Gary L. Thomas's Blog

UNLOCKED! Dismantling Self-Centered Salvation

One of the biggest lies I was told growing up defined the entire Gospel as Jesus came to earth as a man, died on the cross for my sins, and rose from the dead so that my sins could be forgiven and I could live with him in heaven.” That statement contains many true facts, but it limits the full work and intent of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. Christians who go no further hamstring their life’s purpose, fulfillment, and mission. My publisher has granted us permission to run chapter five from my soon-to-be-released book The Life You Were Reborn to Live: Dismantling 12 Lies that Rob Your Intimacy with God. If this chapter intrigues you, you can preorder the entire book.

Order Here

“The kingdom of God is so shockingly opposite the way the rest of the world works that I need constant reminding of what it looks like and how good it is.”

Brant Hansen, Unoffendable

A faithful life in Christ depends in large part on your understanding not just the facts of Jesus’ death but the point of Jesus’ death.

There’s a difference between the facts and the point of an event.

Back in the days of the Soviet Union, Pravda, the state newspaper, was famous for its stories that might be factually true but were radically misleading. For example, one headline announced, “Soviet Runner Second, American Runner Third from Last.”

The race involved just three people, and the American won the race. But first place in a three-person race is, technically speaking, “third from last.” So the headline was technically true but wildly deceptive. The facts missed the point that the American defeated both the Soviet runner and the other runner.

When she was in high school, journalist, writer, and filmmaker Nora Ephron[1] took a journalism class in which the teacher gave an assignment to write the lede to a story as a way to help the students distinguish between the facts and the point. The teacher introduced the assignment by presenting the story’s relevant facts:

Kenneth I. Peters, the principal of Beverly Hills High School, announced today that the entire high school faculty will travel to Sacramento next Thursday for a colloquium in new teaching methods. Among the speakers will be anthropologist Margaret Mead, college president Dr. Robert Maynard Hutchins, and California governor Edmund “Pat” Brown.[i]

With that information, the professor asked the journalism students to write the lede. One suggested, “Margaret Mead, Maynard Hutchins, and Governor Brown will address the faculty on . . .”

But that was wrong.

Another started out, “Next Thursday, the high school faculty will . . .”

Wrong again.

The teacher proceeded to unveil the true lede: “There will be no school Thursday.”

For journalists, the lede refers not just to the facts but also to the point of the facts. With all the faculty out, the school can’t hold classes. What the students most need to know and want to know is that they don’t have to go to school that day.

If we know the facts about Jesus’ death at Golgotha but miss the point, we risk, in the words of C. S. Lewis, “running about with fire extinguishers whenever there is a flood.”[ii]

One of the reasons we’re running around with fire extinguishers during a flood is that we don’t understand the lede about Jesus’ death. We get the facts right, but the point is wrong. We need to rethink what the point really is so we can learn what really matters.

Before we go on, ask yourself, What is the proper lede for the events of Good Friday that culminate with Jesus’ death on the cross at Golgotha?

Continue reading on Substack HERE.

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What Do Christian Wives Really Want From Their Husbands?

I’ve asked four wives from different stages of life and with different marital experiences to answer the question so many men want to know: what do Christian wives really want from their husbands? Of course, different wives emphasize different things, but the point of this discussion is to start the conversation. I recommend listening to this with your spouse so that the two of you can interact and maybe get some things out in the open. It’s very helpful to know what your spouse prioritizes for an intimate, satisfying marriage. I was so impressed by and pleased with the wives’ participation in this. They share a lot of wisdom, making this both helpful and enjoyable. And wives, please feel free to add your own suggestions in the comments.

Wives, I’m also planning to record one on what Christian husbands really want from their wives. It’s taking me longer to get these guys together, so it’ll be a few weeks perhaps, but it’s coming.

Watch this discussion on Substack HERE.

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Reading (and Driving) With Humility

Reading with pride is worthless. Why bother? If you’re not open to being challenged, what’s the point?

