The Gospel and the Pluralist

Well, good evening, everyone.

It's great to be with you again.

I always enjoy coming to Brunsfield,

and Graham has given me a wonderful theme to look at.

Really, when we try to understand other people,

other viewpoints, I'm often encouraged

to rely upon those who are brighter than I am.

One of the great voices of the late 20th century

was a man called Francis Schaeffer,

and he addressed the University of Notre Dame in Indiana,

and he said this.

He said,

Christianity is not a series of truths in the plural,

but rather truth spelled with a capital T.

Truth about total reality, not just about religious things.

Biblical Christianity is truth concerning total reality

and the intellectual holding of that total truth

and then living in the light of that truth.

So not just a series of truths in the plural,

but truth with a capital T.

Twenty years later, there was a survey done in the United States

by the Barna Group,

and the Barna Group concluded that only 4% of Americans

held what could be described as a biblical worldview.

The surveyor said,

although most people own a Bible and know some of its content,

our research found that most Americans have little idea

how to integrate core biblical principles

to form a unified and meaningful response

to the challenges and opportunities of life.

So what we're talking about here is how you and I see the world.

So, for example, if I take off my glasses,

I know that there are people here.

I can't see you very well.

You're very, very blurry.

Everything I see, I see through these glasses.

But I'll tell you this.

If you put my glasses on,

I think you will be equally mystified as I am without them.

You can never really put on another person's pair of glasses

because they're suited for them.

And as we gather tonight,

we're trying to see the world

through the eyes of other people.

Maybe you are here tonight,

and maybe this term, a pluralist,

maybe this refers to you.

Maybe you're not sure where you're coming from.

But all of us have a way of looking at this world

and of processing what this world presents to us.

And what the challenge that Schaeffer identified is this,

is that if we aren't careful,

if we lack not just Christian knowledge,

but if we lack the ability of integrating

our faith and our life,

we will find ourselves quickly

at drifting along or being pulled

by a very different tide

along to a very different destination.

Nancy Piercy, if you've ever read any of her books,

she is the modern-day version of Francis Schaeffer.

She wrote a book called Total Truth.

And she said this.

She said,

The purpose of our studies and worldviews

is nothing less than to liberate Christianity

from its cultural captivity,

unleashing power to transform the world.

The gospel is like a caged lion,

said the great Baptist preacher Charles Spurgeon.

It does not need to be defended.

It just needs to be let out of its cage.

Today, the cage is our accommodation

to the secular-sacred split

that reduces Christianity

to a matter of private, personal belief.

To unlock the cage,

we need to become utterly convinced

that as Francis Schaeffer said,

Christianity is not merely religious truth.

It is total truth.

Truth about the whole of reality.

And as bookends,

maybe in the later part of the 20th century,

Francis Schaeffer and C.S. Lewis

are two significant voices.

And C.S. Lewis said this.

He said,

I believe in Christianity

as I believe that the sun has risen.

Not only because I see it,

but because by it,

I see everything else.

So the question tonight really is,

do you have a worldview

that is rooted in the Bible?

Do you see the world

through the lens of the Bible

that's open in front of us?

Because if you don't,

there are many alternative worldviews

that are available,

and you will adopt one

or more of those views.

Our theme tonight is pluralism.

And as we begin,

we want to say that pluralism is a fact.

Plural just means more than one.

And there are more than one group of people.

There are more than one culture.

There are more than one philosophy.

There's more than one religion.

And we don't need to look far.

We live in a very diverse city, don't we?

With all different types of employment,

with different universities,

and folks coming here to live

and to work and to study.

You've heard different accents already this evening.

So we have different cultures.

Yes, we have different religions.

Yes, we have different nationalities.

But pluralism is more than a fact

because it's a worldview.

And the worldview of pluralism really tonight

signifies that celebration

or that cherishing of plurality,

meaning that no one group,

no one philosophy,

no one way of looking at the world

can claim a monopoly

or can claim authority

or can claim unique legitimacy.

You see, we're all seeing the world

and maybe we're all kind of seeing it

a little bit differently,

but that's a good thing.

You come from your background

and you see things your way.

I come from my background

and I see things my way.

You might be a Christian.

