There was clearly tension boiling within him as he came over to ask me a question. It was as if the question itself had oozed out and surfaced upon his head. He kept combing through his hair as if the gesture would help him find the right verbiage to articulate his thoughts. His eyebrows locked together in the middle of his forehead. His face spoke a thousand words without uttering a single phrase. He reached the vicinity where I was seated and lowered his gaze toward the side. I imagined that he was working out a positive scenario in his mind. I quietly crossed my arms and waited patiently for him to proceed. "What's the big deal?" He blurted out while raising his gaze and making eye contact with me. "I don't see anything wrong with his message!"
Earlier a collection of students and I had engaged in a conversation about a modern contemporary preacher who was developing a large following. This particular preacher was gaining influence within the broader evangelical culture and many of the worship songs were flowing out of his particular church. The young man, who had recently asked me the question, was a talented and developing worship leader in his own right. He just could not quite smell the stench of me-ism that flowed from the celebrity preacher.
The greater burden lied within the fact that many of my classmates from bible college are eating up the teaching hook, line, and sinker.
I could not help but wonder with our society's infatuation with "self-help" psychology that the next generation may not have the ability to discern between the call to follow Jesus and a "me-oriented" proclamation of a Christ-less American gospel. It has a move toward individualized modification rather than a Christ-like transformation. It moves in the direction of being the best "Me" rather than being conformed into the image of the Son. The aroma of this deficient gospel has settled comfortably in the nostrils of young minds. The greater burden lies within the fact that many of my classmates from bible college are eating up the teaching hook, line, and sinker. Christocentric:
The "Me-oriented" movement of this day, at its core, is anthropocentric while the meta-narrative of Scripture displays a theocentric posture. Simply put, is the battle of seeing the world through the Gospel lens grounded in our pursuit to be man-centered or God-centered? Jesus Himself affirmed the Pharisees' diligence in searching the Scriptures, but repudiated their inability to see that the sacred text spoke centrally about Him (Jn. 5:39). Jesus in His post-resurrection state guided the disciples to see that in His Person all of the Scriptures find their fulfillment. "And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, [Jesus] interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself" (Lk. 24:27). A few verses later Jesus commented to His followers, "These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled" (Lk. 24:44).
To move away from the basic tenets of the Scriptures is to move away from seeing Christ as preeminent (Col. 1:18); from seeing the full "glory of God in the face of Christ"
(2 Cor. 4:6).
To move away from the basic tenets of the Scriptures is to move away from seeing Christ as preeminent (Col. 1:18); from seeing the full "glory of God in the face of Christ" (2 Cor. 4:6). Jared C. Wilson rightfully notes, "If we do not become fixated on the vision of Jesus and His finished work, we will be free to fixate on things that don't save. Even if this were to happen in a church and concentrate on churchy things, it would still be idolatry."1 Modern contemporary preachers are signaling the masses to have "Your Best Life Now", but that reality is only contingent upon seeing and savoring the triune God for who He really is; King.
The Gospel of Jesus Christ rubs directly against the culture of our day. Whereas society presses on our innate sense to hoard for ourselves, the Scriptures call us to pursue death in Christ. The remedy for a narcissistic society is not more of ourselves, but less. The aim of the Christian life is not more of me, but the death of me so that Christ may reign. "[Jesus] must increase, but I must decrease" (Jn. 3:30).
To Die is Gain:
"For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain" (Phil. 1:21). The call of the Gospel is paradoxical in nature for it summons the hearer not to receive life in life, but to receive life through death. The Apostle Paul formulates this statement in the midst of his meditation upon the character of Christ.
Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, He humbled Himself becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. (Phil. 2:3-8 ESV)
Therefore, the Gospel is not calling individuals to be the best "self" possible, but rather to reflect the greater Adam—Jesus. The paradigm is captured by Paul in saying, "Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? We were buried therefore with Him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life" (Rom. 6:3-4). Dietrich Bonhoeffer captures this concept well by coining the phrase costly grace: "It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life."2 A gospel without death is not the Gospel of the Scriptures.
A gospel without death is not the Gospel of the Scriptures.
