The Shock Factor

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I have grown tired of sanding down the rough edges of the gospel. God's Word is meant to convict. When Jesus says, "[G]o, sell what you possess and give to the poor" (Matt. 19:21), his words at least merit a pause. If nothing I own, even belongs to me, but belongs to the Creator, than should I go and sell all that I have? Do I see my possessions as items given to me by God to be given freely to those around me? Or do I see them as mere baubles that I have earned?

What about this one? "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me" (Lk. 9:29). This should bring a sharp pain to the gut. Are you ready to die following Jesus? I am not talking a symbolic death; I am talking a real dead as a door nail death. Surely, every day that I follow Jesus I draw a little bit closer to death, and it is possible that one day someone will kill me because of what I believe. We must at least consider the possibility that Jesus meant what he said.

Let us stop conforming the gospel to what we want it to say, and start allowing the gospel to shape us.