Last week I wrote that I would continue to talk about some things I would change about the book and movie The Shack if I could. But I've decided to go in another direction this week. (If you have an inteest in other critiques of The Shack, I would reccomend searching online for those written by Katherine Jeffrey or Albert Mohler.)The elders and I are excited to think that a high percentage of Gateway members will be reading, more importantly applying, the book Contagious Christianity. If our whole church is both equipped and energized to share our faith with others, I can only imagine what God will do. Here's a sample of what we'll learn from the book. In this section, the authors are looking at three parables found in Luke 15. Regarding these parables it says:The shepherd retrieved the sheep and threw a party. The woman found the coin and threw another party. The son came home and the father threw the biggest party of all. And in Luke 5:10 Jesus says, "In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."When I read that text for the first time, I thought of my own life. I was a cocky, rebellious, self-willed seventeen year old who thought I knew how to get to heaven by impressing God with my religiosity. But then, through the influence of the Bible and caring Christian friends, it became clear to me that I could never string together enough righteousness to impress a Holy God. What I needed was to admit my sins, turn away from them, and trust Christ to be my forgiver, friend, and leader.I remember exactly where I was standing when I took that critical step. I was at Christian camp in southern Wisconsin, and I just broke down and repented. According to Luke 15:10, do you know what happened next? All of heaven erupted in a magnificent cosmic celebration. There was an enormous party with the honoree's name on the banner - and it was mine! When that dawned on me I remember thinking, "I must really matter to God!" It was almost overwhelming to me!If you're a genuine Christ-follower, the same thing happened when you acknowledged your sin and trusted in Him. Whether last week or forty years ago, all of heaven erupted in a party, and your name was on the banner. Do you see how much you are treasured by God?And if you think you know what joy is now, just wait until you're a primary planner in the process that leads one of your friends to Christ. You're going to almost explode with joy when you take part in that person's celestial celebration. That's only natural, especially when you realize that you actually helped get their name on the banner!Does that pique your interest? There's nothing like the adventure of being used by God to spread His love, truth, and life to other people - people who matter deeply to Him. So let's get on with it!