Suffering:
The embrace of the Gospel may not bring prosperity to the life of the believer. In fact, the opposite may ring true: one's life could experience an exponential rise is tension, push back, and suffering. Yet this strain within life is not void of satisfaction, joy, or contentment. This simply means that the world can not be in of itself the foundational source for fulfillment in the deepest crevices of the heart. David Platt rightfully concludes that "[the] danger in our lives will always increase in proportion to the depth of our relationship with Christ."3 Jesus affirms this notion by saying, "Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you" (Matt. 5:11-12).
The culturally saturated gospel that has infiltrated modern evangelicalism side steps the suffering of the text and absolutizes the prosperity of the self to the point of idolatry. A. W. Tozer articulates the heart of a regenerate believer in saying, "Those living the crucified life do not seek place or wealth, fame or high positions. Rather, they want to know God and to be where Jesus is."4 The life of Christ in the believer can not be devoid of the effects of the cross. Suffering, then, is not meant to be sought after like a trophy, but rather expresses itself as the product of a regenerate life aligning itself to the intent and affections of the Creator. Self-Sacrifice:
"For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many" (Mk. 10:45, italics mine). The ultimate expression of Jesus' service toward His people was His death on the cross. John R. W. Stott expresses the applicational truths in saying,
[Jesus] renounced the power and glory of heaven and humbled Himself to be a slave. He gave Himself without reserve and without fear to the despised and neglected sections of the community. His obsession was the glory of God and the good of human beings who bear His image. To promote these, He was willing to endure even the shame of the cross. Now He call us to follow Him, not to seek great things for ourselves, but rather to seek first God's rule and God's righteousness (Jer. 45:5; Mt. 6:33).5
The outflow of Christ's obedience to His Father was not out of a desire to obtain an identity but rather the expression of His identity. Christ's love for the Father was exemplified in sacrificial obedience. "For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again" (Jn. 10:17). The life of obedience that Jesus calls His followers to is not merit based in its origin, but rather the outflow of their love for Him. Jesus' call for His disciples' obedience is indicative of the love to which He shares with the Father. "Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, He it is who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him" (Jn. 14:21).
Self-sacrifice through the Gospel lens is not meditating upon the self, but rather marveling at the glory of God and seeking to reflect His majesty.
Self-sacrifice through the Gospel lens, then, is not meditating upon the self, but rather marveling at the glory of God and seeking to reflect His majesty. A people fixated upon the self will never serve the community out of the outflow of the Gospel, but out of the aim to fill the me-centered cistern of the heart. Yes, the outward activity may be commendable, but the affections are geared in fulfilling the purpose of the self rather than the glory of the Lord.
Can You Smell?:
The "me-oriented" bent of contemporary preachers is, not necessarily intentional, but in retrospect aligns to the product of the fall. No longer did Eve allow the Creator God to be the defining basis of what was good and evil, but she—along with Adam—wanted to usurp control and play god (Gen. 3:5-6). No longer can we assume that modern preachers are Christ-centered in their approach in proclaiming the word week in and week out. We must critically engage with the text and become active agents even within the pews of our gatherings. We must measure all content through the filter of Sola Scriptura. A failure to do so would be a failure to steward the church and the up and coming generations below us. My pastoral fear for the following generations is that they do not have the discernment to distinguish between a false gospel and the true Gospel. May the Spirit illuminate our eyes to see Jesus as beautiful and love our Father well. ____________________________________________
*footnotes
1. Jared C. Wilson, Gospel Wakefulness (Wheaton: Crossway, 2011), 203.
2. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1995), 45.
3. David Platt, Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream (Colorado Springs: Multnomah Books, 2010), 167.
4. A. W. Tozer, The Crucified Life: How to Live Out a Deeper Christian Experience (Minneapolis: Bethany House, 2011), 83.
5. John R. W. Stott, The Cross of Christ (Downers Grove: IVP Books, 2006), 279.
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McYoung Yang (M. Div., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary). He is the husband of Debbie Yang and the father to McCayden (9), McCoy (8), McColsen (6), and DeYoung (2). He is an Assistant Professor of Theology at Crown College in Saint Bonifacius, MN and is currently serving as a Counsel member of the Youth Ministry of the Hmong District of the C&MA. McYoung is continuing his post-graduate studies at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City, MO where he hopes to obtain his PhD in Theology. He hopes to use his training and platform as a means to serve the local church in living life through the Gospel lens. McYoung enjoys reading/writing, sports, and playing with his children. 