The Gospel Matters because without it no one is saved…neither Thomas Auld nor Frederick Douglass because all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.[8] All need the sin forgiving God. But what does this mean for today? It means, the Gospel Matters. What is more, if the pure, peaceable, and impartial Christianity of Christ matters then we will endeavor to proclaim it.
Let me begin with an affirmation. The Gospel Matters. Some will immediately accuse me of being antagonistic. After all, Stan Wischnowski ran a headline that read “Buildings Matter” and he found himself without a job.[1] But I am not an antagonist. I am a minister of the Gospel. Others will ask, “What good is the gospel? Christians founded this country and held slaves. The Gospel does not matter.” Slaves like Frederick Douglass may have been tempted to think the same thing. Douglass, when a slave to Thomas Auld was contracted to work for a year for Edward Covey who was a terrible man. After one beating Douglass ran home to Auld who sent him back to Covey. He returned on a Sunday and was greeted “amiably and cordially.”[2] However, with Monday came mountain of punishment.
But Douglass understood something that many today do not understand. He said in an appendix to his Narrative, “Between the Christianity of this land and the Christianity of Christ, I recognize the widest possible difference…”[3] In fact, Douglass went on to say, “I love the pure, peaceable, and impartial Christianity of Christ.”[4] To Douglass, the Gospel Mattered.
