Why The Title “Gospel Conscious, Glory Seeking”
It is a privilege to blog for Advent Christian Voices. My posts will be a bit eclectic but the overall trajectory of what I will write and aim to communicate concerns what I call Gospel consciousness. This simply means striving to maintain and grow in one’s awareness of the Gospel. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the best news that anyone can hear and receive. It is not a commandment or counsel or a directive but good news! It is to be believed and received for it is good news for the one who hears it. As it is received as the good news it truly is, it is life changing because by believing its content a sinner is reconciled to the Creator! The source of this good news is the Triune God. It is the good news that comes from God to fallen and rebellious image-bearers. The Father originated the good news, the Son accomplished the work that constitutes this good news and the Holy Spirit enables us to hear and to value and to open our hearts and minds to the good news.
However, it is not merely good news for the beginning of our Christian lives. It is good news throughout our lives. Yet, the Gospel does not come with the bells, whistles and pizzazz that this world offers and what, at times, our hearts find attractive. The Gospel is not slick but it is substantive and is the only truth that gives genuine and lasting joy. There are indeed many, many, many false gospels that compete for our hearts. So it is imperative, in that it is necessary for one’s very life and well being, to keep the true Gospel front and center, hence the notion of Gospel consciousness. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the power of God for salvation for all who believe (Romans 1:16). Holding to the Gospel by faith in a deliberate and conscious manner provides true refreshment for the weary and is the motivation and the power to live the Christian life. So it is vital for me and for you to be Gospel conscious.
The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the message that God gives Himself to the sinful and the undeserving. It is the message of saving and keeping grace. It is the offer of the forgiveness of sins and justification before God. The Gospel tells us, who have believed its content, that not only are our sins now forgiven due to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, but that Jesus now intercedes for us before the Throne of Grace and has given us the gift of the Holy Spirit, who seals us and hence keeps us as God’s own children. The Gospel informs us that through Jesus Christ we have unlimited and unhindered access to that Throne of Grace. As we continue to look to Jesus the author and perfecter of our faith, we will obtain assurance of finishing the race we started. So my main objective is to maintain and grow in Gospel consciousness, for as the Gospel grips my heart anew every day I find strength to walk in daily obedience under the easy yoke of Jesus Christ, who is gentle and lowly in heart but clear regarding His Lordship over my life.
The Gospel is also the window or platform from which we begin to see God’s glory. The Gospel underscores God’s glory. In Ephesians 1:3-14 Paul tells us that in Christ God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places. Then he unpacks those spiritual blessings in terms of God’s saving grace. The Father has chosen us in Christ. We have been redeemed in Christ. We have obtained our inheritance in Christ and we have been sealed with the Holy Spirit due to our union with Christ. Here is the Gospel. Sit down and read the text through slowly, carefully and prayerfully. Let your mind and heart soak in this passage and note how you cannot help but yearn to know this Triune God better. As Paul wrote these words about the Gospel he kept pointing his readers to God’s glory. It is as though he is saying, “as the reality of Gospel grace reaches your consciousness the reflex is to seek God’s glory for the Gospel’s ultimate end is in fact God’s glory.”
So in verses 5 and 6 we read: “He predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ...to the praise of the glory of His grace” In verses 11 and 12 Paul writes: “In Him we have obtained inheritance...to the praise of His glory.” Finally, in verses 13 and 14 we find: “In Him when you heard the word of truth, the Gospel of our salvation, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit...to the praise of His glory.” These three refrains give the supporting structure to Ephesians 1:3-14. What this tells me is that the glory of God, which one day all believers will encounter and by which we will be finally fully transformed, is something on which we are to set our affections and thoughts now.
The Gospel, when consciously apprehended, always sets our hearts upon the glory of the living God. The Gospel gives us the spiritual and theological vantage point from which to gaze upon the inherent splendor of our gracious God. It is as we cultivate daily Gospel consciousness that we will also “seek the things above where Christ is seated at the right hand of God (and) set our minds on the things above...where our lives even now are hidden with Christ in God…(so that) when Christ, who is our life appears we will also appear with Him in glory” (Colossians 3:1-4).
Gospel consciousness and seeking glory have been resonating within my mind and heart for sometime. I am not saying that I have mastered staying conscious of the Gospel nor am I saying that I am always yearning for a taste of God’s glory. No, I am one who sees the importance of both, knows my deficiency with both and for those reasons welcomes all the help I can find to keep cultivating Gospel consciousness and pursuing more of the fullness of God’s glory.
So, here I will share my musings with those who may find them helpful and I trust that God will be honored and you dear reader will join me in the pursuit of Gospel consciousness that compels us to seek more of God’s glory.