I believe, and I'm sure that you do too, that being loved unconditionally in the ways positively articulated in Piper's post are far superior to being loved unconditionally as that concept is commonly understood. How do we, in all grace and love, then, walk with (we cannot be responsible for moving them) the people to whom we minister to from unconditional love point A (common understanding) to unconditional love point B (Biblical understanding)? It seems to me that it all must start with faithfully representing in daily living and teaching Bible-based truth about the glorious nature of God. Isn't that really what God's unconditional love boils down to? God loves in the manner that he does precisely because of who He is in and of Himself?
Now I'm starting to ramble a bit, but you get my point. Understanding this truth is eye-opening and life-changing. Many, dare I say most, of the people we are seeking to minister to don't understand it. How do these facts influence our ministries? Tell me what you think.
2 comments:
I just read the post by Dr. Piper. It is powerful and moving. This post is a sober reminder to me that it is the gospel that sanctifies, not just justifies. Jeremy, I think we have to communicate to every believer we meet that the exceeding joy of being born again is sterilized when we forget that our justification, sanctification, and glorification are at bottom all a work of God. We should preach this gospel to each other. Similarly, we should not find it strange that people are not attracted to a "better-life" gospel. To our unbelieving friends, we must communicate the full truth of the gospel, that includes total depravity.
It's like trimming the fat that we add on to the idea of God's love and getting down to the original creation and intention of his love for us. Simple, Clear and impactfull (is that a word?) I agree with Co..We need this in our lives as much as we need it in the gospel that we preach.
Post a Comment