I’m sure we all know people who would put themselves in the category of “not Christian” or at least tick the “no religion” box on the census. I wonder—based on their relationship with you—how do you think they would describe the Christian faith? Maybe they would say something like being kind and loving to others; they might add forgiveness. Would they say something about the Bible being important, prayer, and being busy on lots of church committees? Would they mention God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit? Would they be able to tell you what the Gospel is, from your perspective?When I conduct funerals, I sometimes have family members who aren’t of the Christian faith but want to honour their mum or dad’s wishes. In those moments, I sometimes get a window into what they have observed or understood to be Christianity.In Acts 25, the apostle Paul finds himself still in chains. He’s been talking with the Roman governor Festus, who is trying to get to the bottom of what exactly Paul is being accused of and why the local Jewish leaders want him dead. At one point, Festus gives us an insight into what a Roman outsider thinks is the summary of the Christian faith: “something about their [Jewish] religion and a dead man named Jesus, who Paul insists is alive” (Acts 25:19). This is like a crystallised version of the Gospel as Festus understands it: a dead man named Jesus who Christians insist is alive.Do you think that’s accurate? What would you want to add or change? How would you help Festus understand more—or do you think that’s enough to capture the essence of the Christian faith?I recently saw an edited video of a Victorian parliamentary debate on the introduction of new vilification laws, where it was clear that one MP did not have enough understanding of Christianity to be able to say even what Festus did. They clearly didn’t know who Jesus was or that Christians insist he is alive today. It seems we still have much work to do when it comes to sharing even a basic understanding of the Gospel.This Sunday we have a wonderfully full service: celebrating Father’s Day, exploring Acts 25 and the Gospel, and finishing with a reaffirmation of the baptism of Andrew Lee.Oh, and by the way… if you’re a father and get asked by your family what you want to do this Sunday, why not say: “I’d love it if we could all go to church as a family.”Your brother in Christ,Benji
