Jesus Cropped from the Picture

Jesus Cropped from the Picture

These two approaches (pragmatic and therapeutic) are supported by testimonies where being a Christian has given meaning to people’s lives, saved their marriages, or delivered them from an addiction. This leads to admonitions to, “Try God; give him a chance with your life. Accept him as Savior and see how your life gets better.” Webber said, “I gradually began to understand that these phrases and others like them turn the gospel inside out. I once understood the gospel as God asking me to let him into my narrative, to find room for him in my heart and life. But now I realize that God bids me to find my place in his narrative.” 38 Rationalism has cropped Jesus from the picture , turning the gospel into a set of doctrines to be believed so life will turn out well. The next chapter will explore Rationalism’s influence on the origins of a well-known, and seemingly benign phrase.

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