If God Is Love

by Gulley, Philip

• ISBN13: 9780060816155
• ISBN10: 0060816155
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-10-13
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publications

Summary

If God is love, why are so many Christians fearful, and why do so many church leaders sound hateful? Two controversial pastors address issues the church won't face, calling us to restore grace as the center of the Christian life. o In If Grace Is True , Pastors Philip Gulley and James Mulholland revealed their belief that God will save every person. They now explore the implications of this belief, and its power to change every area of our lives. They attempt to answer one question: If we took God's love seriously, what would our world look like? Gulley and Mulholland argue that what we believe is crucial and dramatically affects the way we live and interact in the world. Beliefs have power. The belief in a literal hell where people suffer eternally has often been used by the Church to justify hate and violence, which contradicts what Jesus taught about love and grace. The authors present a new vision for our personal, religious, and corporate lives, exploring what our world would be like if we based our existence on the foundational truth that God loves every person. Gulley and Mulholland boldly address many controversial issues people in the pews have wondered about but churches have been unwilling to tackle. For too long, the Christian tradition has been steeped in negativity, exclusion, and judgment. Gulley and Mulholland usher us into a new age--an age where grace and love are allowed to reign.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	ix
A Note from the Authors	xi
Why Beliefs Matter	1	(16)
Embracing Grace	17	(32)
Being Gracious	49	(32)
Living Graciously	81	(32)
Gracious Religion	113	(32)
Gracious Christianity	145	(34)
The Politics of Grace	179	(28)
Money and Grace	207	(32)
Gracious Justice	239	(32)
A Gracious World	271

Excerpts

If God Is Love
Rediscovering Grace in an Ungracious World

Chapter One

Why Beliefs Matter

When I was younger, I thought beliefs were a private matter. I had the right to believe what I believed, and others could believe what they wanted. As long as people didn't force their beliefs on me, I was happy to allow them to think things I considered ridiculous. Beliefs weren't dangerous. It was attitudes and actions that caused harm.

In the summer of 1986, I discovered this was a naive belief. That June I was hired to pastor a small rural congregation. I'd been studying theology in college and was eager to put my newfound knowledge to work. That church allowed me to preach, visit the sick, and learn why the world won't be saved by a committee. They also taught me why beliefs matter.

My first couple of months with them went well. It was the proverbial honeymoon -- we each proclaimed our fondness for the other loudly and often. There was, on both our parts, some give and take. They preferred their hymns aged like a fine wine, and so I didn't suggest they clap their hands, buy a drum set, or sing lyrics projected on a screen. They discovered I was soft-spoken and bought a new microphone rather than insist I shout. We thought any other differences were minor and easily resolved. In the third month, we found we were wrong.

I can't remember my exact words, but something I mentioned in a sermon caused an elderly woman in the church to wonder whether I believed in Satan and hell. She approached me after worship and began questioning me. Lacking a well-honed ministerial radar and eager to prove my theological sophistication, I answered her questions directly and honestly. This was before I learned that answering theological questions directly and honestly is generally a bad idea, and that ministers go to seminary precisely so we can master the theological language necessary to bewilder people when pressed to provide answers they might not like.

I told her I didn't believe in Satan. Nor did I believe in a place where people were endlessly tormented. I then told her she was perfectly free to believe those ideas. I patted her hand and turned to speak to someone else, never realizing she and I differed on far more than Satan and hell. I believed then, and I believe now, that faith is a matter of inward conviction, not outward compulsion. She believed strict conformity was a requirement of faith. If I'd known this, I might have noticed the whispers during the pitch-in dinner after worship. Instead, my wife and I left church that day grateful God had called us to such a warm fellowship, unaware I'd soon feel its heat.

That week I immersed myself in my studies and sermon preparation and the next Sunday morning arrived at church brimming with excitement. It was Palm Sunday. I planned to speak on how quickly the crowd went from cheering Jesus to jeering him. It turned out to be a timely sermon.

The head elder approached me as I entered the church. "We're not holding church this morning," he said. "We'd like to meet with you instead."

A minister with a sermon in his pocket being an unstoppable force of nature, I told him we should worship before meeting to talk. This also gave me time to figure out what I'd done. I quickly eliminated all the usual pastoral indiscretions. I hadn't had an affair with the church secretary. We didn't have one. I hadn't visited the local tavern. I couldn't afford to drink on what they were paying me. I hadn't used church stamps for personal correspondence. I had no idea why they wanted to speak with me, but suspected anything that would cause them to cancel worship on Palm Sunday must be serious.

The head elder reluctantly agreed to postpone our meeting until after worship. When the last hymn was sung and the closing prayer offered, I filed downstairs with him and sat at a folding table in the church basement. The elders were grim-faced.

"This is an awkward matter," the head elder said, "but I'm afraid we're going to have to let you go."

I asked if I had done something wrong.

"There have been concerns raised that you don't believe in Satan and hell," he said.

"That's right," I said. Then, eager to display my theological prowess, I asked if they wanted to know why.

They declined my offer to enlighten them.

I began to panic. The job didn't pay much, but I was concerned that being fired after only three months might not look good on my résumé. "I do believe in the love of God. Isn't that enough?"

It wasn't.

I realize now what I didn't understand then -- beliefs matter. Beliefs are not harmless. They have the power to shape our world, for good or ill. Some beliefs unite us in a great and common good, while others divide us, reinforcing prejudices and diminishing our humanity. Religious beliefs are especially potent, shaping how we think of and act toward God, others, and ourselves.

I'd thought the idea of Satan and hell negotiable. They didn't. They considered a belief in a demonic personality and eternal damnation essential. They thought those who didn't believe in hell were deceived by Satan and destined for the lake of fire. Fearing I'd lead them astray, they fired me, giving me fresh insight into the origins of that expression.

After the meeting, I walked out to the car where my wife was waiting.

"What happened?" she asked.

"It's good news."

"What is it?"

"We get to sleep in next Sunday."

We drove home and ate dinner, then I lay down on the couch to take a nap. The phone rang later that afternoon. It was an elder from another small rural church near our home.

"We'd like you to come be our pastor," he said. "Are you available?"

"As a matter of fact I am," I told him ...

If God Is Love
Rediscovering Grace in an Ungracious World. Copyright © by Philip Gulley. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Available now wherever books are sold.

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Excerpted from If God Is Love: Rediscovering Grace in an Ungracious World by Philip Gulley, James Mulholland
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.