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Gospel Renewal: More Than A Moment

There are moments in life when we realize that simply being good isn’t enough.
We feel the low-grade frustration of trying to be kind but burning out. Of trying to change but falling back into old habits. Of wanting real connection but never quite crossing the invisible lines that divide us.
I’ve come to believe that the only thing strong enough to transform us—and our world—is gospel renewal.

The Gospel Is More Than a Starting Line
We often treat the gospel like a doorway. Step through it, and you’re in the house of faith. But it’s not just the doorway. It’s the whole house. It’s not a one-time event. It’s a continuous invitation to be made new.

Paul writes in Titus 3 that we were once “foolish, disobedient, deceived, and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures,” but then, “when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us… not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.”

That’s gospel renewal. Not a self-improvement plan. Not moral behavior tweaking. It’s mercy showing up when we least deserve it and transforming us from the inside out.
Renewal Starts in the Heart, Not the Headlines

We live in a world filled with division. You can see it on maps—neighborhoods divided by race, language, class, history. Where I live in the San Gabriel Valley, the lines are clear and unspoken. Different communities stick to their own. Even as a white guy in a neighborhood where most people don’t look like me, I catch myself wondering, “What are they doing here?” when I see someone who does. That’s how deep the assumptions run.

And it’s not just about geography. It’s how we treat people different from us. We don’t change that with better signage or social programs alone. The only thing that truly melts dividing walls is the gospel.

In Ephesians 2, Paul says Jesus is our peace—he has “destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility” and created “one new humanity.”
That’s what gospel renewal does. It doesn’t erase our differences—it redeems them. The church isn’t called to be color-blind; it’s called to be color-honoring. Ethnic, cultural, and personal uniqueness should be expressions of grace, not excuses for exclusion.

We Forget the Gospel. Daily.
Let’s be honest. We default to self-salvation.
Some of us try to earn our worth by doing good—believing God will bless us if we behave. Others of us live however we want, assuming freedom equals happiness. But both paths miss the point. They’re just different ways of saying, “I’ll save myself.”
You know you're stuck in this mindset when life goes sideways and your first thought is, “God must be punishing me.” As if his love is a transaction. As if you were in control.
But gospel renewal tells a different story: You are not the hero. You are not in control. You are not your own savior. And that’s good news.
Because when your heart is melted by mercy, your behaviors begin to change—not out of fear or pressure, but out of love.

The Gospel Meets Our Deepest Needs
Every one of us longs to be admired, to stay in control, to be seen as successful. Those needs show up in tiny ways—like needing to be thanked for doing the dishes or insisting on being the driver. They also show up in deeper places: career, marriage, parenting, spiritual life.

The gospel meets all those needs.

You are already fully loved and admired by God.

You don’t have to stay in control—he’s already got you.

You don’t need to prove your success—you’ve inherited Christ’s righteousness.

When your identity is rooted in what Jesus has done, not what you’ve done, you’re free. Free to tell the truth. Free to be gentle. Free to listen instead of lash out. Because your worth isn’t on trial anymore.

Renewal Flows Outward—Not Just Inward
When your heart is being renewed, it doesn’t stay private. Gospel renewal spills out—into your family, your friendships, your neighborhood, your city.

The church isn’t meant to be a bunker or a bullhorn. Not a retreat or a protest. It’s meant to be a river—overflowing with the love of Jesus.

That’s what I long to see where I live: a church that looks like heaven, not just our zip code. A place where different people don’t just coexist, but connect. Where nobody feels othered. Where no one has to pretend to belong, because they know they already do.

A church like that becomes a holy disruption in the city around it.

Don’t Get Loud. Get Renewed
There’s a lot of noise right now. The church often tries to shout down the darkness. But what we need isn’t louder Christians—it’s renewed ones.

Renewed Christians serve without striving. They fight for justice without pride. They volunteer without needing validation. Their power comes not from performance, but from presence.

Gospel renewal is what fuels a quiet revolution—one heart, one home, one neighborhood at a time.

So Here’s the Invitation
Let the gospel reach you again.

Not just in theory, but in practice. Not just once, but every day.

Let it remind you who you are. Let it melt what’s hard in you. Let it shape your heart into something new and beautiful.

Because when the gospel gets in you, it flows through you.

And when that happens—not just in one life, but in a whole church—something holy begins to happen in the city around you.

So I’m asking: Do you want to be part of that?

Let’s build something that doesn’t look like the world. Let’s become something that looks like the kingdom.

Not louder. Just more renewed.

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