Heaven's Handwriting
An Eight-Track Church in a CD World was written in the 1990s by my good friend, Dr. Rob Nash. In his book, Rob urges the church to communicate the gospel to today’s culture in a language they can understand. We have an excellent example of God doing just that in chapter two of Matthew’s gospel.
We all know the story of the Magi. Persian astrologers in the East looked to the stars to guide them. They were so highly respected by their people that their word was needed to establish a king on the throne. This may be why they are often referred to as kings. But Magi or wise men is more accurate. And you may be interested to learn that we get our word magician from it. These men were pagan astrologers.
It is highly possible the Magi had heard of the promised Messiah from Daniel’s prophecies. As was their way, they looked to the stars for signs of his coming. And God spoke to them in their language. That star that led them to Jesus was nothing less than heaven’s handwriting.
It’s easy to miss the significance of the Magi in Matthew’s gospel. Matthew wrote primarily for Jews, but his message is that God’s people will come to His kingdom from the north, south, east, and west. Persian Magi and Roman centurions, all are welcome by God’s promised Savior. In Matthew 21:43 he quotes Jesus who says “Therefore I tell you the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.” This was the tragedy that befell God’s own people who rejected the promise of His kingdom through Jesus Messiah.
We are living in times in which we face some real challenges to communicating the gospel in the language of today’s culture. I’m convinced that this is the primary reason so many younger adults are leaving the church. There is a great deal of emphasis placed by many Christian leaders on repentance from specific sins. But the Greek word translated repentance in the New Testament literally means to change one’s way of thinking. And this change in thinking is not so much a one-time event as it is a lifelong process.
In my own life, I can tell you that God has, over time, revealed attitudes and behaviors that were opposed to His ways and His kingdom. But it took time. And it took exposure to mature, patient disciples of Jesus who accepted me and loved me for who and where I was in my relationship with Jesus.
Only God, through His Spirit, can convict and convince people of sin. Our responsibility is to love them where they are, pray for them, and trust God to move them from where they are to where He is calling them to be.
In Christ,
Dan
P.S. Just got back from LA and will be in the woods the rest of this week hunting. Look for my weekly Advent post this weekend.
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