The Gospel

A young person said to me recently: “Do you ever feel that religion is too complicated?”

Her question brought to mind the story of a very righteous man who was explaining to a friend the difference between his church and a neighbouring one with which his church had been in conflict for decades.?”One church believes that you are baptized into Christ, and the other believes that you are baptized in Christ,”? he said. “There has been strife, arguments and battles over the issue for as long as anyone can remember, and I would wager my soul that my church is correct and that the other one is wrong. It is a matter of faith!”

Whereupon his friend inquired, “Which does your church believe—that you are baptized into Christ or baptized in Christ?”
“For the life of me I can never remember,”? replied the man.

Although it would be helpful if we were able to explain the Christian faith in 10 easy lessons or six simple phrases, the truth is the relationship between God and humanity has never been simple. Any effort to dilute the gospel or to say complex things in simplistic ways is to do a disservice to the quest for truth. However, there are a couple of ways to clarify profound things.

The first is to tell stories. When Jesus wanted to make a point he would tell a story about a young man who left home, or a despised Samaritan who came to the rescue of a Jew, or a shepherd who had lost a sheep. By telling stories to convey the truth about God, Jesus was doing no more than rabbis and sages before him had done for centuries.

However, there is another way to make the eternal understandable. For example, certain ethical demands don’t require overly complex explanations. One doesn’t need an interpreter to comprehend these words from Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount: “In everything do to others as you would have them do to you for this is the law and the prophets” (Matthew 7:12).

We live in a sometimes unkind world. This is true in every area of our society. Children are often cruelly bullied. Politicians, business leaders, entertainers and athletes will often forgo basic human decency to gain an advantage over others. Even the church is not exempt. It sometimes amazes me how unkind sisters and brothers in Christ can be to each other.

So, if you are confused about Christianity and have a hard time getting your mind wrapped around what it professes, why not begin by being intentionally kind to others? In fact one could argue that the gospel can be summarized by saying that God has been very kind to us and to live in God’s sight means showing that kindness to others. If that is not the end of the matter, it is certainly a great place to begin.

Sometimes it is simple, as simple as doing to others as we would have them do to us. So be it.