Recently I came across these positive words in my reading: “I choose to concentrate on the potential of God’s perfection within each of us, rather than to concentrate on ways in which we may have missed the mark of His perfection.” That statement flows right along with the emphasis of our positive ministry.
When we talk of God’s positive Word and a positive emphasis to Christianity, some feel we are dealing with only half the truth. But this is not so. The Bible is quite clear on the fact that there are actions, beliefs, and concepts in which we should no longer engage.
However, nowhere do any of these statements appear as the major emphasis of scripture addressed to those who are children of God. In almost every case statements such as “put off lying” etc., are balanced immediately by commands such as to “put on love”.
The truth is that most folk know those areas of their lives where they are “missing the mark” (the meaning of the Greek word translated “sin”) and where they lack or come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). What they must hear is not so much how they need to give up those actions and thoughts, but how they need to know Christ and become a member of God’s forever family. As a child of God they will then have the indwelling power of God which will enable them to “put off” whatever is counter-productive in their lives.
This then is the purpose of our ministry: to show people that there is meaning to life and that they can have self-esteem, and that these positive concepts become theirs when they put their faith and trust in God. Our emphasis is not on sin but on the Savior from sin, Christ Jesus! In saying that, we do not condone the actions that make people “miss the mark”; there is no question that they are wrong in God’s sight. However, we place the emphasis where God places it in His Word — and the only thing He says to those outside His family is: Join the Family! And that is very simple to do, according to Romans 10:9: “If you will confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, you will be saved.” The emphasis is not on the confession of sin but on confessing Christ as the Lord of your life.
Those words I quoted earlier are of great importance to us within God’s family as we view the lives and actions of humanity around us. “I choose to concentrate on the potential of God’s perfection within each of us, rather than to concentrate on ways in which we may have missed the mark of His perfection.” Whenever we “tut tut” to a person about their lifestyle we naturally turn them off — and lose the opportunity to declare how good God is (Psalm 119:68) and how He wants them to have nothing but the best — health, wealth, and happiness!
I had a phone call from a writer preparing a book on South Australian churches for the State’s 150th celebrations. He wanted to know what we taught and so I shared that phrase, “God wants nothing but the best for us — health, wealth, and happiness.” He said, “But that’s not a Biblical phrase!” Well, those three words may not appear together in the one place, but each truth is clearly taught in the Bible.
If you feel an overwhelming desire to lead someone to “repentance”, to use the common evangelical phrase, then let me emphasize this verse to you: “…the goodness of God leads to repentance” (Romans 2:4). Telling people how “bad” they are turns them off! Telling people how good God is, turns them on! The first is negative; the second, positive. Let’s release our negative thoughts about other people and tell folk how God wants to help them in their family life, in their finances, in their health. Let’s portray God’s family as the attraction it really is. If they would honestly assess all the benefits, both now and in the future, of belonging to God’s family, they would want to be part of it right now! The choice of presentation is yours — I choose to emphasize the positive for God’s glory.
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