What is the Gospel? It should be an easy question to answer, but as is often the case with seemingly simple theological questions, the answer is not as simple as some would like it to be. We have a plethora of well-used words in the Christian tradition that defy any attempt to define them in a simplistic way. The problem is that our limited human understanding coupled with our limited language makes it difficult at best to fully explain what we believe about our Creator. In an excellent book titled The Gospel According to Jesus: A Faith that Restores All Things, pastor Chris Seay kicks the doors open wide and tries to open our minds to the possibility that we have too narrowly defined the Gospel and as a result have ended up with an ineffectual religion instead of a creation restoring, life transforming relationship with God through Christ.
In our Westernized form of Christianity, we have limited the Gospel to a personal experience that rarely results in the type of “kingdom building” experienced by the early, first century church. Seay’s argument relies heavily on an understanding of “righteousness” that includes a restoration of not only a limited number of humans, but also all of God’s created order. He spends a considerable amount of time illuminating the meaning of this word and showing how our understanding of it has implications that will affect our definition of The Gospel.
This is a great book that challenges us to look beyond ourselves and envision a transformation of the world, through the powerful Gospel of Jesus Christ, in which we actively participate. It will make you ask the all important question, “what if?” And, if you let it, will lead you to take steps toward an often disconcerting, but life transforming engagement with the world that takes seriously Christ’s command to love God with all your heart, and your neighbor as yourself.
Note: I received this book free from the publisher as part of their blogger review program. I was not required to write a favorable review and the opinions expressed are my own.