A colleague recently invited me to go fishing with him. So, we scheduled a time to walk around and talk and pray with folks. We have done it several times now, and I think we had several encounters that were encouraging to the folks that we spoke with.
Before our most recent outing, my colleague showed me a pamphlet and asked if I would like to hand them out to the folks that we spoke with. I respectfully declined because it almost exclusively focused on avoiding eternal punishment.
In the church culture that I grew up with, I was prepared with several ways of explaining the Good News, for which I am thankful. Unfortunately, I think many of those methods implicitly centered on avoiding eternal punishment instead of embracing the mercy, grace, and restored sonship of a Good Father. While I agree that justification is an important concept, unfortunately, I think too many think of "justification" as a conversion from "sinner" to "sinner saved by grace", whereas Jesus's parable of the merciful and gracious father reveals that by faith, our sins are forgiven, and we are restored to sonship.
I was taught that salvation has three aspects, like the three aspects of a mathematical ray: justification (the beginning point, when a person begins faith in Jesus), sanctification (the finite period until death, growing into the image of Jesus), and glorification (the arrowhead that symbolizes continuation to infinity, fully restored to God after death). Much attention has been spent on the topic of justification, and I think there is a tendency to drift towards religion. Moving forward, I would like to focus on sonship.
So, I am still trying to figure out what I would like to provide as a printed resource with spiritual information about sonship.
Father, you are a good father, and you have given us wonderful promises. Jesus, thank you for showing us what it means to be a son. Holy Spirit, thank you for leading me along in sonship. I love you.
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