I don’t expect anyone to agree with one hundred percent of anything I write, and I don’t expect to agree with everything another author writes.[i] But sometimes, the things I dismiss most quickly are the very things I need to hear, heed, and consider.

John Mark Comer’s book The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry has become very popular for all the right reasons. I loved it. It has one of the best chapters on the sabbath that I’ve ever read. John Mark lost me a little bit, though, when he talked about downsizing his wardrobe from five outfits to two; I’m not sure anyone could live in Colorado’s four seasons with just two outfits—but the charge toward simplicity certainly convicted me that there’s a lot of room between two outfits and a hundred. So I got rid of some (I don’t think I ever had a hundred outfits, but I’m writing this at the church and I’m not about to go home to count).

One thing my wife and I laughed about, though, is when John Mark recommends driving the speed limit. In some cities we’ve been in, we feel like that could get you killed.

Seriously.

Then Travelers Insurance came around.

We recently switched insurance policies from another carrier, and Travelers said that if we downloaded this app, which evaluates our driving for ninety days, we might qualify for a significant discount. I liked the thought of the discount, and I figured it could be a way to gloat a little bit in my marriage. Lisa and I mutually agree that I’m a better driver, but now we’d have demonstrable data. Sadly for me, two weeks into our experiment, Lisa’s score was higher than mine. I am now driving like a grandma trying to win back some respect. I mean, this could redefine our 41 years together. If I’m not the better driver, what else am I mistaken about? Horror of horrors! I’ve got to fix this!

Continue reading this free blog over on Substack HERE.

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Scandalous Grace

This is a follow-up to last week’s post on Abundant Affirmation for Abundant Sinners, which you can read HERE. We take what we learned last week and apply it all our roles, and even to those serving as pastors and ministers. 

Grace is scandalous to many. Just as some hate God’s law, so some hate God’s mercy because it just doesn’t seem fair. The natural woman or man drifts toward, “I don’t want to pay for my sins, but I certainly want you to pay for yours.”

In her novel Golden Girl, Elin Hilderbrand recounts a daughter’s falling apart after her mother dies. The daughter starts acting out—drugs, alcohol, and an affair with a married man (Carson—the daughter—is single). Her boss tries to show Carson mercy but warns her that if she does drugs again while on duty as a bartender, she’ll be fired. Giving an ultimatum like that to an addict is like telling someone who is falling that if they don’t stop falling, they’ll hit the ground. I’m not faulting the owner of the bar, just pointing out how words are so impotent in the face of painful desperation.

Carson’s behavior disgusts you as you read her story. I don’t have space to get into the atrocious level of betrayal and selfishness she displayed. And the owner of the bar seems like a good guy who wants to give Carson a chance, but she pushes him too far. He can’t overlook what she’s doing.

But Hilderbrand is brilliant in the way she shows an eventually repentant Carson (who finally quits drinking) confess to a guy why she got fired. She recounts what she did—and it’s horrific—but you have empathy for her.

“I got fired,” Carson says. She holds his eyes. “I had a douchebag customer, big-money guy, who ordered kamikaze shots and asked that I do one with his group.”

Marshall groans…

“That happened four times,” Carson says, shaking her head…What had she been thinking?

“You did four shots with a customer?” Marshall says. He looks equal parts impressed and aghast. “Can you imagine if I did that here?”

“Then the guy asked me for a kiss,” Carson says.

“You slapped him, I hope?”

“I was too angry to slap him. I kissed him good, trying to make a point, which was lost among all the people cheering us on and filming it.”

“Oh, Carson.”

“And that’s not even why I got fired,” Carson says. “I got fired because I insulted a barback who worked with me and she saw me doing coke in the ladies room and told our boss.”

Marshall is quiet. She has horrified him.

“My boss, George, the owner, had been clear about us never doing drugs on the job. So I got fired.”

“I’m sorry,” Marshall says.

