The process of following Christ is often thought of in terms of outward change. There should be something that look different in the believer.

On the “conservative” side of Christianity, sin management is found in having our sins forgiven. (Maybe you’ve seen a bumper sticker that says, “Christians aren’t perfect, just forgiven.”) On the “liberal” side of Christianity, sin management is declared by saying you’re a Christian if you have a significant commitment to the elimination of social evils. So, either you are ready to die and face the judgment of God or you have an identifiable commitment to love and justice in society. That’s it.

On either end, it’s about something that is outward. That is following Christ. What we have failed to do is “lay out a framework of knowledge and personal direction adequate to personal transformation toward the abundance and obedience emphasized in the New Testament, with…