You might be a Buddhist.

You might be a Muslim.

You might be a Sikh

or just you might choose

and pick and choose.

It's like if you,

I'm kind of harking back to those days

when I used to go out a lot for meals.

But in Edinburgh,

whatever cuisine you want,

you can find.

You want Thai food.

You can get Thai restaurants.

You want Chinese food.

Plenty of Chinese restaurants.

And many people will cherish pluralism

as you have a choice to make.

Just be honest and have integrity

and live according to the light that you have.

Now this fact and worldview

is a profound challenge

to what we find in the Bible.

Graham's already alluded to the words of Jesus.

I am the way, the truth, and the life.

No one comes to the Father except through me.

Now that statement in John chapter 14

John 14 · chapter mention

is in direct conflict

with the spirit of pluralism.

The Roman Empire,

when we go back into the first century AD,

we want to say that pluralism is in fact biblical.

Well, let me put it this way.

The Bible captures pluralism on its very pages.

So pluralism is not a new thing.

You think on the Jewish side of the equation,

you have Sadducees

and you have Pharisees.

They believe different things.

You have those groups of Jews

that were pro-establishment.

We call them Herodians.

You see, they hitched their wagon

to the Roman Empire

because they saw the writing on the wall.

They saw the direction of travel

and they figured if we connect ourselves well

to this empire, we will do well.

But on the other hand of the spectrum,

you had the Zealots.

They didn't like Rome

and they rebelled against Rome.

And if you want to include

kind of like the half cousins,

the Samaritans.

So within that phrase

or that word Jewish,

there are several different groups,

several different groupings.

There are Jews who lived in the Middle East.

There are Hellenized or Greek Jews

who had their own culture.

And then when you go

to the other side of the world,

in the other part of the world,

the Gentile world,

that was even more diverse.

You had the Romans

and you had the Greeks.

You had pagans.

You had Platonists.

You had Stoics.

You had Epicureans.

We heard that just a few moments ago.

And these are all,

in many ways,

very conflicting worldviews.

If you're an Epicurean,

and we still use that word sometimes,

somebody that really likes good food

is often described as an Epicurean.

They like wine

and they like good food

and they like the good things of life.

But the Stoic

was quite a different approach

to the sensual pleasures of life.

Quite restricted.

Quite limited.

So we see here,

as you read through the Scriptures,

and isn't it interesting

that Jesus attracts

all different kinds of people

from all different kinds of backgrounds.

This is not a homogenous group.

And the church today

is not a homogenous group.

We aren't a homogenous group.

We look different.

We speak differently.

We represent different age groups.

We have different cultural backgrounds.

We have different upbringings.

Some of you may have grown up

in a Christian home

and you have heard the gospel

your whole life.

Others, like me,

may have come to faith

at a later age

and still others

may not yet be sure

what you actually believe.

So with this background

of the plural society

in which we live

and of that celebration

of plurality

that everyone has something

of the truth

but no one has all of the truth.

And as we engage

with a plural world

in the pages of the Bible,

Christianity makes

an audacious claim.

It makes this audacious claim

that there is but one God

and there is but one Savior

and there is but one Gospel

and there is but one Holy Book,

the Bible.

Over the years,

it's interesting,

when you have to teach,

you really have to learn

your material

and I tell you what,

I don't know what I was doing

preaching for all those years

before I was ETS

but I've learned so much

since I started to teach.

I came across a quote

by Leslie Newbigin.

He was a missionary,

an Anglican missionary in India.

And he captured this response

from an Indian religious person.

He said,

I can't understand

why you missionaries

present the Bible to us

in India

as a book of religion.

It is not a book of religion.

And anyway,

we have plenty of books

of religion in India.

We don't need any more.

I find in your Bible

a unique interpretation

of universal history,

the history of the whole creation

and the history

of the human race

and therefore,

a unique interpretation

of the human person

as a responsible actor

in history.

That is unique.

There is nothing else

in the whole religious literature

of the world

to put alongside of it.

Now, this is not to say

or to prove,

you might not think,

this is not a proof

that this is the right book

or the right gospel

or the right savior

or the right God,

but I'm suggesting that

within this plural view of life,

Christianity does not sit easily

within pluralism

because it makes unique

and particular claims

about God,

about us,

about the world,

about the past,

about the present,

and about the future.

