The other morning my son, Brody (5 years old), put his shirt on and not only was it inside out, but it was on backwards.  Usually I would say something to him, laugh with him about it, be silly, and then we would fix it.  This time, for whatever reason, I just let it go.  Some time that afternoon I noticed he had his shirt right side out and the tag was in the back.  I asked him about it and he told me that he noticed it and fixed it.  This is atypical of Brody who would usually want us to fix it for him.  Needless to say I was surprised and proud that he took his own initiative to fix his shirt.  It's the small things, people!

I have had this blog post in mind for some time.  The story of my son is a simple reminder that when we have eyes to see, we can see what is really meant for us in the Kingdom of God.  However, Jesus didn't really teach us to wear our shirts right side out and the tag in the back.  That was the message of the Pharisees.  Jesus wouldn't disagree that keeping the law of God is the right thing to do, but what Jesus saw as the law and what the Pharisees saw as the law were world(view)s apart.  The Pharisees could only see the law and the standard to live by from what was handed down for generations, since the days of Moses.  Jesus understood the law, but could only see (and know) the heart of God and the intent of the law.  Jesus knew that the law could never save God's people only an ultimate sacrifice could do that.

So, in many ways Jesus taught and lived out an upside down, inside out, tag-in-the-front, gospel.  But Jesus didn't teach and live this gospel to be noticed or simply for the practice of being unique, innovative, or different.  Jesus was interested in bringing heaven to earth.  Jesus grew weary of a law-filled life that actually would result in death.  The kind of life where joy is sucked from the marrow and leaves its people brittle and eventually broken, irreparable, unsalvageable.  The kind of life that when brokenness and sin enter and the pretty package of life that is promised by keeping the law, disintegrates leaving law-only followers blown away like chaff by the wind.

The gospel, good news, that Jesus brought, though new in approach and rhetoric in His day, lasts!  It creates a saving surge throughout the body giving hope, joy, and LIFE!  His gospel is the heart of God.  Where the law does not dissipate, but rather grows with deeper roots into the very nature of God.  The law become fulfilled through Christ and no longer does the law become the THING, but Jesus does.  We see God's heart through Christ.  We see that what God intended through the law is that His people would live upside down, inside out compared to those who live for the broken world.  Some believe that this means we must excavate ourselves from culture and live in gated isolation so that we aren't corrupted by the culture that invades our perfect Christian world.  Unfortunately, that is exactly what the Pharisees in scripture were after.  That was not Jesus' quest.  Remember he was the one who touched lepers, cast out demons in a graveyard, "worked" on the sabbath, called a tax collector to be his apostle, and often ate in the homes of tax collectors and sinners.  Jesus did not absolve himself from culture, but in reality immersed himself in the culture without changing who He was in God.

If we want to live the gospel.  We will be better off immersing ourself in culture and entering into relationships with people in our world.  When we choose this path we must keep our center, our core, strong.  Our relationship with Jesus will be tested and we must keep it first.  Then as we meet people, establish relationships, eat at their tables, God will use our stories and His gospel that is living in us to show a new path.  We must remember it is not our responsibility to manipulate an outcome for God.  We will be light bearers and God will take care of the rest.  Those that don't know Christ or have given up on him will appreciate our time, our words, our life that we are sharing with them.  It is those who stand on piety, law, and isolation that might attack our actions and maybe even our motive.  If so, then we are in good company.  And yes we will wake up in the morning and everyone will look and only see that we have put on our shirt inside out with the tag in the front.  But Jesus will see a follower, The Spirit will see thin space, and God will see a kingdom-meeting-earth-with-a-sweet-kiss moment. 

Who knows, maybe one day I will stand in the pulpit with my shirt inside out and tag in the front. 

I love slam poetry.  Propaganda is one of the best.  Since I've been blogging about the Gospel.  I thought I would share this.

I recently preached a series on Jonah and realized something about myself and much of the preaching that I have heard in my last 10-15 years.  When we have preached the gospel (and by that I mean the story of Jesus), we have chosen to show only the charming Jesus.  I think there are many reasons for this and I'm not saying that seeing the charming Jesus is all that bad.  However, after growing up hearing a gospel that basically said, "Get RIGHT or get LEFT(behind that is)" I wanted to make sure that when people read their Bible, attend church, enter Bible studies, hear sermons, know that Jesus is FOR them, not against them.  

As I said in a sermon recently, we have swung the pendulum the other direction and become unwilling to show the challenge that Jesus gives his followers.  In this particular context I was preaching on Jonah, where Jonah defies God and runs and is quickly in a Perfect Storm and by the end of Chapter 1 is swallowed by a Big Fish.  Here's the deal Jonah's repentance is an extraordinary story of grace and mercy as much as it is a story of challenge to Jonah.  What we see as a challenge or the "negative" side to religion is not seen the same way to God.  If one of my children runs after their ball going into the street and I stop them at the last minute, they may be upset that their ball got run over, but I am relieved it wasn't them.  The same is true of God and us and at a much deeper level.

We have to preach a gracious and merciful God who is the definition of unconditional love.  And we need to preach that we should be people who live like that is true.  We live that way through our actions, our thoughts, our words, and our love.  I'm not saying we create a factory that creates perfect people.  What we are doing is living God's dream for us in the midst of this broken world that surrounds us.

God is the hero.  We are one in need of a savior.  We are saved and therefore live a life of devotion to God and love.  We love Him and Love the people He loves.  We live for God and live the love that He has.  This is the balance.  Grace and Reverence.  Mercy and REsponsibility.  Freedom and choice.