A purely private faith-based gospel omits the Bible’s justice theme.

Evidence

Today, I believe this picture of the gospel is an important foundation yet incomplete. It reflects only one aspect of the gospel, what my philosopher friend Scott Coley suggests we might label the doxastic gospel. Think of the doxastic gospel as a set of theological claims that we either believe or do not believe, such as the death and resurrection of Jesus, the nature of atonement, and the work of the church. The doxastic gospel focuses mainly on me and my relationship with God and whether I believe the right things. However, as theologian Kat Armas says, “Spirituality includes all the dimensions of human, personal, and societal living that combine to make human life human—the measure of the fullness of God’s gift.” When we apply the gospel only to our personal lives and cherry-pick Bible verses in support, we miss the clear theme of justice throughout the Bible and ignore the broader work of God in the world. — Andrew L. Whitehead, American Idolatry, 79

Categorization

• DEFINE: Introduces the reader’s coined term ‘doxastic gospel’ and contrasts it with the ‘practical gospel’.