“Don’t be,” Carson says. She stirs her Shirley Temple and watches the grenadine swirl through the ginger ale like watercolor paint. “I deserved it. George was way cooler than he had to be. He said he’ll give me a glowing reference when I get my act cleaned up…which is what I’m trying to do now.”[i]

If I’m counseling a guy and he described to me behavior similar to what Carson did, asking for my advice, everything within me would want to scream, “Run, don’t walk, run to anyone else. Not her!”

And yet you cheer when Marshall eventually asks Carson out. Carson is repentant. She comes to terms with her pain. She sort of straightens herself out and then does straighten herself out.

The underlying theme of the novel is Carson’s mom’s death, a famous novelist who was killed by a hit-and-run driver. When, near the end, they finally uncover who the hit-and-run driver was, Carson wants to argue for a maximum prison sentence. Her older sister wants to offer a statement of mercy.

“I just feel like we aren’t honoring Mom unless we ask for the maximum sentence,” Carson says.

Her older sister pushes back. “As usual, you have things backward. We honor Mom by offering forgiveness. You know how she treats the characters in her books? She gives them flaws, she portrays them doing horrible things—but the reader loves them anyway. Because Mom loves them. Because they’re human.”[ii]

What a statement of grace! Can we love people who do horrible things because God the author loves them? That question alone will anger a lot of angry people because they’ll assume we are giving a pass to people to do more horrible things. Grace doesn’t eclipse accountability. In fact, grace is the most compelling call to accountability: “God’s kindness leads us to repentance” (Romans 2:4). But grace colors our attitude and motivations with a gloriously godly hue. There is nothing on this planet quite like God’s grace because it is ultimately heavenly.

In his book All In, Mark Batterson talks about the difference between “prophets” and Pharisees.

Pharisees treat people based on past performance.

Prophets treat people based on future potential…

Pharisees write people off.

Prophets write people in.

Pharisees see sin.

Prophets see the image of God.

Pharisees give up on people.

Prophets give them a second chance.[iii]

When you understand the good enough for God life, you realize that God is more like a prophet than he is a Pharisee. To live the good enough for God life, stop listening to the Pharisees and start listening to the Great Prophet.

Continue reading this blog on Substack HERE.

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Abundant Affirmation for Abundant Sinners

This is from my book in progress on divine affirmation. The founder of AA was a scandal just waiting to happen. The apostle Peter collected failures like some collect stamps, but God’s affirmation isn’t based on our performance or sinlessness. God offers abundant affirmation for those of us who sin abundantly. Though of course we should all seek to grow in righteousness, this section of the chapter offers encouragement for when we fail.

“When we were overwhelmed by sins, you forgave our transgressions.”

Psalm 65:3

God is for you. He wants you to succeed.

The world wants you to fail. It takes a sick pleasure, especially out of Christians falling.

God is motivated by love; the world, by malice.

That tells you everything you need to know.

Living out of divine affirmation means that the world’s shame won’t move us any more than its applause. The world lifts people up for the wrong values and then takes people down with the wrong motivations. The world mocks God’s holiness and his grace. They hate the claims that God’s call to holiness makes on our lives, and they hate the application of his grace when we fail to live up to his commands.

You start to think that maybe they just don’t like God!

When you truly love God, you treasure his commands and you rest in his grace. It’s a two-part deal. You are passionate about obedience and passionate about repentance.

Bill Wilson, the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, is a hero to many who never met him but he seemed like a train wreck waiting to happen to those who did. Wilson’s associates often lamented how such an unworthy man was the figurehead for such a worthy mission. Bill’s lifelong struggle with alcohol arguably morphed into an addiction to sex. He was chronically unfaithful to his wife. The transfer from alcohol to sex addiction isn’t uncommon; in AA circles it’s derisively described as “thirteenth stepping,” and Wilson was one of the most prolific thirteenth steppers who ever lived. A long-term mistress, Helen Wynn, was actually a beneficiary in his will. In a particularly sad and heart-wrenching deathbed scene, Bill spent the last few weeks of his life berating nurses for refusing to give him a drink.[i]

Think of the potential scandal: the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous died verbally abusing nurses who wouldn’t give him alcohol. If that’s what he wanted at the end, was his whole life a failure? Was he the ultimate hypocrite?

