“God Is the Gospel” by John Piper

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Apr 17, 2004
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It seems to me that popular topics rule Christian publishing of all forms just as the waves rule the tops of the sea. These topics can range from church growth to eschatology to discipleship to the nature of repentance, and while these may or may not be the primary reason why a book is written, they certainly are shown to be important reasons for the author’s assertions. One current topic that has found its way to the radar screen is the nature of the gospel. There are publications in several mediums that seek to define what is and what is not the gospel. What is essential and what is of secondary importance? At a first glance, you may assume this to be a book that seeks to clarify the gospel, but that wouldn’t be entirely true. While Piper does clarify the gospel, he asks a question that many others have failed to present. For this post, I intend to use quotes from the book quite liberally.

Our question is not merely, what is the gospel? Our question is: What is the ultimate good of the gospel that makes all the aspects of good news good? What is the goal of the gospel that, if we miss it, takes all the good out of the gospel? What do we mean when we say God is the gospel?
-p 22

This is certainly an angle to this discussion that I have not seen presented. Nearly every other writing I have seen on the gospel is focused on the news. Piper takes this from a different angle and concentrates on the good of the good news. He asserts that if it is to be good news there must be some aspect of it that is not only good, but is good beyond our current perception (Isaiah 64:4). If the good news is so intensely good, we must realize that we are not in a position in this lifetime to fully realize it. We honor God by our admission that we are not able to appreciate His reward to us, just as we are not able to fully realize the price already paid. Think about it. The gospel is a great reward to men of faith (Hebrews 11:6), but it is a reward for works that we are not able to accomplish (Titus 3:5). The price has been paid by Christ, who as the Son of the trinity and fully God, is also our reward! He gave Himself to death that He may give Himself to us. As the bride of Christ, the church should take a moment to consider the implications toward godly marriages. But I am getting off topic a bit. Allow me to take another quote to bring us back to the teachings of Piper.

There is no gospel without the declaration of Christ crucified for sinners and risen from the dead (1 Cor 15:1-4). This is assumed here. When Paul speaks of “the gospel of the glory of Christ,” he means that the events of the gospel are designed by God to reveal the glory of Christ. This is not incidental to the gospel-it’s essential. The gospel would not be good news if it did not reveal the glory of Christ for us to see and savor. It is the glory of Christ that finally satisfies our soul. We are made for Christ and Christ died so that every obstacle would be removed that keeps us from seeing and savoring the most satisfying treasure in the universe-namely, Christ, who is the image of God.
-p 57

As I read this book, I began to wonder if there were some sort of shortcoming in my own understanding of the gospel. As it is, I do stand convicted of loving the good news for the news and not the good. When I ponder what my salvation means to me, all too often I find myself imagining an eternity in glory, with a banquet table of pleasures before me. This is well and good, but the eternal celebration would not be complete unless we were celebrating with God. That is why God is the gospel! Our joy will be complete in the presence of a God who is infinitely glorious and who has shown a measure of His glory to those He would call His own, that we may catch a glimpse of unsurpassed delight (2 Cor 4:4-6).

Imagine being able to enjoy what is infinitely enjoyable with unbounded energy and passion forever. This is not our experience now. Three things stand in the way of our complete satisfaction in this world. One is that nothing here has a personal worth great enough to meet the deepest longings of our hearts. Another is that we lack the strength to savor the best treasures to their maximum worth. And the third obstacle to complete satisfaction is that our joys here come to an end. Nothing lasts. But if the aim of the gospel comes true, all this will change. If God’s pleasure in the Son becomes our pleasure, then the object of our pleasure, Jesus, will be inexhaustible in personal worth.
-p 95

Piper asks the same question in this book that he asks in “Desiring God.” That question is this: If you were to go to Heaven and have all of the rewards laid out for you, the removal of penalty and the joys forevermore, but God was not there, could you rightly say that your joy was complete? Again I stand convicted. There have been times when I would consider the glory of Heaven and marvel that one day I will experience a place prepared for me, just as I am being prepared for it. I can get so caught up in the rewards of Heaven that I lose sight of the final reward, the reward of seeing my savior’s face and bowing to His glory. It is when I see my wavering joy for what it truly is. In essence, it is the spiritual and emotional act of making an idol out of the reward of Heaven. This loss of focus on the finisher of my faith is a source of concern for me, but right on cue Piper answers that consternation.

