In Sunday's State Journal, the following opinion piece of mine was published. You can access it online here but subscription is required.
She was a young student sitting at my kitchen table crying uncontrollably. The tears increased as she sobbed her way through her life story of victimhood from men who claimed to love her. She could no longer pretend everything was OK.
Days later I rushed to comfort parents who had just lost their child. There is nothing more tragic in this world than that.
What do you say in moments like these?
I am a pastor and find myself in similar situations frequently always asking the same question. The answer continues to be: nothing brings greater hope and comfort than the gospel of Jesus Christ.
But what is the gospel of Christianity? In the midst of endless culture wars many have opinions but few have the truth. I would like to briefly explain what Christianity is here.
Christianity is not primarily a political ideology, an ethical philosophy, or legalistic ritualism. Christianity, in its essence, is a message of freedom and hope rooted in the person and work of Jesus who, through the cross and empty tomb, liberates us from what enslaves us – fear, guilt, and sin – which begins in this life only to conclude in the next.
The promise of heaven, therefore, becomes a reality for us now. This means our joy is not based on our circumstances but on the victory of our Savior. We have found peace, love, and contentment because Christ is our everything. Regardless of life’s troubles the gospel remains good news. Whether we are at rock bottom, haunted by our past, or burdened with guilt too great to carry, Jesus is our freedom and hope. This personal transformation is the key to bringing communal change. Given the free gift of God’s love, I am now free to love others.
Jesus, then, is joy to the hopeless, love to the forgotten, and grace to the guilty. This is Christianity.
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