The Adventure of the Great Commission
Most people don’t like conflict. Isn’t there enough debate and dissension in the world already? Shouldn’t religion be a force for good in the world, a way of bringing people together? Discussing religious points of view, insisting on clear and distinct lines in matters of doctrine—what good comes from it all? Besides, most Western people see religion in terms of personal spirituality, something isolated, true for me or true for you, not a message applicable to everyone.
These cultural trends put confessing Christians in a quandary. The fundamental doctrines of our faith won’t let us privatize Christianity. The Bible’s story isn’t true only in our hearts or in our faith community. At the heart of Christianity stands the claim that Jesus Christ has been raised from the dead. That’s public truth. It changes not just us but the world. If the resurrection is true, everything is different.
Orthodoxy and the Missionary Encounter
The thrill of orthodoxy is that the truth takes on the world. We leave our comfort zones for the excitement of spreading the good news. We commit to going beyond the walls of our churches, to being the church in a countercultural way for the good of the world. The adventure of the Great Commission requires the delivery of a message, whether it’s welcome or not—news unchanged, undomesticated, untamed. We must not attempt to declaw the Lion of Judah as we declare the Lamb of God. Faithfulness to the gospel is not for the faint of heart; it requires courage and boldness.
The gospel’s uniqueness. The primary way Christianity takes on the world is by declaring something different from any other religion. Yes, we can find similarities with other faiths, and from a sociological perspective we see that various religions, alternative spiritualities, and wellness rituals may have salutary effects on a person’s well-being. But the gospel is not good advice, a new ethic, or another option for spiritual improvement. It is news about an event. The resurrection is at the center of our faith.
Because of the resurrection, the gospel cannot be squeezed into the same category as other spiritualities. But that doesn’t stop us from trying. Well-meaning Christians can easily domesticate the gospel by making the explosive news of a crucified and risen Savior all about moral and ethical improvement, societal cohesion, or practical benefits for daily life. Listen to inter-religious dialogue and we might get the impression that Christianity is a moral plan for being kind to one’s neighbors, with the sort of self-improvement or community-building we’d expect from a public television infomercial.
In contrast, the resurrection of Jesus Christ must be the starting point for all Christian reflection. It is an astounding turn of events, world-changing news to which nothing else compares. To shrink the good news into good advice diminishes the thrill of orthodoxy.
Strangely, it’s often the Christians who are most concerned with changing the world who can fail to take on the world when necessary. To be sure, the gospel of Jesus Christ is good news for communities, not just individuals. Justified by faith, we engage in good works that provide tangible benefits for people around us, as Jesus himself taught us. But it’s easy for a church, wowed by the power of the gospel on display in a community, to become so enamored with the gospel’s effects that we lose sight of personal evangelism.
Among all the good things we as Christians are called to do in our communities and schools and neighborhoods, what is the message we are commissioned to give? What is the message that explains our good works? What is the message that makes us stand out?
All week long, content comes at us from a cacophony of voices. World leaders, political pundits, novelists, sportscasters and journalists, infotainment sites and shows, celebrities and social media stars—everyone has something to say. But on the first day of the week, the day we celebrate the resurrection, someone stands up with an ancient book to deliver a message designed to cut through a noisy world of constant chatter. You’ve heard what everyone else says; now listen to what God says. What follows is an otherworldly message with God at the center.
At least, that’s what’s supposed to happen every week. Too often, the person who rises with that Book delivers a message that blends in well with the advice and punditry we can get anywhere else, riffing on the week’s news or delivering commentary on recent events, or challenging people to “shape up” and “be better,” as if the primary purpose of our faith is personal improvement.
If our message has become little more than “make the world a better place,” Christian proclamation has become wildly misdirected, no matter how many doctrines we say we believe. Unless our focus is on God, who he is and what he has done, unless our message centers on Jesus as the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, unless our dependence is on the Spirit who sweeps through the sanctuary and does his work in the hearts of people, we lose the thrill of orthodoxy and become little more than a service agency. If all we promote and proclaim are our own good works, in the realm of social justice, political action, environmentalism, religious liberty, or service to the poor, what remains distinctively Christian?
Against the world for the world. Orthodoxy salts our good works with the flavor of Christ. The doctrines we confess provide the foundation for the good we do in the world. The story of Jesus summed up by the creeds ensures the fragrance of Jesus spreads through our deeds. And, lest we forget, the story of Jesus centers on the cross, which means our faithfulness will take on a cruciform shape. When we say we want to be the hands and feet of Jesus, we must remember what happened to the hands and feet of Jesus. Some measure of suffering always accompanies the proclamation of the cross. We will experience sparks, friction, and dissonance, and Jesus told us to expect it. “If the world hates you,” he said, “understand that it hated me before it hated you” (John 15:18).
Yet for some reason, we are surprised when that very thing happens. We are shocked to see our beliefs scorned, our morals condemned, our message resisted. And naturally, our desire is to reduce the conflict, when instead we’d do better to sharpen our understanding of where the real areas of conflict remain, so that we provide a strong and consistent witness to the truth of Christ.
Augustine was known for saying Christians are to stand “against” the world “for the good” of the world. Our opposition to sin is never a goal by itself, but always a means to a greater good. We dissent from some of the prevailing perspectives of our time, not because we find our identity in being naysayers, but because our no is in service to a greater yes. Against the world for the good of the world. Some try to reduce the against by accommodation, and others try to reduce the for the good by isolation. The thrill of orthodoxy requires both.
Christianity on the Move
This combination of against and for the good requires a change of posture for many Christians. Athletes know the difference in a team “playing to win” rather than “playing not to lose.” In playing to win, a team maintains a healthy aggression; they are on offense, always seeking to press forward. It’s a posture without fear, an attitude of momentum and confidence. Many a game has been lost by a team when the players, sensing they are ahead, lose that offensive mindset. Christians are playing to win the world for the good of the world, to broadcast and display the beauty of Jesus Christ so that others join us on his Way. We do not simply stand back in opposition, hoping against hope to hold off the onslaught coming our way. We are on the move.
Adapted from The Thrill of Orthodoxy by Trevin Wax. Copyright (c) 2022 by Trevin Wax. Published by InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL.
Trevin Wax (PhD, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary) is vice president of research and resource development at the North American Mission Board and a visiting professor of theology at Cedarville University. A former missionary to Romania, Trevin is a regular columnist at The Gospel Coalition and has contributed to The Washington Post, Religion News Service, World, and Christianity Today. He has served as general editor for The Gospel Project and has taught theology courses at Wheaton College. He is the author of several books, including The Multi-Directional Leader, Rethink Your Self, This Is Our Time, Eschatological Discipleship, and Gospel Centered Teaching.