I’m not sure that we often appreciate that in the New Testament, we have the actual, signed letters of Paul. They are perhaps the most personal texts in all of Scripture. Paul wrote them in his own voice, calling people by name, telling them to stop fighting, asking them to say hello to so-and-so, to watch out for that Apollos character, and to please share their food with everyone else at the church supper. They are truly letters, not just theological essays.
What if the entirety of the gospel is a letter, written to each one of us, inviting us to be transformed by God’s love and affection for us? Written to tell us something about how wonderful we are, but also to tell us what God expects us to do – to resist injustice, to choose compassion and sacrifice, to truly affect the lives of others – and beyond even that, to be transformed ourselves?
This message is excerpted from “Letters and the gospel” by Heidi Haverkamp in the June 2021 Gather magazine. Today we commemorate Peter and Paul, Apostles.
Special note: The Daily Grace app will soon be retired. To avoid interruption, those who read Daily Grace in the app are encouraged to subscribe to receive Daily Grace via email.