If Bill had lived in the twenty-first century instead of the twentieth, any fame-thirsty blogger could have written a good “takedown” of Bill, cataloging his hypocrisy and his unworthiness to be a figure of renown. And then, like many crusading bloggers do today, seek to take down AA in its entirety by asking how AA or its message could be any good when its founder was so “bad.” The program Bill launched—though imperfect—has benefited tens of millions of people, helping them find the freedom that he never entirely did. Many would say it has been improved by Celebrate Recovery or Regeneration, but the founders of CR would tell you that AA led them to the more Christ-based version, making its prior establishment helpful, if not essential, to their own.

The good enough for God life doesn’t need the world’s approval to be used by God. Nor must it succumb to the shame-casting crusades that self-righteous people unleash because their spiritual lust is anger. Anger and conflict make the arrogant feel alive and important. Attacking is fun, and when they think they have truth and proof on their side, they can unleash a particularly vicious spiritual blood-lust.

Attacking without grace is called malice, which the Bible condemns soundly (Colossians 3:8; Ephesians 4:31-32, et. al). To forget grace is to forget God. Paul is adamant in this regard: “Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently” (Galatians 6:1). I wish people would remember that we can sin in the way we call out others on their sin. In fact, we are probably most tempted to sin ourselves when responding to other’s sin.

In part because of the world’s malice, if your self-view is tied to your reputation in the world or the church, you’re on perilous ground. The good enough for God life burns through God’s gifts and grace, cashing checks on our heavenly Father’s unlimited bank account. God unleashes the positive and takes care of the negative. He provides the raw materials for success and the clean-up for failure. The good enough for God life begins, is sustained by, and is finished by God himself, so we stay in it only through persistent walking in Christ, maintaining a life that seeks to be rich toward God.

If I’m living in the Holy City instead of the Great City, if I’m striving to be great only “in the sight of God,” then using his gifts to serve is essentially the same as using his grace to be forgiven. It all comes from him, is for him, and glorifies him. Whether I am an example of how we should live or an example of how merciful God is when we disobey, my life is pointing others to Jesus, and I am part of the Holy City.

The arrogant think their service earns favor because, after all, they are the ones doing it (denying the gifting, provision, and empowerment of God). And when they fall, they believe they are now less effective because the world looks at them differently. In reality, God knew the gifts came from him and that the current grace to forgive comes from him, so it’s not different in his eyes. If we live to point others to God instead of ourselves, whether we fall or climb, we’re still pointing “north.”

This seems logically absurd to those whose compass is set in the Great City. But how “great” is Babylon since we know she is destined to fall? She’s a dead tree, decaying from within, just waiting for the windstorm to reveal her rotting trunk.

God’s affirmation changes everything. When people have had their worst sides exposed and face uncertain futures, one of the greatest blessings of following Christ is being able to point them past their shame to the abundant opportunities ahead of them, beginning with the affirmation of Christ.

If you’re among the recently fallen, while the world may dismiss everything you’ve done once you “mess up,” that doesn’t mean God does. You don’t have to consider yourself marginalized for the rest of your life when you understand the story of grace and the Bible’s clear proclamation that there is only one hero in all of Scripture, and that hero is God. As long as we’re pointing others to him, our lives matter. If you had the biggest “fall” of your life yesterday, you can still begin living the good enough for God life today.

Bill Wilson’s “bad” doesn’t negate the good, any more than his good acts erase his bad acts. God used him and God forgave him.

Was he a hypocrite? In a sense, yes. Did God use him? Of course. That incongruency bothers a lot of people, but in the end, it glorifies God and gives hope to all of us. Who doesn’t want to celebrate that God has, can and will use radically imperfect people?

Continue reading this blog on Substack HERE.

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“The Life You Were Reborn to Live” Book Ambassador Announcement

Sign up to be a Book Ambassador for  The Life You Were Reborn to Live!

