Yes, you read that right. Gospel Spam.
Gospel Spam is the answer to the gatekeepers. In today’s Reformed Christian world there are gatekeepers who determine what gets blasted out to the blogosphere and what gets ignored or a pat on the head. If you have enough alphabet soup behind your name, enough conference draw, enough people on your mailing list or Twitter followers, you can either be a gatekeeper or be recognized by them.
We’re not gatekeepers. And that’s the crypt keeper over to the left. We’re not him either.
And so, on this blog, the writing isn’t going to be nice and clean and sanitary and fit in a nice, neat little methodological box. The gatekeepers usually decide to open the door to those who keep it respectable. For example, if you advocate for abortion ministry, they advise supporting crisis pregnancy centers even if they don’t preach the gospel. Why? Because it’s nice and neat and tidy, even if it goes against everything they preach in conferences. Think middle class American-tidy. Write the check and it’s done. Someone holding a Babies Are Murdered Here sign or who preaches in front of a clinic? The best they can hope for is a pat on the head.
Another example: if you advocate evangelism, write about the most aseptic methods imaginable. You could have an Easter egg hunt! WOW! Insightful! Or you could share common interests. Common interests? I never thought of that! Sterile. Just like the gatekeepers like it.
The only way you can get the attention of the gatekeepers in Christian media is not with sound theology, nor with finely reasoned arguments. You basically have to spam them. You have to get their readers to get excited about something that deserves some play and then you have to go all guerilla-marketing on them. We’ve discovered that works. Sure, they might threaten to sue you at first, but eventually they will condescend to pat you on the head while they marginalize your message. Others will tell their devoted readers that they will block them because they are excited about something that does not come through the approved channels.
Well, technically there is a way to get recognized by the gate keepers. Write something heretical or hang out with someone who does. But we’re not going there.
Gospel Spam is founded with the idea that we’ve had enough theological show and tell regarding issues that have long been established and every major conference is preaching about. We don’t really need any more theological exhibitionism voyeurism. Theology is what you’re supposed to be getting at your nine marks church from your nine marks pastor. [Remember when people used to get their sermons from their pastors and not on scheduled iPod downloads? We don’t either, but we’ve heard tell of it.]
We at Gospel Spam believe that Reformed is not just a label. It is (gasp) a verb. It works like this: Reformed people reform things. Read that again, slowly. Let the words sink deep into your brain bucket. Reformed people reform things. Hmmmm.
Imagine if all the Reformers did was have conferences and write blogs for people who already agreed with them?
Would there have been a Reformation? What if Luther nailed his 95 Theses on Melanchthon’s door instead of Wittenberg’s? Who would have cared? You’d still be paying indulgences somewhere in Europe by candlelight and listening to sermons in Latin.
Semper Reformanda is not just a phrase to use for the local church. We should be always Reforming everything for the glory of God. Politics. Social ills (abortion, gay marriage). Evangelism. Apologetics. Taxes. Film. Media. Arts. Pretty much everything the Bible speaks about. Everything should glorify God because it was created to do so. If it doesn’t, reform it. I can almost hear the erudite msp free vip codes reader now: Radical! Shocking! The fact that this is radical and shocking should be shocking in and of itself to Reformers.
So who will be contributing to this rag? A bunch of outsiders. No one you’ve ever heard of. Will it be worth reading? Absolutely. Come here when you want to think outside of the sterile box. Go elsewhere for safe. I’m sure you know where to find them. Check your bookmarks.
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