Marks of Uncommon Gospel Culture

Last week, America Online, better known as AOL, announced that it was ending its dial-up internet access. My first thought when I saw that headline was, “Are there really people out there still using dial-up? Will they be shocked to learn there are better ways to access the World Wide Web?”

If you are my age or older, you remember the glorious sound of a series of cosmic, techno buzzes and beeps that gave you access to the world in the early days of 1990s internet access. For the first time, we had access to content that previously was only found in libraries and on cassette tapes. 

There was a time when good gospel content was hard to find. As a young, aspiring preacher, I was a collector of sermons on cassette tapes from my favorite preachers. I listen and learn how to preach from the best sermon content I could find. Many of those sermons were preached at conferences where thousands like me would travel for miles to hang on the words of the best gospel content creators, accessed only in person or on bulky analog recordings. Back then, content was king. 

Then came the internet. Then social media. Then YouTube. Then podcasting. Then livestreaming.  Almost all content created inside the walls of every church is now accessible digitally, instantly, and freely (except for those poor souls dependent on AOL dial-up). And the content doesn’t have to be good, or even true, to be accessible or influential. Content is no longer rare; therefore, content is no longer king. 

So what is? Why would someone bother to leave their virtual universe and walk into a physical church building to listen to a B-Grade preacher? It’s no longer content that we crave; it’s community. We come together as a church to experience something that you can’t get from staring at two-dimensional content creators on a screen. We need more than gospel content. We need what gospel content was designed to create – an uncommon gospel culture. 

Uncommon gospel culture is one of the six distinctives that we are committed to developing at New City Church. As a gospel-driven church, we will value the centrality of gospel content in our preaching, discipleship, and ecclesiology. But the gospel must be more than content. If we truly believe the content of the gospel, it will saturate the church culture, overflowing in relational beauty. 

Relational warmth

Gospel-driven culture transforms anonymous individuals into a community of friends where we are seen, known, and loved. When we truly embrace the gospel, our gatherings will foster unprompted personal interactions, visible displays of movement toward one another, deep conversation, encouragement, embrace, empathy, intercessory prayer, smiling, and laughter. 

Extravagant grace

Church is for sinners who need reminders of God’s grace. One of the overarching themes of the gospel is that sinners are not transformed by the demands of God’s law. Instead, they are transformed by God’s grace. Therefore, we must saturate our preaching and personal interactions with beautiful descriptions of God’s offer of grace through the person and work of Christ. As those who have received grace, we extend grace to others.

Uncontrived humility

More than admitting, “Nobody’s perfect”, a gospel saturated people freely take off the mask and admit, “I still can’t seem to get my act together. That’s why I’m here.” Church should be a place where anyone seeking Christ should have nothing to fear from an honest admission of need. 

Disarming Welcome

Most people who walk into church feel like outsiders. That’s why we must be intentional about welcoming others with bright eyes, broad smiles, and open arms. That is how Jesus welcomes us. We are all brokenhearted sinners coming to church to collapse into the arms of Jesus for rest. 

Gospel content will create a gospel community you can’t experience online. Let’s be intentional in doing more than consuming gospel content. Let’s become an irresistible gospel community.