Gospel Doctrine + Gospel Culture

In his book, The Gospel: How the Church Portrays the Beauty of Christ, Ray Ortlund explains a simple but fascinating idea. He says: 

“the test of a gospel-centered church is its doctrine on paper plus its culture in practice.“ (1)

He goes on to explain that it’s easy for churches to fall into a ditch on either side of the road. A church can have good doctrine, but not good culture. I’ve been in churches like this. They say all the right things, but the things they’re saying don’t seem to result in a community that loves one another. Conversely, a church could seemingly have a good culture (where people really love and forgive each other), but they don’t have good doctrine. In this case, it's questionable whether their culture will last or whether they truly love Jesus since they ignore what he teaches.

Here’s how Ortlund simplifies the idea:

• Gospel Doctrine - Gospel Culture = Hypocrisy

• Gospel Culture - Gospel Doctrine = Fragility

• Gospel Doctrine + Gospel Culture = Power (2)

I think this is essentially correct. Jesus famously said:

John 14:6
“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

Notice, Jesus doesn't merely say he is the truth, he also says he is the life. In other words, following Jesus isn't simply about assenting to a certain way of understanding, it is also about following him into a new way of living. If 24 Church lacks either of these things, we won’t be a healthy church. We want to keep the message of the gospel central, but we also want to live out the reality that we’re a family. And (lest we forget the Spirit), we need his empowering help in order to do both of these things. Let’s ask God to help us as we seek to fully embrace good doctrine & good culture! 
 

- Ben

1 Ray Ortlund, The Gospel: How the Church Portrays the Beauty of Christ, 16.

2 Ray Ortlund, The Gospel: How the Church Portrays the Beauty of Christ, 19.