Thank you for your interest in Gary Thomas’s book, The Life You Were Reborn to Live, which is releasing on October 7th from Zondervan.

Do you feel restless and frustrated with the Christian life? This transformative book will help you dismantle twelve common lies Christians believe that cripple intimacy with God, enabling you to experience the rich, satisfying relationship your soul seeks.

Pastor and bestselling author Gary Thomas knows from personal and pastoral experience the dissatisfaction many of us feel in our daily experience as Christians, despite our desire to grow closer to God. The key to the truly abundant new life God promises, Thomas reveals in this beautifully transparent book, starts with unlearning falsehoods we don’t even know we believe.

Renewing our minds will renew our lives. Discover the flourishing, joyful life you were reborn to live by dismantling strongholds of falsehood and embracing the truth that sets us free.

The Book Ambassador program will begin on August 25th.

Watch this announcement on Substack HERE.

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Dismantling Self-Centered Salvation: Learn the Value of Sacrificial Service

One of the biggest lies I was told growing up defined the entire Gospel as Jesus came to earth as a man, died on the cross for my sins, and rose from the dead so that my sins could be forgiven and I could live with him in heaven.” That statement contains many true facts, but it limits the full work and intent of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. Christians who go no further hamstring their life’s purpose, fulfillment, and mission. My publisher has granted us permission to run chapter five from my soon-to-be-released book The Life You Were Reborn to Live: Dismantling 12 Lies that Rob Your Intimacy with God. If this chapter intrigues you, you can preorder the entire book.

Order Here

“The kingdom of God is so shockingly opposite the way the rest of the world works that I need constant reminding of what it looks like and how good it is.”

Brant Hansen, Unoffendable

A faithful life in Christ depends in large part on your understanding not just the facts of Jesus’ death but the point of Jesus’ death.

There’s a difference between the facts and the point of an event.

Back in the days of the Soviet Union, Pravda, the state newspaper, was famous for its stories that might be factually true but were radically misleading. For example, one headline announced, “Soviet Runner Second, American Runner Third from Last.”

The race involved just three people, and the American won the race. But first place in a three-person race is, technically speaking, “third from last.” So the headline was technically true but wildly deceptive. The facts missed the point that the American defeated both the Soviet runner and the other runner.

When she was in high school, journalist, writer, and filmmaker Nora Ephron[1] took a journalism class in which the teacher gave an assignment to write the lede to a story as a way to help the students distinguish between the facts and the point. The teacher introduced the assignment by presenting the story’s relevant facts:

Kenneth I. Peters, the principal of Beverly Hills High School, announced today that the entire high school faculty will travel to Sacramento next Thursday for a colloquium in new teaching methods. Among the speakers will be anthropologist Margaret Mead, college president Dr. Robert Maynard Hutchins, and California governor Edmund “Pat” Brown.[i]

With that information, the professor asked the journalism students to write the lede. One suggested, “Margaret Mead, Maynard Hutchins, and Governor Brown will address the faculty on . . .”

But that was wrong.

Another started out, “Next Thursday, the high school faculty will . . .”

Wrong again.

The teacher proceeded to unveil the true lede: “There will be no school Thursday.”

For journalists, the lede refers not just to the facts but also to the point of the facts. With all the faculty out, the school can’t hold classes. What the students most need to know and want to know is that they don’t have to go to school that day.

If we know the facts about Jesus’ death at Golgotha but miss the point, we risk, in the words of C. S. Lewis, “running about with fire extinguishers whenever there is a flood.”[ii]

One of the reasons we’re running around with fire extinguishers during a flood is that we don’t understand the lede about Jesus’ death. We get the facts right, but the point is wrong. We need to rethink what the point really is so we can learn what really matters.

Before we go on, ask yourself, What is the proper lede for the events of Good Friday that culminate with Jesus’ death on the cross at Golgotha?

Continue reading this blog on Substack HERE.

