Gospel Formed
To understand what we mean by "Gospel" click here.
For a write up on the centrality of the Gospel click here.
As a church we believe that we who once were not a people (living separated from each other and God) have become a people (united together and united with God) by the work of God through His Gospel. It is the Gospel taking root in the lives of individuals that leads us from isolation and separation into true communion as the people of God (the church). As a Gospel formed people we are a people that have been accepted in and brought together not because of any work we have done, shared culture or race, political stance, or personal preference, but because of the Grace of God. We exist as a community because of the Gospel.
Gospel formed people:
A People being formed by the Gospel:
It is by grace through faith in Christ that we are accepted into the people of God and it is by the same means that we are transformed into the people God created us to be. In other words we become a people by the Gospel and we grow as a people by the Gospel.
Those who have been accepted into the people of God by faith in the Gospel are now being formed by the Gospel. By the power of the Holy Spirit we are continually being transformed as we grow in our understanding of the vast ramifications of the Gospel and apply the Gospel to our lives, reorienting every aspect of our life to be in line with the reality of the Gospel. It is through the Gospel proclaimed, studied, and applied that we are being formed as individuals and as a community.
Gospeling:
Evangelism is a the verb form of the greek word "euangelion" which we translate as Gospel. So evangelism is the action of proclaiming the good news or Gospel. Evangelism carries a lot of different meanings to people in our culture today. Often it is tied to a technique or formula that is focused only on the unbeliever. But evangelism is much more than what many have assumed the term to mean. This is why we often use the term Gospeling when referring to sharing the Gospel with others.
Evangelism or "Gospeling" is not just reserved to proclaiming the Gospel to the unbeliever, but should be an ongoing reality within the life of the church. All of the New Testament letters were written to christians and all of the letters contain declaration and explanation of the Gospel. The New Testament is filled with evangelistic letters written to the church. The Apostles would evangelize "Gospel" the church to remind the church of the Gospel and correct the church by bringing it back in line with the Gospel.
So as a church we must learn the practice of continually Gospeling. We need to be regularly Gospeling the unbeliever because it is through the Gospel that one comes to faith. We also need to be regularly Gospeling each other and ourself because it is through the Gospel that we are being formed into maturity in Christ.
Gospel formed life: Learning to find our identity in the Gospel and allowing the Gospel to reshape how we live our life.
How we live is primarily formed by the stories we believe. Our values, identity, and purpose is shaped by what we believe about ourselves and the world in which we live. As a people redeemed by the Gospel we must then allow the Gospel inform every aspect of our life. Our lives are continually being formed by the Gospel as we learn to look at our life through the lens of the Gospel and apply the many facets of the Gospel to how we live, bringing our lives in line with the Gospel.
Gospel formed community: Learning to live together as a display of the reconciling work of the Gospel.
Ultimately the work of the Gospel is not merely about saving individuals but about forming a redeemed people. The ramifications of the Gospel can only truly be experienced in community. We all must come to God as individuals, but the moment we come to saving faith we are adopted into a people. Because of sin, our relationship with each other is broken, but part of the work of the Gospel is restoring a proper relationship with each other. How we live with each other, caring for each other, confronting each other, serving each other, and celebrating with each other should be shaped by our understanding of the Gospel and what that means for us as a community.
Gospel formed mission: Displaying and declaring the Gospel.
As the church we are a people that are a product of God's mission, called to Him and sent out by Him for the sake of His mission to bring redemption to His creation. The Gospel is the message we have been entrusted with to declare to the world around us and it is also the reality that we are to display to the world through our life, community, and service. As missionaries of the Gospel we must grow in our understanding of the Gospel to shape the message we display and declare as a people on mission. The Gospel also shapes how we go about living a life on mission. A growing understanding of the Gospel and right application of the Gospel forms how we approach our mission to be lights within a dark world.
The message we carry is formed by the Gospel and how we carry it is formed by the Gospel, so that the world around us might by transformed by the Gospel. For more info on living a "missional life" check out our missional page here.