The ability to see spiritual beauty is not unwavering. There are ups and downs in our fellowship with Christ. There are times of beclouded vision, especially if sin gets the upper hand in our lives for a season. Yes, and this is not an all-or-nothing reality. There are degrees of purity and degrees of seeing. Only when we are perfected in the age to come will our seeing be totally unclouded. Matthew 5:8; 1 Cor 13:12
-p 51

Finally we get to the matter of conversion from spiritual death to eternal life. The matter of conversion is nicely summarized in this book in a way that is both Biblical and practical. Already I have used this concept in conversation with a person in my church. We had a discussion of what conversion is and what it isn’t. I have explained it as a treasure in a field that is revealed and found to be satisfying beyond everything else (Matthew 13:44). This matter is unpacked by Piper in the way I have come to expect from him. It places the carnal joys of man in their proper place, and exalts the beauty of Christ to a level that is closer to the truth than what I understood before. Even with this explanation, I am reminded that the reality of Christ’s glory far overshadows any attempt of man to make a description. This is a major theme found throughout this book.

Christian conversion is the awakening of our souls to the glory of God as the ground of our joy. Conversion is the spiritual discovery that being loved by God is not the divine endorsement of our passion for self-exaltation. In fact, being loved by God is the merciful destruction of that passion… Most people know that the greatest experiences of joy in this life–the ones that come closest to being pictures of perfect joy in heaven–are not experiences of self-affirmation, but the self-forgetfulness in the presence of something majestic.
-p 143

As we ponder what it means to be in the presence of something beyond all majesty in this world, we are forced to make a declaration in our own hearts. We must forever weigh the value of self in our presentation of the gospel. We must always speak the truth of God’s word as it is written, adding nothing to it that God didn’t put there. Likewise, we are required by the word of God to meditate on His words, that we may be transformed through this study. As we maintain a God-honoring understanding of the gospel our lives will reflect that, and we will find that sin has less of a grip on our lives than it once did. We will choose the things of God more often and we will do so with a gladness in our hearts that the world can see. The study of what makes the good news good is not just an educational exercise. It is a vital way to underscore your verbal testimony with words written in the very fabric of your being.

The ultimate and greatest good of the gospel is not self-exaltation, but being able to see the glory of God without disintegrating and being able to delight in the glory of Christ with the very delight of God the Father for His own Son, and being able to do visible Christ exalting deeds that flow from this delight. So being like God is the ground of seeing God for who He is, and this seeing is the ground of savoring and delighting in the glory of God with the very delight of God, which then overflows with visible displays of God’s glory.
-p 153

Piper tries to give us a taste of a glory that we cannot comprehend and refers to it as a requirement. In a sense it is. But like all other requirements in the gospel, Christ has met it for us and is preparing it, and us, for the culmination. Many people will read this book and miss this point. It is expressed, but not as forcefully as I believe it should have been. Because of this, many may look at the bar that he reveals and wonder if it is attainable that we could ever desire God to the required degree. I think it is healthy to remember that seeing Christ face to face is the desired end result of the gospel, much greater than just a free pass to glory. I also think it is good to realize that we are fallen beings who cannot appreciate the magnitude of this blessed hope, but we can anticipate our joy when the obstacle of sin is removed and we are able to see the full glory of our Lord. Moses was able to see God’s back. One day, I will see His face!

Job 19:25-27 (NKJV)
For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth; and after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!

This book could have been improved upon by highlighting the life Christ led on our behalf as the perfect example that we can only hold through faith. I also wish more applications had been made. When you long to see the glory of God above all else, sin assumes a reduced role in our hearts as we are more and more enabled to do all for the glory of God. I do give this book my recommendation, but would like to see these two improvements in a future second edition if ever there is one.

This is a book that will challenge any discerning reader to grow, as Piper is one who seems to enjoy making bold statements toward the beginning of a book, then providing Biblical support for these statements. It is this approach that seems to stimulate spiritual growth within me, and for books like this I thank John Piper. He does not write books that are inconsequential and he avoids simply stating his stance in matters. He is willing to make profound statements that force the reader to consider his claims in the light of scripture. And isn’t that a mark of a good Christian author?