As Many as Had Been Appointed

 

June 27, 2011 [Monday],

Dear Fellow Travelers,

          The following is another quote from John Fischer’s book, “On a Hill Too Far Away”, p. 77: “We do a disservice to the cross and the gospel when we try to explain it or make it obvious to everyone. If it could be understood by human wisdom, it would cease to be what it is. The cross is one thing we don’t want to simplify. Its meaning is not going to pop into place for everyone. Nor is it up to us to make it make sense. Christians need to learn to resist the temptation to make the gospel seem obvious. This has been our problem for the past twenty-five years. We need to learn to be more comfortable with ambiguity. When we present the gospel to our culture, we are, in many ways, asking them to stare at a bunch of blotches on a page. We are always trying to get everyone to see what we see, but this is impossible. The message of the cross is purposely countercultural; its meaning cannot be grasped by everyone, but only by those to whom God chooses to reveal it. Our job is not to get people to believe, but to hold up the picture. God’s job is to make the image pop into place.”

          Whether or not we like it, the fact of the matter is this: the message of the cross will be grasped ONLY by those to whom God chooses to reveal it. “And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed” (Acts 13:48 NASB; emphasis mine).

          Actually, it is quite alright for God to do things just as He chooses to do them, irrespective of our pompous ideas of our own opinions.

          You think about that—