Scot McKnight is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. He is a first-rate theologian who knows how to take profound concepts and make them understandable — a feat he pulls off extraordinarily well in The King Jesus Gospel: The Original Good News Revisited
[T]he gospel is, first of all, framed by Israel’s Story: the narration of the saving Story of Jesus — his life, his death, his resurrection, his exaltation, and his coming again — as the completion of the Story of Israel.
Second, the gospel centers on the lordship of Jesus. In ways that anticipate the Nicene Creed, the gospel of Peter and Paul is anchored in an exalted view of Jesus. Jesus is seen as suffering, saving, ruling, and judging because he is the Messiah and the Lord and the Davidic Savior. He is now exalted at the right hand of God.
Third, gospeling involves summoning people to respond. Apostolic gospeling is incomplete until it lovingly but firmly summons those who hear the gospel to repentance, to faith in Jesus Christ, and to baptism.
Fourth, the gospel saves and redeems. The apostolic gospel promises forgiveness, the gift of God’s Holy Spirit, and justification. …
Another way of putting it is this: the gospel is the Story of Israel that finds resolution in the saving Story of Jesus, and that story is about God’s work in his world in the people of God. If we are to embrace the Gospel in order to create a gospel culture, we will also embrace the story of the Bible as a story about the people of God. We will embrace the church, warts and all, as the people of God. A gospel culture is a church culture, and it is a church culture that is being transformed — together — into a gospel culture … .
McKnight seeks to redefine “gospel” in terms that include the prophetic background of the Messiah, the work of Jesus on earth, and his exalted status in heaven. Jesus is our Savior, indeed, but his is also our Lord — a message that is often lost due to the over-emphasis on salvation in evangelical preaching.
Of course, salvation is promised and important, but so is transformation. So is submission. So is entry into the Kingdom. And understanding the Kingdom helps us rethink Christianity as more than a set of moral precepts we must honor to avoid falling from grace. Rather, the Kingdom calls us to the see the world differently, to change worldviews, to see the church and the culture in a very different light.
McKnight criticizes the revivalistic version of the gospel that prevails in many of our pulpits —
Most of evangelism today is obsessed with getting someone to make a decision; the apostles, however, were obsessed with making disciples.
The gospeling of the apostles in the book of Acts is bold declaration that leads to a summons while much of evangelism today is crafty persuasion.
Finally, McKnight distinguishes the true gospel from the “soterian” gospel — defined as a gospel that’s solely about getting saved.
When we reduce the gospel to only personal salvation, as soterians are tempted to do, we tear the fabric out of the Story of the Bible and we cease even needing the Bible.
In fact, we all know that a tract is entirely sufficient.
This is an excellent introduction to Kingdom theology from a master theologian, written in terms easily understood.
Well, I guess I’m gonna have to go ahead and read this book. I’ve been trying to avoid it, because I have a problem with the basic idea, as presented in every review of it I’ve read, including this one. Maybe it will make better sense to me after I read what McKnight writes.
This phrase gives me troubles: “the gospel is the Story of Israel that finds resolution in the saving Story of Jesus, and that story is about God’s work in his world in the people of God.” The only way I can, at this point, see this to be true is if by “Israel”, Mr. McKnight means ALL of those who are, in the end, God’s people – – the Romans 9:8 “children of the promise”, which would include the church and those Hebrews who were faithful under their covenant. If Mr. McKnight means the the gospel is the story of the resolution through Jesus of the story of Israel “proper” – – the Hebrews and their physical descendants – – then I’m thinking I can’t go there.
Am I off-base on this? Reckon I’ll have to spring for the book after all.
Dr McKnight… Sam, what makes you think McKnight means the Jews? Have you read his blog?
No, I haven’t yet, which is why I’m open to reading the book. Haven’t wanted to pay for it yet. But I (perhaps erroneously) concluded that Mr. McKnight meant the Hebrew nation because I’ve seen that sentence in probably every review and critique of the book I’ve seen, and that seems to me to be the most natural reading of that sentence.
Apologies . . . I didn’t realize I should be typing Dr. McKnight, rather than Mr. That’s how little I know about him.
He doesn’t strike me as a man who is concerned with titles, so I was amused by your use of the “Mr”. His blog is here: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/jesuscreed/ One of the best blogs, IMNSHO
Ah. Ok. I was just being polite. It seems to me a bit impersonal and standoff-ish to always just use last names when conversing about people, so I often include the Mr. or Mrs. or Miss, if I know them.
His “Blue Parakeet” is a great book!