The Disruptive Gospel
Has the Gospel Disrupted your life?
The Sadducees were one of the three major sects of the religious elite in Judaism in the first century. They enjoyed a large amount of political power however they lacked the popularity that the Pharisees and eventually the disciples held with the people.
These religious leaders were profoundly anti-revolutionary and therefore opposed to any belief or doctrine that would lead to a disruption of the way things were.
Now, I am not a disruptive individual. I tend to shy away from conflict, yet the gospel is disruptive. The gospel is not disruptive for disruption's sake, it is disruptive to the dark powers of this present age. It is disruptive to the hearts of humanity. God has declared all-out war against sin and the powers of this world. He comes to free the captives and call us home. This Gospel is disruptive in the same way that light is disruptive to darkness, bringing revelation and life to what was hidden. We are called to carry this disruptive Gospel to the darkest corners of our lives and our world.
I thank God that the Gospel is like a light to dark places.
Because that’s what it has been for me! I used to live in darkness but now I live in the light! I live with the Spirit of God dwelling within and I walk by faith, not by sight! Those of us who have experienced this light, this disruptive gospel, get to be part of bringing this message of hope and life to a dark and depressing world.
But the Sadducees don’t see it that way…
God uses Ordinary People
The Sadducees chose to cling to their own power jealously and so when a group began to rise up and make waves at the center of their power, the natural response was to try and shut it up.
They also hated the fact that these were unschooled and ordinary men!
God loves to use ordinary people to make an extraordinary impact.
When I was a child I had a speech impediment, I was slow to speak and was put in speech therapy. My parents were told that I wasn’t good at speaking and that I had trouble forming sentences, yet now I speak publicly and preach the gospel! The world had said I couldn’t speak, but God said, I’ll give him something to speak about. It doesn’t matter if the world writes you off when God wants to write you in!
The best part about that is that I can’t take the credit - because I’m ordinary but God is in the business of taking ordinary people and making extraordinary impact. All credit belongs to God, all the glory belongs to him and we get to experience the blessings!
God can take an ordinary life and transform it into something extraordinary.
The Gospel Transforms Lives
If God can transform the apostles from fearful cowering men… to men preaching the Gospel in front of the very people who have the power to kill them. God can transform your life too through the disruptive power of the gospel. What is this Gospel?
“The Gospel is this: we are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope.” - Tim Keller
That’s the transformational power of the Gospel!
