Tuesday, April 23, 2013

"For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh." Romans 9:3 Wow, these are some huge words from the Apostle Paul, and these words reveal his heart. They reveal his heart for the Gospel, his brokenness over the lostness of his community and his deep desire to see them come to faith in Jesus Christ. What a beautiful and convicting picture of how the heart of every believer should pound, break and bleed for those who are outside of a saving relationship with God through Jesus Christ. In our ever changing western church culture, we have come to fill our church vocabulary with missional engagement, missional living, relational evangelism, incarnational proclamation, owning the lostness of our community, and all of these terms and the many others that have become a part of the DNA of our churches are all great, but I think they will always just be words and phrases if at the core they don't move us towards the heart of God and cause us to see the world as God sees it. Paul was educated above most, in his culture, and I am sure he knew all the religious lingo and cool Christian terms, but that's not what he led with and it certainly was not what gripped his heart. What gripped his heart was the Gospel. The Gospel changed everything for him. The Gospel gave Paul new lenses to see himself through and to see the world around him through...In 1 Timothy 1:15 he states "The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost." The Gospel is also what fueled his missional engagement,(I told you I like the terms)...In 2 Corinthians 5:14 Paul states that it is "the love of Christ" that compelled him. And Paul, maintained his faith that the message of the Gospel was enough. That he did not need to dress it up, change it, soften it's blow. No, he just needed to proclaim it unashamedly, with great passion, love and conviction. In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul states that he delivered and shared what was of first importance and what was shared with him. We can go on and on about the Apostle Paul's conviction, love for and faith in the Gospel, which served as the foundation and the fuel for all he did, but the bottom line for me is, is that true about me? Is that true about the believers in my circle of influence? You see, we don't have a vocabulary issue, I believe we may just have a heart issue. We just may have become innoculated to the Gospel that we have lost the wonder of it and we have stopped seeing those around us who are deep need of this saving and transforming message. So maybe this morning the simple prayer is, God, break my heart for what breaks yours and reacquaint me with the beauty, power and love of the Gospel. It seemed to work for the Apostle Paul...just another rambling. God bless!

7 comments:

a joyful noise said...

I do believe God weeps over those who turn from him, or refuse to accept Jesus. May we also weep over the lost and pray that workers will enter the fields to reap the harvest

Unknown said...

Free Download Newly Released Movie
Just Click This Link....

http://imdb2013.blogspot.com/

www.paperwritings.com said...

Pretty interesting story. Your style of writing is enough unusual. I like your posts.

Bridal lehenga said...

This is a good site to spent time on .I just stumbled upon your informative blog and wanted to say that I have really enjoyed reading your blog posts. I will be your frequent visitor, that’s for sure.

Anonymous said...

louis vuitton, longchamp pas cher, oakley sunglasses, louboutin outlet, replica watches, oakley sunglasses, louis vuitton, nike free, louis vuitton, ugg boots, oakley sunglasses, ray ban sunglasses, longchamp, ray ban sunglasses, cheap oakley sunglasses, kate spade outlet, prada outlet, polo ralph lauren outlet, louis vuitton outlet, longchamp outlet, replica watches, louboutin, christian louboutin outlet, air max, gucci outlet, air jordan pas cher, nike roshe run, oakley sunglasses, tory burch outlet, ralph lauren pas cher, nike air max, jordan shoes, nike air max, louis vuitton outlet, polo ralph lauren outlet, prada handbags, michael kors, uggs on sale, chanel handbags, louboutin shoes, ray ban sunglasses, nike outlet, longchamp outlet, tiffany jewelry, nike free, louboutin pas cher, sac longchamp, ugg boots, tiffany and co, burberry

Anonymous said...

reebok shoes, hollister, soccer shoes, ralph lauren, gucci, babyliss, lululemon, herve leger, louboutin, birkin bag, lancel, jimmy choo shoes, nike huarache, bottega veneta, soccer jerseys, vans shoes, hollister, baseball bats, new balance, ghd, iphone cases, nike air max, giuseppe zanotti, chi flat iron, north face outlet, vans, ray ban, timberland boots, p90x workout, abercrombie and fitch, insanity workout, ferragamo shoes, wedding dresses, nike roshe, hollister, asics running shoes, longchamp, celine handbags, instyler, oakley, nfl jerseys, mcm handbags, converse outlet, beats by dre, mont blanc, valentino shoes, nike trainers, mac cosmetics, north face outlet, nike air max

Anonymous said...

ugg,uggs,uggs canada, wedding dresses, louis vuitton, pandora charms, pandora jewelry, louis vuitton, marc jacobs, moncler outlet, moncler, canada goose, supra shoes, canada goose uk, moncler, links of london, moncler, karen millen, moncler, toms shoes, pandora jewelry, doudoune canada goose, replica watches, moncler, juicy couture outlet, moncler, swarovski crystal, canada goose, pandora charms, juicy couture outlet, canada goose, coach outlet, bottes ugg, louis vuitton, ugg,ugg australia,ugg italia, thomas sabo, swarovski, canada goose outlet, montre pas cher, louis vuitton, ugg boots uk, canada goose, hollister, canada goose outlet, sac louis vuitton pas cher, moncler, ugg pas cher