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Christianity Today, April, 2008 |

Kingdom Sightings

A Multifaceted Gospel

Why evangelicals shouldn't be threatened by new tellings of the Good News.

Al Hsu | posted 4/10/2008 09:41AM

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Hence, we need variety and creativity in our gospel witness. A chorus of voices from N. T. Wright and Dallas Willard to Allen Wakabayashi and Brian McLaren calls us to rediscover the kingdom of God. Scot McKnight tells a story about the restoration of cracked eikons (image-bearers). Kevin Vanhoozer places the gospel in the context of an unfolding drama. James Choung's True Story offers a "four worlds" diagram in which we are designed for good, damaged by evil, restored for better, and sent together to heal.

Let us continue to explore and share the gospel in ways old and new. Whether we talk about justification by faith or defeating the powers, sight for the blind or reversal of entropy, freedom for the oppressed or healing of the nations, it's all good. The gospel is all of the above, and so much more.

Related Elsewhere:

Al Hsu (pronounced Shee) is an associate editor at InterVarsity Press. The author of several books, most recently The Suburban Christian, he blogs at TheSuburbanChristian.blogspot.com.

His earlier column was "The Vision Thing: Clarity came just as things got blurry." He also wrote on the Harry Potter craze.

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April 2008, Vol. 52, No. 4

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curtis

Posted: April 16, 2008 1:13 PM

Al- Fantastic article. CT- Thanks for letting this one be published, it's a breath of much needed fresh air. It's too bad that a lot of the comments on here seem to be saying that topics and discussions like these should be shut down. Can we really gain anything from ignoring, or refusing to talk about, these issues? The church's track record for dealing with change is not a good one, and we would be wise to remember it so we don't repeat our mistakes (flat-earth, heliocentrism, slavery, "worship wars", etc.)

Dianne

Posted: April 16, 2008 11:27 AM

Good article. While there may be danger in contextualizing the Gospel (which I think Jesus did), I also think there is equal danger in forcing it into a very small defined box. I have come to appreciate that God's good news is immensely greater and more powerful than the means through which he chose to perpetuate it - these earthly vessels. So I defer to the power of the truth. God can work through anything and doesn't need us to defend his word; we are called to let it change us and live it out.

Bob	Posted: April 14, 2008 2:39 PM


Good aticle. As long as we realize just what the "Gospel" is and not try and create another. The Bible defines the Gospel as The Death-The Burial- and the Ressurection of Jesus Christ. If we can teach it another way, but end up with this Truth....Great!