I was in a meeting yesterday with a bunch of very smart dudes and one of them raised the question, "Do you ever think we make an idol out of the 'Gospel?'" What he meant was, do we ever prioritize the "Gospel" (what God did) so highly that we are worshiping that instead of God.
What a great question.
Is it possible we idolize the gift more than the giver? Absolutely. Is this idolatry? Absolutely. We don't worship God because Christ came and lived the perfect life and then died in our place; we worship Him because He is God.
The beauty of the gift of the Gospel is what it shows us about the Giver. What God gave us was not a way out of hell, or world peace, or even happiness. What He gave us was Himself. The beauty of the Gospel is not just what was accomplished, but who He is. Is it possible we emphasize Jesus living, dying, and resurrecting while neglecting the Incarnation - God quite literally giving us Himself in a way and shape that we would know (and thus love) Him better?
So, do we love the Giver because of what He accomplished, or do we love the gift because it helps us know and love the Giver more?
Thoughts?
Hmm...interesting question Matt. Sounds to me like it was JD that raised the question haha. I can hear him speaking.
ReplyDelete"Is it possible we idolize the gift more than the giver"? Well, in the case of the "gospel", the "gift" of the "giver" is Jesus himself. The Giver gives Jesus, so gives himself. Is it idolatry to idolize that gift?
I think going deeper, the pattern continues. The "gift's" life was light. God is light. The "gift's" teaching was truth. God is truth. The "gift's" model was our way. God is the way. The "gift's" cross was love. God is love. The "gift's" dying was redemption. God is mercy. The "gift's" rising was life. God is resurrection. See, all these things are intrinsic to the nature of God.
We don't know what love is, what mercy is, what truth is, without knowing a piece of God. We believe God IS these things, so without him, there wouldn't be love, mercy, truth.
I am the bread of life. I am the light of the world. I am the gate for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I am the resurrection and the life. I am the way, the truth, and the life. I am the true vine. See what I'm getting at?
These are who Jesus is, who God is. The gift's ministry and life defined himself, defines the giver. Even the "gift's" gift was the Spirit. The Spirit united to the Father and Son as one.
But I see your point Matt. We should never idolize things God gives (besides Jesus/HS) more than God himself. Our worship should stem from the simple acknowledgement of who God is. Period.
From a Catholic perspective, you nailed it. Our Mass, our worship, our churches are centered around the Eucharist, for it is the giver, is the incarnation. The Catholic Church teaches that it is the "source and summit", "sum and summary" of our faith. And why wouldn't it be? If it is Jesus, then everything we believe stems from that. But the beauty of having his body, blood, soul, and divinity present in the Eucharist means that it is God in his incarnation and God on the cross and God resurrected. It is the Giver and the Gift and everything that God is defined through by what he accomplished.
I kinda see your point Matt, but I feel that if you were really to cling to the gospel, cling to the cross, cling to his teaching, you'd love the Giver even more.