Catalyst 2011: Matt Chandler

The Explicit Gospel

When God calls, it doesn't mean that you're cutting edge, it means the Spirit is going to do what you cannot.

Everything I went to church-wise was lame. But the Spirit was calling, so I kept coming back.

Your heart, your relationship with God, your understanding of the gospel is what is important

What I was saved into was, "here are the rules". I stunk at it. I'd do well for a while and then stumble and fall.

We believe the gospel as something we do to get in the game and then move on to something else. Paul rips the Galatians for this--for being saved and then moving back to the law.

Paul preaches the gospel to Christians.

Romans 1:15, Paul: I wanted to come play a part in your sanctification

Galatians 1:6-9; Ephesians 1-2; Philippians 1:1-17

Everyone loves Francis Chan, because he's a freak

--he does what we all feel in our gut we ought to do and then does it

1 Corinthians 15:1-6

- quote from B.B. Warfield

- v1: "brothers" (Christians), "received" (salvation past tense), "stand" (present tense)

- v2: "being saved" (future present)

- the gospel is the meditation of our hearts and minds

- it is what we go back to over and over and over again

- all we need to know is the gospel; otherwise we give them list

- - the list is what Christ came to destroy

- people don't know what the gospel is

- that's why we struggle with secret sin, because we don't apply the gospel

What does it look like to apply the gospel?

Questions:

1) Have you trained your people to fight the flesh?

- how? Wrong: the threats of the law and the promises of heaven

- - obeying because we don't want to get cancer; that's idolatry!

- - it's those things you love, not God

- - if you want to go to heaven, then do this...

- - heaven is not a place for those afraid of hell, it is a place for those who love God

- how? Right: the weapons of grace

- a) the blood of Christ, Eph. 2:13

- - we are being fed self-esteem; it's not about you; we don't need to be

- b) the word of God: 2 Tim. 3:16-17; it shows us where the lie and the truth are

- c) the promise of the covenant, Heb. 9:15

- - Gal. 2:20, Chrisf paid the bill

2) Do you teach your people that sin is an external action (branches) or a state of the heart (root)?

- are you training people to attack the roots or the branches?

- if you treat the symptoms, your people die

- was it not the most well-behaved people that killed Jesus

- sin is a heart issue, not an external issue

3) Do you teach your people the weight of sin?

- in a lot of our preaching, we don't want them to feel it

- sin is heavy

- most of us don't deal violently with sin

- we give it quarters and categories

- we hate sin because it is an affront to the holiness of God

- I don't go in unaware of the fact that the enemy is set to destroy me

- I pray that the Lord will guard my eyes and heart to exalt Him

- God uses silly men to make much of Himself

- - I have to remember that or I'll make much of myself and make Him a liar

- - I need to be aware that God is on mission here and my comforts are on New Earth (Revelation)

You have nothing but the gospel. You can do a lot of things without the gospel, except see hearts transformed and see worshipers of God happen. And that's what we are created for--to worship. The only way to create right worshipers is to point people to the gospel over and over again. I don't care about your packaging; it's your content that matters. And you need to believe it yourself.

Do you believe this? Do you get this?