"The American church today accepts grace in theory but denies it in practice… Too many Christians are living in the house of fear and not in the house of love… Personal responsibility has replaced personal response… Though lip service is paid to the gospel of grace, many Christians live as if it is only personal discipline and self denial that will mold the perfect me. The emphasis is on what I do rather than on what God is doing… How could the gospel of Christ be truly called “Good News” if God is a righteous judge rewarding the good and punishing the evil? Did Jesus really have to come to reveal that terrifying message? How could the revelation of God in Christ Jesus be accurately called “news” since the old testament carried the same theme, or “good” with the threat of punishment hanging like a dark cloud over the valley of history?
Brennan Manning
The Ragamuffin Gospel, Multnomah 1990/2000, 18-19.
No comments:
Post a Comment