A question many people ask is, “What’s in it for me?” This kind of thinking is one of the end results of existential philosophy that offers no hope but only despair.
This line has crept into many universities, theological seminaries and churches all over the world. Much of theology today is anthropology – meaning it is mostly man-centred. The question, “What’s in it for God?” does not seem to cross people’s minds. But that is the question I would put to you as we enter the Christmas season.
So, what is in it for God? The answer is, what’s in it for him is what’s in it for you.
The reason for Christmas is about God: his Son, his love, his plan and his purpose, and ultimately his glory. A key word that makes this clear is ‘sent’. It comes largely from the Gospel of John. God sent Jesus from heaven to earth. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. … The Word became flesh” (John 1:1,14).
The Word became f lesh because Jesus was sent by the Father. The term sent and its derivatives are found almost 60 times in the Gospel of John. Jesus came to earth because of the Father’s purpose. Jesus did not come to do his own will but the will of him who ‘sent’ him (John 6:38). The Son can do ‘nothing of himself’ but only what he sees the Father doing (John 5:19). He said, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to finish his work,” (John 4:34). In other words, it was a God-centred mission.
What is a saviour?
Denne historien er fra December 2019-utgaven av Direction Magazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra December 2019-utgaven av Direction Magazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
‘Imagine Everyone On This Planet Is Your Equal'
David Beasley, Executive Director of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning UN World Food Programme, reveals the words his work is founded on
God Sets The Example Of Adoption...
Many people have ruled themselves out for fostering or adoption when the system would rule them in, explains Krish Kandiah
The Work Of Missionaries In Lockdown
When lockdown brought Ian and Katie Moore’s mission work in Macedonia to a halt, they used the time to seek a refined vision for reaching their local area. They told Chris Rolfe their story
How Nurse Helped Acid Attack Model Find Faith
Katie Piper explains how a life-changing incident changed her life in more ways than she expected as she recovered in hospital
Big Challenges Issued At Online Conference
Elim’s first online theological conference examines how our understanding of the ‘End Times’ shapes our view of mission
Lockdown in London deepened my faith
Living alone in London may not have been what he dreamed about, but Chelsea’s Christian Pulisic says it has driven him closer to God
The Really Good News about new initiative!
Elim’s new online mission programme could be the biggest evangelistic outreach we’ve ever done, says national evangelist Mark Greenwood. As we gear up for Easter, he gives the lowdown on the campaign
It's the gospel of liberation, not renovation
When Jesus was 30 he went to the prison of sin, and knocked on the door. Satan opened that little window and said, “What do you want?” Jesus told him: “I have come to set the captives free!” A sermon by the late Reinhard Bonnke
The mystery of Skull Hill
Skull Hill is a rocky hill rising just outside the north wall of Jerusa-lem, not far from the Damascus Gate. It was given that name because of the striking resemblance to a human skull appearing on the weather-beaten formation of its southern face.
A decade of mission
With an Easter evangelism programme, the Elim Leaders Summit and a renewed call to mission, General Superintendent Chris Cartwright outlines Elim’s plans for 2021 and beyond