And we need to come to terms

with what the Bible

is saying to us.

And if you have a chance,

you could read,

for example,

in 1 Corinthians chapter 1,

1 Corinthians 1 · chapter mention

and you find there

the way in which

the gospel

has a way

of alienating

all kinds of people.

The gospel alienates the Jew.

Why?

It's a stumbling block.

The gospel alienates a Greek.

Why?

It's foolishness.

You see,

this idea of resurrection

never made much sense.

You see,

people 2,000 years ago

were not dumb

or dull

or stupid.

I think C.S. Lewis

used this phrase.

He talked about

a chronological snobbery.

We are modern people

or post-modern people

or technically

we are post-post-modern people.

So we are really bright.

And those people

of different generations,

they're really dim.

Well,

2,000 years ago,

death had this characteristic

of being final.

People who died

stayed dead.

It's a strange thing.

It's just the way it was.

It's just the way it is.

So the ancient people

aren't simple people.

And the Christian gospel

comes and proclaims

the resurrection

of Jesus from the dead.

And the Greeks say

this is utter foolishness.

And the Jews say

this is a stumbling block

to us believing

in what you are saying.

And as we turn

to Acts chapter 17,

Acts 17 · chapter mention

we see that the way

in which the apostle Paul

presents the gospel,

he presents the same message,

but he presents

the same message

to very different audiences.

He speaks to the Thessalonians.

He speaks to the Bereans.

He speaks to the Athenians.

And as you read

through the book of Acts,

you'll see that the theme

remains constant.

One of the great missionaries

of the modern era

was a man called

James O. Fraser.

And he was a missionary

to the Yunnan province,

southwest Asia,

southwest China.

And in that province,

he encountered

one of the local

indigenous people groups

called the Lisu people.

And not only was

the Yunnan province

largely unreached

by the gospel,

the Lisu people

were completely unreached.

Not a single Christian

among their number.

And Fraser comes to China

and after nine months,

he's going to preach

his first sermon

in Chinese.

And he thought to himself,

the best way

to craft a gospel address

is to look at

the book that's open

in front of us,

the book of Acts.

I understand you're looking

at it in the morning.

You're going to get

two doses of it today.

And he said this,

he said,

in preparing my address,

I first went through

the Acts of the Apostles

with a view of finding out

the actual gospel

we are bidden to preach.

The result was

very instructive to me.

I had never imagined

the gospel was so simple.

Why, Peter and Paul

both preached the gospel

in words

which would not take

one minute to say.

And I found out

that there are just

four things

that seem to be essential

in preaching the gospel.

The first,

the crucifixion

of Jesus Christ.

No theological

explanation needed.

The resurrection

of Jesus Christ.

Most important of all,

the gospel was never preached

without this being brought in.

An exhortation,

three,

to hearers

to repent of their sins.

And four,

a promise to all

who believe on Jesus Christ

that they will receive

remission of their sins.

Beyond these four points,

others are mentioned

occasionally,

but they are not many.

In teaching Christians,

it is quite another matter.

To them,

we are to declare

the whole counsel of God

as far as they can receive it.

But the gospel is preached

to the unsaved

is as simple as it could be.

I should not care

to take the responsibility

of preaching another gospel.

And as we turn

to the pages of Acts chapter 17,

Acts 17 · chapter mention

we have the same preacher

with very distinct audiences.

Now,

is he guilty

of imbibing

that pluralistic

environment

in which he was living?

Is he guilty

of preaching

one message

to the Jews

and one message

to the Greeks?

Well,

I hope you're not surprised

by me saying that.

No,

he's not.

He is not imbibing

the spirit of the age,

but he's proclaiming

the gospel

of Jesus Christ.

But he's proclaiming

the gospel

in a manner

that people

can understand.

The most distinct

contrast we see,

Acts chapter 17,

Acts 17 · chapter mention

Paul in Athens,

and Acts chapter 2,

Acts 2 · chapter mention

Peter in Jerusalem

at Pentecost.

These are gospel addresses.

There's a gospel response.

There is gospel blessing.

