The Gospel Awakening

The Jollyblogger on The Gospel Awakening transforming American churches.

This Gospel Awakening would be marked by three shifts:

1. The Bible as Story - here's an excerpt from Drew's excerpt of a coalition statement:

In this perspective, the gospel appears as creation, fall, redemption, restoration. It brings out the purpose of salvation, namely, a renewed creation.

If this understanding of the gospel gains pre-eminence it will change our view of the gospel as being primarily concerned about the salvation of the individual soul, expanding it to see that the gospel offers salvation for soul and body, and for all of creation.

2. The Gospel as bigger than a salvational entry-ticket.

That follows from the above but emphasizes that gospel transformation is an ongoing lifelong process, not a one time event.

3. A Missional posture towards the culture.

This would be in contrast to a confrontational/oppositional posture towards the culture.

I think he is right - such understandings will radically alter the way we do Christianity and do church.

David Wayne (and Drew Goodmanson, who inspired his post) are speaking from within a Presbyterian context, but I believe we can see the beginnings of this shift in various branches of evangelicalism. In Vineyard churches, in Baptist churches, coming out of seminaries, in the emergent churches, in college ministries, in evolving "seeker churches," etc.
I am really hoping the American Church is on the verge of this shift also. Something's in the air, and while I'm not one of those "revival!"-mongers, I am praying for reformation. That was one of the mottos of the Reformation, after all -- "Always reforming!"