Thinking about John 3:16

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him."

I am reading Ann Morisy's book "Bothered and Bewildered" and every few pages I stop and make notes. Today I was challenged by her comments on John 3 16-17 which was at one time my favourite bible text..

"No matter how many times we reassemble this precious offer of salvation, it ends up as one of those unconvincing self referential cliches that are convincing to fewer and fewer people....  In postmodern times this is easily dismissed as fairy-tale nonsense because of the absence of anything that anchors it in earthy day-to-day life. This growing resistance to the authority of sacred text cannot just be willed away.... It is deeply distressing to have to face up to the reality that the formulas for our faith have become threadbare and that precious summaries of our faith have become mantras for a fragment of the population. However, the good news is that this lack of respect for the conceptual aspects of the faith can be countered by the demonstration of the truth of Jesus in the way he lived his life."  (pp 55-56)

Jesus brings salvation by both his life and death. It is necessary to lessen our emphasis on Jesus bearing our sins on the cross. The idea of a man dying on a cross taking away sin is nonsense to most people and most people have no sense of sin. If only a few believe this then they can be in danger of falling into the trap of "I'm all right" gnosticism. Morisy does not say that this doctrine is not true and relevant but is pointing out that it is inaccessible and and implausible.

There has been an avoidance of taking seriously the radical life and teaching of Jesus because it challenges so much that our society and the powerful take for granted. Vested interest, status and power have corrupted the church's outlook. As a result Christians have concentrated on Jesus' death and resurrection at the expense of reflecting on practising the distinctive ways in which Jesus lived his life.