And yet the addresses

are very different,

aren't they?

Peter is speaking

to a Jewish audience

who knows the scriptures,

who knows the Old Testament,

who knows the great promises,

who knows the great prophecy.

Whereas Paul

is speaking to an audience

that knows

the Greek philosophers,

but knows next to nothing

about Jesus Christ.

And yet we see

that the power

of the gospel

can only accompany

the gospel.

Men and women

can only be transformed

by this message.

So if there is gospel blessing,

there must be gospel preaching.

There must be a conveying

of the good news

concerning Jesus Christ.

When Paul goes to Thessalonica,

his pattern, of course,

is to search out

the Jewish community.

He is a Jew.

He knows them.

They know him.

He knows where

they're coming from.

They know where

he's coming from.

And when he gets

to Thessalonica,

what does he do?

He reasons with them

from the Sabbath,

explaining and proving

that Christ had to suffer

and rise from the dead.

Jesus died

and Jesus rose.

And this Jesus

I am proclaiming to you

is the Christ.

Some were persuaded

and yet some were enraged.

That's one way you know

that the gospel

is being proclaimed.

You see gospel blessing

and you see gospel opposition

together.

We see that in Athens

and we'll see that

in a few moments.

So, when we turn

to the Christian message,

now, we need to be clear

on this.

Because other religions

and other world views

are seeking to give answers

to life's questions.

We're not going to deny that.

Because everyone is looking

for answers.

Everyone is looking

for insight.

Everyone is looking

for a way of making sense.

Where have I come from?

Why am I here?

Where am I going?

So, we shouldn't be surprised

that many people

are asking the same questions

and seeking answers

to those questions.

But we need to be clear

that Christianity presents

a unique answer

to these common questions.

The best explanation

I was given many years ago now

was most, if not all,

world views, philosophies,

and religions

largely suggest

that the problems of life

are outside of ourselves.

You know, you.

You know, in this context,

if I have problems,

the problems are largely with you.

Whereas the solutions

are largely here.

You're the problem for me,

but the solution

is somewhere within me

if I can just find it.

If I can just understand it.

If I can just realize it.

If I can dig deep.

Now, you might not be surprised

at me saying

is the Christian worldview

is completely opposite.

Because the Christian worldview

says there is a problem,

but that problem

is primarily internal.

My major problems

are me, not you.

And your major problems

are you and not me.

But what Christianity says

without hesitation

is that the solution

is completely outside

of ourselves.

Even if we realize

that we are the problem,

and even if we realize

that we can't fix the problem,

the solution has to come

completely outside

of ourselves

to us.

Now, that sharply distinguishes

a pluralistic worldview,

which suggests

that we all have

part of the truth,

some of the truth.

Maybe some ideas

are more or less valid.

Some ideas

are more or less helpful.

No.

The Bible

and the gospel

says there's a problem.

There's one main problem

that's called sin,

where I put myself

at the center of my world,

and I want everyone

to orbit that center.

I want things done my way,

when I want,

how I want,

as I want.

God is useful

only insofar

as he serves my ends.

That's a problem.

That's a problem

from a biblical point of view,

because you and I

are not the center

of the universe.

God is the center

of all things,

for from him

and to him

and through him

are all things.

To him be glory

forever and ever.

Amen.

So there is one problem,

and you see,

God not only has

to solve the problem,

he has to tell us

about the problem

because we're not

going to get it.

Not only are we not

going to get the solution,

we're not even going to

figure out what

the problem is.

And that's why

we need the Bible

open before us,

because the Bible

tells us,

here is the problem.

There's a human heart

that's darkened,

a human mind

that's clouded,

human emotions,

human actions,

human thoughts,

everything about us

has been corrupted.

Why?

Because we've inherited

a nature.

You know,

we all have inheritance.

You know,

we look like

our parents,

we act like

our parents,

we have genetic

characteristics,

and we have

personality traits.

But the Bible

tells us that

we've inherited

something from

our first parents,

an inclination

to sin.

So not only does

God have to tell

us the problem,

not only does God

have to explain

the problem to us,

God has to tell us

and provide for us

the solution.

God the Father

sends God the Son

on a rescue

mission.

