Imitating Christ - Preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom

Is Christianity Relevant in Postmodern Times? Are we trying to make it relevant with our commitment to follow Christ? Do we fish for men or do we stop to look at the world as a gigantic aquarium full of human beings condemned to an eternity without Christ? What does it mean to walk with Jesus in a world where culture behaves indifferently ignorant about of Christ and offensively hostile to his teachings? What are the convictions that accredit us as Christians to confirm and share the values of the Kingdom? Sadly still many (churches included) see and defend Christianity only as the giver of a perspective that indoctrinates moral values that the world cannot offer. I call this a holiness in dress code or a Christianity focused on behavior and not on the transformation of lives by the grace of God. A new kind of self-righteousness.

And as there are still not many who compel the nominal Christian to move his feet and look for bait and bait in the trunk of his memories, Christianity today is for many “out there” totally irrelevant. The only biblical way to transform society is by bringing people to the feet of Christ, preaching the gospel of the Kingdom, a single, non-sectarian, non-denominational, only and exclusively gospel of the Kingdom.

Evangelical churches rise up announcing that “the signs of the end of time are already visible”, and only raise their eyes to heaven as if crying out for mercy, but they forgot to “go”, to “send”, to be obedient to the Great Commission (Matthew 28). The word of truth spoken by Jesus stayed in the mind and in the plans, but only on an intellectual level: "And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come" (Mt 24.14). There are those who care more about "the coming of the end" than about the gospel.

Recently God led me to read a tremendous verse: “For we are the fragrant aroma of Christ among those who are saved…” (2 Cor 2.15). If we know that the adversary and god of this world has clouded the mind of man so that he does not see the light of the gospel of Christ (2 Cor 4.4) then why do we not imitate Christ looking for the lost to be transformed by the power of the Spirit ? Why don't we pledge to humbly spread that fragrant aroma to the glory of the living God, Jesus Christ our Lord? Faith is not a slogan, but involvement in God's mission to transform people's lives in society, intelligently permeate it with the Word, saturate it with a call to trust in the only hope. No one can bear witness to such hope if they do not have Christ. Having Christ is enough.

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach the gospel ..." (Lk 4.18). And is not the Spirit that anointed Jesus the same that has anointed his people? Or is there a special anointing to be sent to announce the good news? It is about imitating Christ… no one else. He remains the center of the entire universe and no one else can occupy that place.

To imitate Christ proclaiming the gospel of the Kingdom is the beginning of all hope of transformation of this world. Christianity is relevant on its own, for its message of faith and hope in Christ intended for every creature. But there is a Christianity out there that shows a conformist face, caretaker of the status quo, that says - I have faith and I believe in Christ, but I have no idea how God can work through me. Sanctified by the word of truth, we are anointed by the Spirit to do so, called to proclaim the glorious gospel just like Christ. Imitate Him!

God bless you!