Stef Liston preaching to youth in an evangelistic meeting last month. It was part of Bible by the Beach 2009.
It was an absolute pleasure to be there. I'm glad I stumbled on the blog link this week given I'm blogging on preaching. This is a great example of holding out the word of life.
It's called "One kind of God, three kinds of people." (No it's not on the trinity.) He begins by demolishing all other gods than the Christian God.
There is no other message than the Christian message.
Every other 'message' is not a message at all. Ultimately, if you get beneath the jargon into the content, every religion says this: Try harder... Do better. Come on. If you just... If you just... If you just... then maybe. If you just, then who knows. If you just, then you could be in it.
Christianity is completely different. It's a declaration of what's been done.
The good news is 'It is finished'. It has been done. Now you just come into what has been done for you.
Then he gives the gospel as the vicarious life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus. (And yes he used the word vicarious, repeatedly. Unashamedly. Glorious!)
Then he goes on to talk about Luke 15 - the lost sons. He talks about three kinds of people.
First there's the naughty sinner. Second there's the nice sinner. Different temperaments, both as lost, both as far from God.
If your Christianity consists of reading your bible, praying and not swearing that is as foreign to Christianity as Islam.
You need to be a category three person: You must be born again.
What is the stance of the person who is born again? It's not kneeling. It's standing in the Father's embrace.
Throw yourself into His arms.
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