God the Son

lives a perfect

life,

dies a sacrificial

death,

rises from the

grave,

ascends to heaven,

and the Father

and the Son

then send the Spirit,

God the Holy Spirit,

to take what

belongs to Jesus

and to apply it

to us.

Because even when

we're presented

with a solution,

we are completely

incapable of

receiving it.

Such is the

nature of human

sin and such is

the implication

of the fall

that we're dead,

Paul says.

We are dead

in sins and

dead in

transgressions,

dead in mind,

dead in heart,

dead spiritually.

So God must

make us alive.

Now when we

begin to compare

that view of the

world to any

other worldview,

we have to say,

now Christianity

might be wrong,

but Christianity

cannot be easily

or at all

incorporated into

a pluralistic

worldview.

It's just

impossible.

people.

And you see,

in fact,

if we're being

fair to other

worldviews,

neither can

they.

You see,

I think it's

actually quite

patronizing and

quite insulting

to say to

someone who

follows another

world religion,

well, you

actually believe

pretty much what

I believe.

Because I don't

think they do.

And neither do

they.

I think we need

to be honest

with ourselves.

I think we need

to be honest with

each other.

That doesn't

mean to be

insulting,

and that doesn't

mean to be

patronizing,

but to say,

well, look,

if this is what

you believe,

and this is

what I believe,

these are

different beliefs.

I remember I was

involved for many

years in university

chaplaincy.

It's an interesting

experience.

And in the

university chaplaincy,

I met many

different chaplains

from many different

Christian traditions.

The ones that I

had most affinity

with were the

Roman Catholic

and the Eastern

Orthodox,

because they had

a firm set of

beliefs.

They had a firm

idea of what

they believed,

what was right,

what was wrong,

and where it

came from.

I would say

alongside the

Roman Catholics

and the Eastern

Orthodox,

the next natural

affinity was the

Muslim chaplain.

It was quite

remarkable.

I remember one

time talking about

Eid and talking

about the various

festivals, and I

never realized that

Hajj,

was a form of

Hagar.

Remember Abraham

and Hagar?

Well, you see,

we're big on

Abraham, Sarah,

and Isaac,

right?

Abraham, Sarah,

and Isaac.

Those are the

three for us,

right?

But from the

Muslim worldview,

it's Abraham,

Hagar, and

Ishmael.

And my Muslim

friend, the

chaplain, he said,

we believe that

the child of

promise was

Ishmael.

He didn't say

it provocatively.

He didn't say

it insultingly.

He just said,

this is what we

believe.

Now, you can't

reconcile those

two, can you?

We say the

child of promise

was Isaac

through Sarah.

They say the

child of promise

was Ishmael

through Hagar.

Now, it's

patronizing to

say to these

two people,

you're saying

the same thing.

They're patently

not saying the

same thing.

One might be

right, the

other wrong.

They might both

be wrong, but

they can't

possibly be

right.

And that's one

of the great

weaknesses of

this pluralistic

worldview.

We're not saying

that there

aren't plurality.

Of course, there

is.

But the worldview

that says we're

all pretty much

saying something

of the same,

or we're kind

of moving in

the same direction,

or we've kind

of captured

something of a

similar truth.

well, we're not.

And I think it's

unfair to say

so.

So Paul speaks

to the Thessalonians.

He preaches the

gospel to the

Jews.

And what

happens?

There's a

riot.

Some believe.

Some are

persuaded.

Others are

enraged.

It's now time

for Paul to

leave.

And you see,

Paul is

proclaiming that

there is another

king.

You see,

there's a

source of

authority here,

and that source

of authority

isn't Jesus.

The source

of authority

isn't you

and isn't me.

The source

of authority

is not

Caesar,

is Jesus.

Jesus is

this other

king.

He's called

Jesus,

another king.

Paul then

goes on to

Berea,

and again,

he's speaking

to a Jewish

audience.

They examined

the scriptures.

They were eager

to make sure

that what Paul

was saying

was right.

But again,

that crowd

from Thessalonica,

they found

their way

to Berea,

and it was

time for

Paul to

leave.

So Paul

is preaching

Jesus.

He's preaching

the gospel.

He's preaching

the message,

and there is

a reaction.

