THE GUTLESS GOSPEL: Part 1 - Introduction

Something’s always bothered me about Jesus and the Gospel. Well, not the REAL Jesus and not the REAL Gospel. It’s the Jesus and the Gospel you find in the modern church, in the media, in movies and paintings and little statues and songs. It’s the long haired hippy looking metrosexual Jesus wearing a perfectly pressed white robe cuddling a lamb in one arm, flashing a peace sign with his other hand while spouting comforting, politically correct platitudes with just the hint of an aristocratic British accent. It’s a gutless Gospel failing to confront and offering only comfort – an “I’m okay, you’re okay” self-help, self-aggrandizing, selfish Gospel more about me than HIM. It’s Dr. Phil and a comfy couch with a lot of positive affirmation psycho-babble instead of a tough as nails Savior getting nailed on a cross and bleeding out in brutal agony to atone for sins I committed. It’s a “Bobby McFerrin” Jesus skipping along singing “Don’t worry, be happy” instead of a fiery eyed iconoclast shouting, “You snakes! You brood of vipers!” at the religious leaders of his day.

In all of this we have lost a key element of the narrative –

Jesus. Had. GUTS.

He was a man. Not just any man, but the God-man. Fully God. Fully man. Crazy right? He left the pain free, tear free, glorious, magnificent perfection of heaven to step foot into the painful, tear stained, horrific, grimy, fallen world we call home. Why? “No pain, no gain.” He chose to suffer in my place, in your place, for my sin and your sin so that we might gain salvation, mercy, grace, eternal life and one day experience the glory of his home. You know what that takes? GUTS!

Think about it. When he took the journey from heaven to earth he knew his destination was the cross. He knew he would experience the most incredibly sadistic form of execution ever devised by man. It was so devastating and painful that the etymology of the word “excruciating” traces its origins back to the Latin word the Romans coined to describe its overwhelming intensity. He volunteered for it! He manned up and said, “I’ll take the cross. I’ll take the nails. I’ll suffer incredible agony willingly.” And get this, why did he do it? Well that’s the most manly, gutsy, macho reason of all. Because he loves ME. Because he loves YOU. It takes a REAL man to show REAL love.

We get it wrong all the time. We think “real men” don’t go around talking about love and forgiveness and other “sissy” stuff. It takes a real man to look somebody in the eye and say, “I love you.” It takes a real man to fix an unblinking stare on his most vile enemy and say, “I love you. I forgive you.” You know what that is? Guts. It’s a Savior and Messiah and King with guts preaching a Gospel full of guts to a bunch of gutless people blinded to the truth by their own self-righteousness. That’s why the Gutless Gospel offends me so much – it is the absolute antithesis of what Jesus taught and preached.

I want to take a journey with you through the pages of Scripture and look at some of the gutsiest things the Lord Jesus Christ ever did. I want to shred the pages of the Gutless Gospel and burn them until only ashes remain. I want to explore the true Gospel of the gutsy Jesus and find hope, inspiration and courage from its timeless narrative. Will you join me?

"That's Impossible!"

Christian musical artist Michael Gungor has caused quite a stir due to some recent posts on his personal blog. First let me say I’d never heard of him until today due to this. He is in the category of Christian Contemporary Worship music and I am definitely off in another direction (heavy metal / hardcore like Sleeping Giant, For Today, Those Who Fear, Gideon, etc.). I found his comments intriguing and perhaps becoming more common in his generation (he is 33) and other younger Christians.

Mr. Gungor questions the veracity of the Biblical flood narrative and the ark in Genesis. Basically he says it is scientifically impossible. First let me say I agree. Next let me say this as well (please stick with me and don’t click away until the end):

• Creating the universe in 6 literal days is impossible!
• Flooding the entire world with 40 days and nights of rain is impossible!
• Saving members of all land dwelling life on one big boat is impossible!
• Joseph’s story of slavery, imprisonment and rise to be Pharaoh’s right hand man is impossible!
• Parting the Red Sea so the Jews could walk across on dry land is impossible!
• Feeding a population of people in the desert with a mysterious food called “manna” for 40 years is impossible!
• Marching around the fortified city of Jericho for a week and then merely playing trumpets and shouting to collapse the walls is impossible!
• Gideon and a rag tag band of 300 men armed with torches and trumpets defeating a battle-hardened group of 135,000 Midianites is impossible!
• A young, inexperienced boy killing an elite, heavily armed and armored 9 foot tall Philistine with a slingshot is impossible!
• Elijah calling down fire from heaven to consume a sacrifice saturated with water is impossible!
• Elijah being carried away to heaven in a chariot of fire is impossible!
• Elisha raising a young man from the dead is impossible!
• Daniel describing and interpreting a dream he never personally had is impossible!
• Three young men tossed into a blazing furnace and emerging with not a singe mark or the smell of smoke on them is impossible!
• Being eaten by a big fish and surviving in its belly for three days is impossible!
• Being born to a virgin is impossible!
• Turning water into wine is impossible!
• Healing the lame, blind and demon possessed is impossible!
• Walking on water is impossible!
• Turning five loaves of bread and two fish into a meal that can feed 5000 is impossible!
• Raising a young girl from the dead is impossible!
• Raising Lazarus from the dead after he had been lifeless in a tomb for 4 days is impossible!
• Returning from the dead 3 days later after suffering the most brutal execution imaginable – beating, scourging and crucifixion – is impossible!
• Rising into the clouds is impossible!
• Speaking in languages you’ve never known is impossible!
• Changing a zealous and violent persecutor of Christians into the greatest Christian missionary in history is impossible!

This is just a brief list of impossible things found in the Bible. Science and naturalism claims these things are impossible. However, we serve a supernatural God that laid down the guidelines of the natural world and is well within his power to overcome any of those scientific, mathematical and naturalistic limitations. I am reminded of the words of the angel Gabriel, who stands in the very presence of the Lord God Almighty and knows him better than any of us do down here on Earth:

“For with God nothing shall be impossible.” (Luke 6:37)