From: eric
Date: Tue Nov 25 16:02:19 MST 2003
Subject: How we become Christians

1 Thessaionians has very interesting take on this idea. Paul never uses the word justify or any derivations of it to explain the process. He, in chapter one, talks about the gospel coming to the Thessaionians in the power of the Spirit. They accepted that gospel not as to word of man, but the word of God that is working in them. If you are willing to accept that Paul saw himself as herald of the coming King. Then the picture that 1 Thessaionians paints is one of Paul coming to town and announcing that the crucified Jesus is the Lord of the world. This is obviously not, "Here is a way to be saved - try it, you might like it." This is an imperial summons: "On your knees!" It would be very difficult for you to find a historical instance where someone went into a town and said, Caesar is lord and you might like to acknowledge him if you want to. No they said, Caesar is Lord, bow before him and pay taxes right now. What is interesting about the message that Paul announced, some people actually believed, and that is kinda surprising because the gospel is rather absurd and Paul acknowledges it as absurd. Think about it, Paul must have felt rather silly going around the Roman-Greek world telling people that the crucified Jesus is the Lord of the world. I'm sure at times he thought he was insane, but what continually happen was that communities emerged because of his announcement of the Gospel - people started loving each other . . . and that is grace. People heard this message and left Caesar behind. They bowed to the New King - King Jesus. I believe following Jesus in a postmodern world begins first with a statement of allegiance, and then a willingness to sit down at the dinner table with the filthy Gentiles (Gal 2:11-21) and eat dinner in the new Kingdom of God. I believe that justification has more to do with who you are willing to eat dinner with than how you “get saved.” Justification is about who in the Kingdom, not how they got there. The the second part of follow Jesus is to step into Paul shoes and become a Herald of the Gospel. Heralds do not enforce the Kings Laws, they announce the Kings arrival and commands. I think Christians have two Job's. The first is to announce to people that they are in a new Kingdom and are accountable to Jesus, and second we are guides for those who have newly enter the kingdom. We cannot demand that they be circumsized and become exactly like us in custom and tradition. We must help them develop their own identiy in the Kingdom of God.

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