how great a salvation! by rich nathan

The angelic choir that serenaded the shepherds at Christmas sang:  Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.  The call to “peace on earth” rests upon the hugely important Old Testament concept of shalom.  Shalom in modern Hebrew is used as the equivalent of “hello,” or “goodbye.”  Arabs have a similar word saying “salaam” when greeting each other. 

 

However, shalom means far more than hello, goodbye, or even peace perceived merely as serenity, peace of mind, or the absence of war.  Shalom means fullness.  It can be translated into English using such terms as completeness, soundness, health, prosperity and salvation.  Shalom has to do with the complete reign of God over all creation.   

 

The church in America has tended to separate three dimensions of the whole gospel. These three dimensions are: words that proclaim the truth of God (the traditional focus of evangelicals); signs that proclaim the power of God (most loved by Pentecostals and charismatics); and deeds that proclaim the love of God (a strength of liberals and social activists).  Each is a part of the Good News of the gospel (or shalom).  But the gospel is not fully proclaimed until all three dimensions are experienced and manifested.  The preaching and praying that takes place in our church building should not be separated from the deeds of mercy that proclaim God’s love out in the streets.  The whole gospel involves the truth, the power, and the love of God. 

 

Another way to express this is to say that the Great Commission challenge to make disciples of all nations must never be separated from the Great Commandment challenge of “loving your neighbor as yourself.”  A wholistic understanding of shalom  means that we ask ourselves the question, “What does salvation mean for a child or adult who finds Christ at our churches, but goes back to a destructive home life filled with drugs, violence, or minimal educational opportunities?” 

 

A passion for shalom should characterize Vineyard churches.  We are supposed to be an outpost for the Kingdom of God now on earth.  For our churches, nothing less than human well-being in all dimensions – spiritual, relational, physical, emotional, mental, and moral – should ever satisfy us.  The heart of the Vineyard (and even more importantly, the heart of God) must be to see people fully restored to the creation purpose intended by God.  Or as the early Church Father Irenaeus put it:  “The glory of God is man fully alive.” 

 

This means, then, that our churches should offer more than standard religious fare – preaching, rites of passage, counseling, marital help, and charity. 

 

Have you considered that the church is a natural place for health screenings and preventative medicine?  Why not be a site for people to get their high school diplomas?  What about offering job training or resumé writing? 

 

Dan Fountain put it this way:  God’s plan for the world is this: that all persons everywhere,  in every nation, know God’s saving help and be delivered from disobedience, disruption, despair, disease, and all that would destroy our wholeness. 

 

This is a mission statement that can absorb our church’s attention until the Lord returns!  And – most wonderfully, this will fulfill the angels song, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.