Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Radical Thinking 2

Tonight is the second session of the Radical study at our church. On the inside cover this David Platt book, Greg Matte, pastor of First Baptist Church of Houston, writes: "Radical will cause you to bounce on a spectrum between two words: ouch and amen. Tough truths do that." I couldn't agree more. In chapter two of Platt's book, the chapter being covered tonight, he addresses the practices of reciting the "sinner's prayer", walking forward to answer a public invitation, or simply "accepting" Jesus. Plenty of ouches here, especially when considering that many of the devices used today in evangelism leave out the essential explanation of the gospel. That's not to say that people can't be saved through such tools and methods. God saves us in spite of ourselves! But that doesn't give us an excuse to complicate and cloud the biblically obvious: we are called to repent and believe in Jesus. My faith isn't in a prayer. Or in the fact that I "went forward", whatever that's worth. My faith isn't in a methodology or persuasive tactic. I was called to faith in Christ Himself; and that's how I am to call others needing His grace. Just something to think about...