One of the great spiritual writers, Dallas wrote about the ‘gospel of sin management’.
What was he meaning?
In short, he was criticizing a version of Christianity that reduces the gospel to getting forgiveness for sins while leaving the rest of life largely unchanged.
Willard believed many Christians had come to think: “Jesus died for my sins, so as long as I believe in him and get forgiven when I fail, I’m okay.”
But for Willard, that is only a small part of the good news of Jesus.
Willard argued that many churches unintentionally teach that the main goal of Christianity is:
- Avoiding God’s judgement
- Having sins forgiven
- Managing guilt
- Keeping moral failures under control
- Getting to heaven when you die
While all those things matter, he believed they are results of the gospel, not the whole gospel.
He famously wrote that the gospel had been reduced to a system where people ask:
“How can I be forgiven?”
rather than
“How can I become a disciple of Jesus and live in God’s kingdom now?”
For Willard, the gospel is not merely:
- “Jesus died for your sins.”
It is:
- Jesus died for your sins,
- rose from the dead,
- reigns as Lord,
- and invites you into a transformed life under his rule.
Forgiveness is the doorway. It is not the destination.
Imagine a doctor discovers a cure for a deadly disease.
The “sin management” version says:
“The doctor has signed a form guaranteeing you won’t die from the disease.”
The fuller gospel says:
“The doctor has cured you and is now teaching you how to live a healthy life.”
Willard worried that many Christians wanted the signed form but not the new life.
This is why we are doing the series on the fruit of the Spirit and why, in each message, there are simple suggestions on how to nurture the life of the Spirit.
I pray that each of us would prayerfully consider the small steps Jesus might be calling us to in order to grow into looking more like Jesus.
