Thoughts from Saturday Night

I am reading a phenomenal book right now on how people change. It's called Rediscovering Holiness by J.I. Packer. On Saturday night I read a chapter and it caused me to literally lose sleep. I was faced with the question: Do I really preach the full gospel and show how it works itself into the fabric of every area of our lives? I couldn't stop thinking about specific students who are crippled by their sins and the sins of others. They deserve to have the gospel applied to every area. Here are my thoughts that I scribbled in my notebook at 2am.

"The gospel is restoring humanity... it is salvation from personal destruction (sin), it is re-creation (restoration to rightness), and total transformation to the community of God.

• When we sin it is ugly and evil, we hurt ourselves and others
• Divorce destroys families
• Negative behavior patterns play out in relationships
• Selfishness destroys friendships
• Pride distance people from one another as it carries out its self-centered purposes

The gospel when rightly applied (salvation: past, present, and future tense) fixes our brokenness. Families and friendships can be restored (maybe not totally as not all members are gospeled, but at least from our end there should be restoration). Forgiveness leads to reconciliation, leads to restoration, leads to healing, leads to wholeness, leads to the new-humanity. At least in those who have the gospel."