The Gospel Is Peace

by Ann Spangler

Most of us live in a world populated by people who don’t think like us. Either they don’t believe in Jesus at all or they don’t believe in Jesus the way we do. How can we live at peace with others even when our values and aspirations are worlds apart?

I like what John Piper has to say about the importance of daily being “stunned by grace in our lives.” As he told the staff at his church one day, “If we aren’t amazed by grace towards us, we will be a finger-pointing church mainly.” According to Piper, the key is to be more amazed that you are saved than that others are lost.(1)

Though I don’t care for finger pointing in general, I think Piper’s focus offers a healthy antidote to the notion that to get along with others in our multicultural, multi-theological world, you have to throw out your brains and your beliefs in order to pretend that all religions are equally valid.

Because some in the church have been harsh and condemning in their treatment of people who don’t think like they do, it is tempting to conclude that disagreeing is always wrong. Better to keep peace by skirting the issues, pretending they don’t exist. But that would be foolish. Instead of buying into an ideal of political correctness, we need to learn how to contend for the faith in a way that persuades, not merely through the power of our words, but also through the power of the love we put into those words.

Our goal as Christians is not to win arguments but to spread the gospel so that others might join us on the side of marveling at the stunning grace of God.

(1) John Piper, “How Do You Remain Humble?,” The Christian Post, May 6, 2011, accessed May 13, 2011, http://www.christianpost.com/news/how-do-you-remain-humble-50129.