Are you blase to the gospel?

Soph’s happily playing over at a playdate and I’m here working hard on my speaker notes for my three conferences next month. (Yes, yes, a generous friend did quickly and happily offer to help me. See what a whiner–for no legitimate reason–I really am? Thank God for His grace!!)

In my “organizing” stage of prep, I came across a section of notes from a women’s retreat I did years ago and thought it might be interesting to you. I think that some of these words MAY be directly cribbed from Lane & Tripps, “How People Change” and/or Plantinga’s “Not the Way It’s Supposed to Be: A Breviary of Sin”–the two best books I read in 2005.

Anyway, here is the section from my outline from that 2005 event …

Are you kind of blasé to the gospel? Do you say—’Yeah, yeah … Christ is the Son of God, died on the cross for my sins. Whatever.’

If so, be careful!

The Christian life—in all its joy!—is to be one where we are daily, moment-by-moment overwhelmed by the gospel; overwhelmed by grace. And such a blasé attitude toward the things of God is a serious warning that things are not the way they are supposed to be.

Quoting Jill Carratini in a recent RZIM Slice of Infinity: ‘Someone once told me that the opposite of Christlikeness is not sinfulness like we might expect but apathy. The idea that follows is that even the worst sinner who cries out to God is actually closer to the heart of Christ than the one who stands apathetically.

The woman caught in adultery and clinging to the feet of Christ was far closer to the breath of God than the religious men with rocks beside her. The Samaritan woman at the well who was willing to hear the hard truth Jesus offered about her life was closer to the Spirit of God and the truth of Christ than many within his own race. In vast distinction, the apathetic stance of Pontius Pilate led him to ask flippantly, ‘What is truth?’ as he was staring truth incarnate in the eyes.’

Mmmmmmmm. I am so often so blase to grace of God!

Praying for a heart that beats for God alone–

Yours,
Tara B.

PS
Thanks again to everyone who has written and said that they are praying for me! What a gift you all give me. Thanks again! Love–tkb