Kevin De Young’s set out a ‘Christian Worldview’ summary which is hung on four pegs: 1-2-3-4.
The idea inspired me to have a go at my own: 3-2-1.
Three – Jesus keeps talking about His Father and the love they have shared before the world began. And He does everything in the power of the Spirit who communicates this love.
Before there was anything there were these Three. And their love was too good to keep to themselves. They made a world so that billions more can share in the love of the Three.
Two – The story of the world is the story of two men. God placed one man, Adam, at the head of the world to bless it and care for it. Yet through mistrust, Adam broke fellowship with God, and plunged the world down into death and curse. We all participate in this broken humanity and feel the curse of this broken world.
But there is a second man, Jesus Christ. God the Son became God our Brother as He entered into our broken world, stepping into our shoes. On the cross He faced the death and curse that belong to us. Three days later He rose up to a new kind of human life – the head of a new kind of world.
But which of these two men will we belong to?
One – The Bible says all humankind are one with Adam when they are born. We are united to the old humanity headed down to death and curse. But Jesus stands, arms wide open, offering a one-ness with Himself. If we trust Him we become united to Him like in a marriage. All that is ours (our sin and curse) becomes His. All that is His (His Spirit, righteousness, and cosmic inheritance) becomes ours.
In union with Jesus we share now in His family relations – filled with His Spirit and adopted by His Father. And when He comes again we will also share in His immortal, bodily life – we and the whole universe.
The Three invite you in.
The Two divide the world.
Who are you One with?
.
UPDATE: Here are talks (with audio) explaining 321 in depth.
I used to visit Kevin DeYoung’s blog (at the Gospel Coalition)
But he has banned me from that site for speaking so much of grace and for disagreeing with him about the purpose of the law.
I was always respectful there, but if you disagree with some Christians, they will shut you down.
You’re always welcome here Steve! :)
Hi theoldadam,
Could you provide a link to your dustup with DeYoung on his blog? Your comment here suggests that he was unfair and squelched your comments there without good cause. To be fair to DeYoung, it’d be good to cite the exchange if it’s still available online. Always good to try to get both sides when a public criticism is raised.
Excellent, really like it – it feels a lot more *personal* than a lot of gospel outlines. I often find them a little dry and stilted.
Plus I find it more memorable than 2 ways to live (probably because my brain can only deal with 3 things at a time – 8 is too many!).
John B.
It was back more than a month ago.
He never said a thing, but all of a sudden my comments would were not allowed on his site.
I’ll go back and find out exactly where (a bit later – I have to be away from my computer for a while).
– steve
Thank you, Glen!
I very much appreciate that, my friend!
– Steve
Thanks Glen this is really useful
Christ’s characteristic death on the cross proves “the 3-2-1 Evangelistic Outline” spurious! (John 8:28; 14: 18-21; 16: 25-26; 19: 30-37)
Glen, this is genius. Of course not yours – it was sitting there, waiting to be revealed, from eternity ;-) How wonderful that we are invited in. How wonderful that we have such a saviour. How wonderful that we are called sons and not slaves… :-D
‘Tis funny, but I saw Kevin DeYoung’s 1-2-3-4 yesterday, and immediately wondered what Glen’s response would be.
Kevin’s ‘God is a relational being’ is a tad cold compared to Glen’s, erm, warmer description.
“3-2-1″ is sublime! And I like “1, 2, 3, 4″, too. I have to, as it includes so much from the Nicene Creed in it.
“3-2-1″ is such a beautiful summary of the gospel. It’s the vision of those whom Paul describes as “having the eyes of your hearts enlightened”.
OTOH, “1, 2, 3, 4″ nicely summarizes the Christian worldview, providing a contact point with the worldviews of those whose ‘heart eyes’ yet remain blind.
Both “3-2-1″ and “1, 2, 3, 4″ are necessary in the church’s mission of proclaiming Christ to the world. The countdown should be paramount in the life of the church, but the count out is the usual starting place.
Beautiful post as always…This is the truth that he will do anything for them who communicate with His love and Him.This is the power of his love.I really likes the line “They made a world so that billions more can share in the love of the Three.”. Thank you so much glen its really helpful to me..
[...] Which have I left out? Maybe we’ll have a chance to flesh some of these out in future posts but just one example for now. There is a stream of teaching popular in many theological colleges in the West which argues that Jesus came to deal primarily with the problem of Israel’s national sin and curse and spiritual exile. He saw himself as the representative of Israel. He died the death that idolatrous Israel deserved. Israel in turn is representative of the world, a microcosm of its sin. So in this sense Jesus died for the world. There is much that is helpful in this argument. As we have been reading through Luke as a staff team we have been struck by how Jesus is very clearly presented as the fulfilment of Jewish hopes (e.g. Luke 1:68-79). The prophecy of Isaiah in particular is never far from the surface. Jesus is indeed the perfect Israel (e.g. Luke 4:1-13). He has indeed come to provide the greater Exodus (Luke 9:31). But that’s not the whole story. It’s bigger and better and more basic than that. The Bible does not begin at Genesis 12 but at Genesis 1. Luke traces Jesus’ legal lineage back not only to Abraham but to Adam (Luke 3:23-38 cf. Mat. 1:1-16). Jesus is not only perfect Israel but the second Adam as he resists the Serpent’s temptations (Luke 4:1-13). He has come not only to deal with the curse and exile of Israel but The Curse and The Exile from the Edenic presence of God. As he died he opened the way back to Paradise and not just for the nation of Israel but for an individual criminal like me (Luke 23:43). He tore down the curtain embroidered with the cherubim guard (Luke 23:45 cf. Ex. 26:31-34; Gen. 3:24) and rose on the first day to begin the New Creation (Luke 24:1). Whereas the new teaching over-complicates the gospel and makes it an issue of membership of the people of God, it’s really very simple – as simple as 3-2-1. [...]
[...] 3-2-1 Evangelistic Outline [...]
[...] been mulling this over for a while. It seems to me our presentations of the gospel are generally quite anaemic and, at times, [...]