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There Will Always Be a Girl on a Bicycle

A French-German film conveys a fundamental truth: as soon as you make a commitment, it will be tested. Your marriage is more precious than you could realize. Knowing how you’ll respond before you see “the girl on the bicycle” is a valuable life skill. 

A French-German film production portrays the intriguing story of a tour bus driver who gets engaged to his girlfriend of three years. Shortly after the engagement, he’s driving his bus when a beautiful woman pulls up next to him on her bike. She smiles his way at the stoplight, and he’s smitten. He tries to follow her, but he’s leading a tour, so she “gets away.”

In real life, that would be the end of it. The movie takes place in Paris, after all, home to hundreds of thousands of cars and even more bikes. But this isn’t real life, so of course he sees her again, loses her again, then sees her again, and then…runs into her. She’s injured and their lives become intertwined.

Along the way, the bus driver confides to his best mate how taken he is with the bicyclist. His mate isn’t surprised—he’s a guy, and he knows how quickly men can be smitten by physical attraction—but he tries to bring in some sensible perspective. After all, his friend just got engaged. After three years. To a wonderful, emotionally healthy, and attractive woman.

Continue reading this free blog on Substack HERE.

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You’re Not a Fool to Keep Hoping, Part 3

Puritan Thomas Brooks ministers to the church when he reminds us that just one hour into heaven, and everything will make sense. We’ll realize we were not fools for standing up for the truth and for living with biblical hope. This post concludes our three-part series on why you’re not a fool to keep hoping for God to do a great work in your children’s lives, even when you don’t see the results. It’s also relevant for any disappointed or disaffected Christian whose prayers haven’t yet been answered. Please read  Part 1 and Part 2 to fully understand the context. These three posts will comprise one chapter in my work-in-progress, “When Christian Parents Hurt.” As always, I welcome all constructive criticism for any of these posts. As it’s a work in progress, I can consider and incorporate your thoughts. (My book coming out this fall actually quotes–by name–a couple of Substack reviewers who added some sterling insight.)

What God Promises to Do

While we see a world in rebellion, calling evil good and good evil, we can find hope in that glorious day when every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. One day, your child will see that your faith in Jesus is true and well-placed. They will acknowledge that what you are saying right now is true.

That day is coming. It is certain, and it will be glorious.

This is the “certainty” behind hope that moves it well past wishful thinking, making it almost the opposite.

My wife isn’t a fan of sports, though I’ve loved watching them throughout my life. When our kids were young, I spent a Sunday afternoon taking them out and playing with them, taping the Seahawks game on the DVR (which shows how long ago this was) to watch later. While the kids were napping, I put the game in. The Seahawks were ahead by seventeen points early in the fourth quarter so I was in a good mood until my wife came downstairs and innocently asked, “Oh, is it overtime yet?”

“What???”

“Is it overtime yet?”

“Why would you tell me it goes into overtime?”

“I just thought I could save you some time.”

“If I wanted to save time, I’d call up a friend and ask him the score.”

I desperately clung to a tiny bit of doubt because, hey, they were up by 17 points and it was the fourth quarter. But I also knew it was the Seahawks, and they have proven themselves capable of blowing a lead like that. And they did. Watching it unfold, already knowing the end, was brutal.

Hope is like a Seahawks game in reverse. We have the good news of a victory up front. Jesus wins, decisively. No matter how hopeless it may seem, the end is assured.

Continue reading this blog on Substack HERE.

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Should Weddings Take Place in a Church?

One of the biggest cultural moves in the past generation has been Christians getting married in outside venues rather than at a church. Does it matter? What kind of statement does that make? Are there benefits to getting married in a church? Matt and Anne Kennedy (from Demotivations with Anne) recently had their son get married during a church service on Sunday morning. Talk about pushing back! I was fascinated when I heard the news, and we had a wonderful conversation about it. While neither the Kennedys nor I think outside venues are illegitimate places for Christians to get married (my oldest daughter is getting married in September in a barn), where your wedding takes place does matter, and it’s worth thinking about.

Click HERE to listen to this discussion on Substack.

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