Rockin' The Suburbs.: November 2007

"The point of the cross isn't forgiveness. Forgiveness leads to something much bigger: restoration. God isn't just interested in the covering of our sins; God wants to make us into the people we were originally created to be. It is not just the removal of what's being held against us; it is God pulling us into the people he originally had in mind when He made us. This restoration is why Jesus always orients his message around becoming the kind of people who are generous and compassionate. The goal here isn't simply not to sin. Our purpose is to increase the shalom in this world, which is why approaches to the Christian faith that deal solely with not sinning always fail. They aim at the wrong thing. It is not about what you don't do. The point is becoming more and more the kind of people God had in mind when we were first created.

It is one thing to be forgiven; it is another thing to become more and more and more and more the person God made you to be.

Let me take this further: If we only have a legal-transaction understanding of salvation in which we are forgiven of our sins so we can go to heaven, then salvation essentially becomes a ticket to somewhere else. In this understanding, eternity is something that kicks in when we die. But Jesus did not teach this.

Jesus said that when we believe, we have crossed over from death to life. God always has been and always will be. And when I enter into a relationship with God through Christ, I am connected with God now and I will be connected with God forever. For Jesus, salvation is now.

I need a God for now.

I need healing now.

I need help now.

Yes, even greater things will happen someday.

But salvation is now."

This excerpt from Velvet Elvis is something you all need to read, read again, and maybe once more read it through. For those of you who were at high school Remix, remember when Ben played the video about Bono? Bono pointed out that being a follower of Jesus means bringing Heaven to earth, not the other way around. It's about reaching out to those in need and being Jesus to them. It's about getting in with the lepers. It's about feeding the hungry. Salvation starts now, not when you die. Healing starts now, not when you die. Jesus died for us to forgive sin, that is true... but He also died for us to restore our broken souls. To morph the mess that we carry from our pasts. Did something happen to you when you were younger that drives you to do things a certain way now? I know that's the case with me. But salvation is here and it's now and it's not about pushing to be perfect and gaining acceptance from other people. It's about letting Jesus, who loves you more than you could ever imagine, heal your crap. Seriously. It's about being who God intended you to be... and I can pretty much guess that it has nothing to do with the clothes you are wearing or the group you sit with at lunch. Be you. And let that person be generous and genuine and loving and caring and change the world. The cross does more than just for you. It does something in you.