Some believe,

and some

respond,

and then he

comes to a

very different

setting.

He comes to

Athens,

and the first

thing he does

was let the

city speak to

him.

He listens,

and if

we're wise,

we listen

before we

speak.

We listen

to what the

city says.

We listen

to what the

culture says.

We listen

to what people

think,

and if they

don't tell us,

we ask them,

what do you

think?

What do you

believe?

Because when

Paul was there,

he saw that

this city was

not irreligious,

but very

religious.

And you see,

maybe modern

Scotland is not

so much

non-religious,

it's just

multi-religious.

Everybody has

different ideas

of what they

worship.

They worship

many different

things.

They might not

call them

gods, but

they worship

many different

gods.

And Paul

realizes that

as he

circulates,

as he

listens,

and as he

speaks,

what does he

do?

He tells the

good news in

verse 18.

He tells the

good news about

Jesus and the

resurrection.

salvation.

It's the same

theme.

It's the same

gospel.

It's the same

Jesus.

The same

Jesus that

caused a

riot in

Thessalonica,

the same

Jesus that

caused a

revival in

Jerusalem when

Peter preached

the Pentecost,

is the same

Jesus that

Paul preaches

here in

Athens.

They're

interested,

they're

curious,

they're

talkers,

they're

thinkers,

believers,

and then

Paul gets

an opportunity

to speak.

And what

does he do?

He finds a

bridge.

You see,

there's always

a bridge.

There's always

a bridge between

the gospel and

people.

Well,

one reason is

this.

We are all

made in the

image of God.

We are all

made by God.

We are all

made for God.

We are made

to know Him.

So there is

always a bridge.

We just need

to look for it.

And Paul

found that

bridge in

the altar

to an

unknown God.

This very

religious people,

they were

worshiping all

different kinds

of gods.

And they

recognized that

maybe they

might have

missed the

real God,

so they

had an

altar to

an unknown

God.

And Paul

says,

I'm going

to introduce

this God

to you.

You don't

know Him,

but I do.

You worship

Him as

unknown.

Let me

tell you

who He

is,

and let me

tell you

what He

is like.

And what

does Paul

do?

He preaches.

He preaches

in a way

that is

understandable,

that is

comprehensible.

He finds

that bridge,

the altar.

He finds

the poets,

the philosophers.

He connects

with the

culture.

Quoting the

Old Testament

do no good.

They don't

know the

Old Testament,

but they do

know their

Greek poets.

They do

know their

philosophers.

And Paul

is constantly

finding bridges

between the

gospel and

people.

And maybe

that should

be our

prayer as

we go

into the

world.

God,

give me a

bridge with

my neighbor.

God,

give me an

entry point.

Give me

some way of

conveying the

gospel in a

way that

makes sense

to them.

Not just in

a way that

makes sense

to me.

Help me

convey the

gospel in

a way that

makes sense

to someone

who does

not share

my biblical

worldview.

Someone who

does not

understand what

the scriptures

are saying.

And Paul

conveys

Jesus.

He speaks

about judgment.

He speaks

about resurrection.

He calls

people to

repent.

Again,

this is a

Greek audience.

This is a

philosophical

audience.

This is a

pluralistic

audience.

There's

Epicureans

and there's

Stoics.

There's

talkers.

There's

thinkers.

There's

any number

of different

people with

any number

of different

backgrounds.

But he

says he's

given proof

in verse

31.

For he

has set

a day

when he

will judge

the world

with justice

by the

man he

has appointed.

He has

given proof

of this

to all

men by

raising

him

from

the dead.

The time

is coming.

The message

now is

repent.

And you

see,

sometimes the

Bible uses

shorthand.

You see,

when you're

commanded to

repent,

implied in

a command

to repent

is believe.

When you're

commanded to

believe,

implied in

the command

to believe

is repent.

The two

things go

together.

You can't

separate them.

Jesus'

first sermon,

repent and

believe the

good news.

The kingdom

of God is

at hand.

The time

has come.

Repent and

believe the

good news.

God is

God is

proclaiming

Jesus to

a Jewish

audience.

In

Thessalonica,

he's

proclaiming

Jesus to

a Greek

audience,

to a

philosophical

audience in

Athens.

