By Kelly Borjas:
I got off the phone with a friend today, burdened by the call. We discussed the impact and wreckage of 2020 in so many areas. If I take a step back, many circumstances and conversations in this past week have circulated around this topic: marriages struggling, businesses floundering, friendships changing, political division, racial tensions. It seems like this past year has been a bomb that exploded, exposing hurts, disappointments, and disillusionments. My husband and I have faced our own challenges in this past week in managing a conflict—one that would have been significantly easier without the barriers imposed by our COVID world.
It makes me think: how do we respond? As I prayed about how to respond to a particular situation, I was reminded of one thing: to focus on the Gospel. So this blog…is about the gospel, written as a reminder for myself; a reminder to seek Truth.
Our world is so complicated with frustrations heightened in this tense climate. People are using the name of God to justify certain actions. Political views are branded, labeled, and claimed in the name of God. If you do or don’t speak up/post on social media/attend a specific event, etc. you’re either for or against certain ideologies. In some cases we are told we are not even Christians if we do not make a statement on any given particular topic (or forward a Facebook post to all of our “friends.”). How do we, as Christians, engage in this type of environment? I believe the answer is to start with the Gospel and try to approach each situation with that as our foundation.
So I circle back to the Gospel:
- The Gospel is not a political stance.
- The Gospel is not a social movement.
- The Gospel is not the prosperity of a nation
- The Gospel is not the success of a person
- The Gospel does not require others to meet OUR expectations.
To be fair, a true relationship with Jesus can and should propel us to act in certain ways, to live our lives reflecting God. But now, more than ever, I believe it is crucial to know, define, and understand what the gospel is. If we are not careful and discerning, we could easily get swept into something “in the name of Christianity” that is not the gospel at all. Even as someone who has been a Christian for much of my life, I have struggled to be able to define the gospel. In fact, for a while I was trying to find a passage of Scripture that explained the Gospel so I could tangibly wrap my mind around it. So again, as I write, it’s an effort to remind myself where to start.
What is the gospel? It is simple and beautiful. It is summarized in Acts 10: 38-43 “how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. And we are witnesses of all that he did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, but God raised him on the third day and made him to appear, not to all the people but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”
To put it more simply, the Gospel is the belief that Jesus is God. He was crucified to pay the cost of our sins, but God raised him to life, and everyone who believes in Him is forgiven of their sins and restored to relationship with God. 2 Corinthians 5:21 summarizes as well: For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
It is so easy to get swept up in emotion and events or conflicts surrounding us, but as we try to navigate, it is important to first remember what the Gospel is (and is not). Then, when we look at each situation, we can pray for discernment and ask our fellow believers to keep us in check so we can be sure our focus is on the Gospel and not some other narrative. We should ask ourselves: are our actions or beliefs reflective of God’s good news, or is there a different agenda?
In past years, it’s been easy to be complacent about seeking biblical responses to issues (certainly true for me). I’ve so often relied on the sermon at church, a Bible study, etc., to inform my belief system or response to what’s going on around me. However, now that many of our normal ways to engage with other believers are taken away, we must know for ourselves what we believe and why.
My heart is no less burdened by all of the carnage around, but I do take hope in the fact Jesus has overcome sin and offers eternal hope. My hope is in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, not immediate reconciliation of issues around me. I pray we all first let the Gospel permeate our minds, hearts, and souls, and then use that as our frame of reference for engaging with the world around us.
