up of the following: history books that narrate the life of Jesus and the life of His church (the Gospels and Acts); personal letters to churches and individuals who are in crisis (the Epistles); and a majestic vision of Jesus Christ’s triumphant victory over the world (Revelation).
Virtually all of Paul’s letters were written in response to a particular crisis that God’s people were experiencing. Remarkably, Paul’s custom throughout his communications was to address the crisis in a first-second-third order:
First, he reminds God’s people of their true identity in Christ. He also reminds them of the all-sufficiency of Christ who has come to dwell inside of them.
Second, he describes the behavior of those who are new creatures in Christ.
Third, he exhorts the believers to live according to their true identity rather than according to their false identity. That is, he exhorts them to walk in line with who they are in Christ rather than who they used to be in Adam.
Paul took this approach in virtually all of his epistles. It was his custom for addressing problems in the Christian communities under his care. The following statement from Ephesians is a perfect example of how Paul exhorts God’s people to walk in a way that matches their high and holy calling:
For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light. (Eph. 5:8)
In other words, you are light in Christ. Now live that way.
The gospel of libertinism, the gospel of legalism, and Paul’s gospel represent three very different postures when it comes to matters of sin and morality. For the sake of illustration, let’s take the issue of lying, which the New Testament condemns. (Feel free to insert any other sin that the Scriptures clearly address.)
Concerning the practice of lying, the libertine gospel essentially says, “This issue is irrelevant. We live in a different world than the people of the Bible did. Our values are different and more advanced. God loves us all and understands our needs. We all sin. Everybody lies. God loves everyone, so you are judging others if you tell them that they are wrong or immoral for lying.”
The legalistic gospel says, “God will judge those who violate His commandments. Christians must not lie or else God will punish them.”
In contrast, Paul’s gospel exhorts, “Let me remind you that you are part of a new creation. Jesus Christ lives in you, and you are in Christ. As such, your old fallen nature is dead. Christ exterminated it by His cross. Therefore, put off the old lifestyle of lying. Such is the conduct of a fallen creation. It’s not your conduct. Live according to who you really are and by the higher life that dwells within you. Jesus Christ is truth and honesty. Live out of what the Lord says you are … for that alone is truth and reality.”
Paul’s gospel is built on the understanding that the key to spiritual transformation is not found in trying to improve oneself. It’s found in being reminded again and again of who we are in Christ and who Christ is in us.
For Paul, the Christian life is becoming what you already are.
Our behavior as Christians stems from our identity. Consequently, the common approach Paul takes in his letters is to remind God’s people of who they have become as new creatures in Christ. All of his exhortations flow out of that reminder.
The church of Jesus Christ is called to embody and proclaim the gospel that Paul preached—which is the gospel of Jesus Christ. That gospel is the good news of His kingdom coming and His will being done, that God is becoming ruler of the world He created and that Jesus, whom God the Father raised from the dead, is this world’s true Lord.
Jesus Christ has defeated the powers of evil, sin, and death and has brought forth a new creation of which you are now a part. And one day, that new creation will fill the whole earth.
This is the full-hearted gospel, if you please; the others are impostors. Paul’s gospel is one of liberty and lordship—the lordship of Christ and the liberty of the Spirit. It provides freedom from the fruitless attempt to keep a moral standard. It also provides freedom from the mastering power of the fallen nature.
Thus the Christian life is rooted in liberty—the liberty that is in Christ Jesus (Gal. 5:1). This is a liberty that sets us free from trying to be good. It is also a liberty that sets us free from practicing evil. It is a liberty that brings us into a living knowledge of the One who indwells us—the One who happens to be the greatest Liberator in the universe as well as the Savior and Lord of the world.
So the next time you hear someone preach or teach, ask yourself, “What gospel am I hearing? Am I being exhorted to feel comfortable in my sin and justify it (libertinism)? Am I being exhorted to try harder to be a better Christian (legalism)? Or am I being presented with my beautiful Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, and reminded of my high standing in Him as a son or daughter of God (the gospel)?”
Embracing the gospel of libertinism or the gospel of legalism will tether you to the flesh. The fruit of libertinism is the defiling acts of the flesh. On another branch, but just as deadly, the fruit of legalism is the self-righteousness of the flesh.
Both gospels produce carnal activity and generate death rather than life. As a result, both clash with the new creation and have no place in the full-hearted gospel of Christ.
Only Paul’s gospel—the glorious gospel of grace, the gospel of Jesus Christ—has the capacity to bring you and me into the freedom that is ours in Christ. And the end of that gospel is the ageless purpose of God for which our Lord burns.
Paul’s Reminders1
The Pattern in Galatians
The truth is …
He has rescued you from this present evil age (1:4).
You have been justified by faith apart from the works of the law (2:16).
You have died to the law so that you may live to God. You have been crucified with Christ. You no longer live, but Christ lives in you. He loved you and gave Himself for you (2:19–20).
You received the Holy Spirit by believing (3:2).
You are children of Abraham (3:7).
Christ redeemed you from the curse of the law (3:13).
Since faith has come, you are no longer under the supervision of the law (3:25).
You are sons of God through faith in Jesus Christ. You were baptized in Christ, and you are clothed with Christ. You belong to Christ, and you are heirs to God’s promise (3:26–29).
You are sons of God, and you have the full rights of sonship. Because you are sons, God has given you His Spirit. And that Spirit testifies that God is your Father. You are not slaves, but sons and heirs of God (4:4–7).
The heavenly Jerusalem is your mother (4:26).
You are children of promise (4:28).
You are called to be free (5:13).
You belong to Jesus Christ, and you have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires (5:24).
What counts is a new creation, of which you are a part (6:15).
Because of the abo
ve …
Stand fast in the liberty that Christ has given you, and don’t be burdened by the yoke of slavery to the law (5:1).
Do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature, but rather, serve one another in love (5:13).
Live by the Spirit, and you will not fulfill the desires of the sinful nature (5:16).
Since you live by the Spirit, keep in step with the Spirit. Do not be conceited, provoking and envying one another (5:25–26).
Carry one another’s burdens (6:2).
Do not become weary in well-doing. Do good to all people, especially your fellow brethren in Christ (6:9–10).
The Pattern in 1 Corinthians
The truth is …
You are holy in Christ, and you are called “holy ones” (1:2).
God’s grace has been given to you in Christ. In Him, you have been enriched in every way. You do not lack any spiritual gift. He will keep you strong until the end so that you will be blameless on the day of Jesus Christ (1:4–8).
Because of God, you are in Christ Jesus who has become your wisdom, your righteousness, your holiness, and your redemption (1:30).
You have received the Spirit of God, not the spirit of the world, that you might know what God has freely given you (2:12).
You are God’s temple, and God’s Spirit lives in you (3:16).
Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you. You are not your own. You were bought with a price (6:19–20).
Because of the above …
Be of the same mind, and have no divisions among you (1:10).
Since there are jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like “mere men,” contrary to who you really are? (3:3–4).
Do not deceive yourselves (3:18).
Judge nothing before the appointed time (4:5).
I urge you to imitate me (4:16).
Get rid of the old yeast among you, and expel the wicked man from among you (5:7, 13).