And in

each of

these

situations,

something

happens.

When you

share the

gospel,

something

happens.

When the

gospel is

proclaimed,

something

happens.

The one

thing that

can never

happen when

the gospel

is proclaimed

is nothing.

Because God

promises that

whenever his

word goes

forth, it

will accomplish

what he

purposes.

And that

for which he

has sent

it.

That's his

commitment.

And that's

his promise.

One of the

great voices

in the

18th century

was a man

called George

Whitefield.

He said

this, he

said,

other men

may preach

the gospel

better than

I, but

no man

can preach

a better

gospel.

The gospel

is powerful.

Paul said

it himself.

I'm not

ashamed of

the gospel

because it

is the

power of

God unto

salvation

for all

who believe.

So when

you find

that bridge,

when you

find that

point of

contact,

you have

to make

a beeline

to the

gospel.

You need

to make

a beeline

to Jesus

because just

building bridges

is not

sufficient.

We need

to proclaim

the good

news.

We need

to tell

something

about Jesus'

death.

We need

to tell

something

about his

resurrection.

We need

to convey

something

about his

call to

repentance,

and we need

to convey

something,

as Fraser

said to

that Chinese

audience about

that promise

that to

those who

repent,

their sins

will be

forgiven.

This simple

formula is

powerful.

When the

gospel is

proclaimed,

step back

and watch

out because

God will

do something.

We don't

know what,

we don't

know when,

we don't

know how,

but we

know that

he will

do something.

I want

to close

by reading

a passage

at the

very end

of the

Bible,

Revelation.

It's in

chapter 7

of that

wonderful

book.

And you

see,

the Bible

is pluralistic

in its

content and

describing the

world of the

first century,

but the Bible

is also

pluralistic in

describing heaven

because it

tells us about

all nations

and all

peoples and

all tribes

and all

tongues.

Revelation 7

and verse

9.

After this

I looked

and there

before me

was a great

multitude

that no

one could

count.

From every

nation,

tribe,

people,

and language

standing

before the

throne and

before the

Lamb.

They were

wearing white

robes and

they were

holding palm

branches in

their hands

and they

cried out

in a loud

voice,

salvation

belongs to

our God

who sits

on the

throne and

to the

Lamb.

So here

we have

all nations,

all peoples,

all tribes,

all tongues,

and what do

we have?

One place,

one throne,

one song,

one savior,

one way,

one hope.

That's what

we have in

the gospel.

We have a

message of

universal

relevance,

universal

application,

of universal

invitation to

all peoples,

all world

views,

all philosophies,

all world

religions,

whoever,

wherever,

whenever.

There's again

a great quote

I love

quotations.

I'm sure

Graham is

sick of

me quoting

in class,

but I'll

close with

a man who

himself has

a level of

enthusiasm.

He has a

similar accent

to mine,

but I can't

do John

Piper.

But if I

could,

I would say

this.

God is

pursuing with

omnipotent

passion a

worldwide purpose

of gathering

joyful worshipers

for himself.

From every

tribe and

tongue and

people and

nation,

he has

an

inexhaustible

enthusiasm

for the

supremacy of

his name

among the

nations.

Therefore,

let us bring

our affections

into line

with his,

and for the

sake of his

name,

let us

renounce the

quest for

worldly

comforts and

join his

global purpose.

There is going

to be a day

when all tribes,

tongues,

and nations are

gathered in

front of the

throne.

In that

day,

we will

see what

God has

done.

Until that

day,

let us

seek,

with all the

strength,

with all the

wisdom,

with all the

courage,

to bring

people to

a knowledge

of Jesus.

We cannot

save them,

but we can

convey something

of this truth

to them.

And when we

do so,

we can

confidently state

and be

confident that

God will

use even

our feeble,

weak efforts

to accomplish

his steadfastness

and powerful

purposes.

So may God

bless you.

And if you

happen to be a

pluralist here

tonight,

I would

ask you to

please consider

the Lord

Jesus Christ.

You will

find no

greater Savior.

You will

find no

greater gospel.

And you

will find no

greater assurance

for the future

than when you

find him.

May God

bless you

all.