What’s the Main Thing? The Gospel.

by Pastor Al

Have you ever been distract… (Hang on, I need to take this call). Ok, what was I saying? Oh yeah. Distractions. They happen so frequently in our… (What did you think would happen if you threw that banana at your brother?) Sorry, sometimes the kids get a bit wild. Distractions are what I would really like to talk about this month in my article. "Article" is such a funny word. Who came up with such a word? Hang on, I’m Googling it right now… 13th century, Anglo-French. And if you’re ever on Jeopardy, you’re welcome!

So distractions happen a lot in our lives.

We are a busy people. Not just the Fuller family, but our culture in general. We tend to quickly fill time with all sorts of adventures, quasi-important to-do’s and many time-wasters. This month, throw in the stress of relative visits, cookie construction, tree trimming, egg-nogging and other festive merriment as we try to whip up the perfect Christmas season, and you have some pretty frazzled people.

I don’t know about you, but when I get distracted from the goal or task at hand I need to remind myself what is the main thing. The life of a believer in Christ can be quite distracting as well, as we remain busy within the ministries of the church. The ministries are not bad. Lack of focus on the main thing is bad.

So, what’s the main thing? Are you ready? It’s the Gospel. God created man to reveal God’s glory, though sin would smudge the image and cause separation between a Holy God and sinful man. Though totally undeserving, man would be rescued by God through Jesus Christ. His life, death, burial and resurrection would satisfy the payment for sin so that those who believe in the Son (Jesus) might have life, and not just any life, but abundant life.

That is our main thing. So simple. So complex. So amazing!

The Gospel is what should be at the blazing center of our lives. We need to understand that everything is secondary, or, better yet, that everything in life flows from it. The apostle Paul even tells us to eat and drink to the glory of God. There is joy in us when Christ is glorified, a joy that the world doesn’t know what to do with. It’s a joy that even endures horrible mall traffic, a joy that withstands a child’s holiday boredom, a joy that is solid amidst schedule chaos!

A natural outworking of the Gospel in our lives should be this joy. Remember, joy is so much deeper than "happiness." Happy comes and goes, but joy lasts even in times of struggle and trials.

Before I head off to the next distraction or business of life, I will leave you with this. Take time to read to these words, let them soak in, and remind yourself of the greatest rescue mission of all time as we celebrate the real reason this season:

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him." -John 3:16-17 (ESV)