This is the first in a series of Catches exploring more deeply the 10 Prerequisites for Being Effective in the Marketplace (see August 24, 2010).

Prerequisite #1: A personal understanding of my own sinfulness

Why is it important for me to realize I am a sinner? Because everyone else is.

Our connection with sinners is our sin, not our righteousness. The good news of our salvation through Jesus Christ came to us while we were still sinners; so how do we plan to take that good news to other sinners? Through our near-perfect sainthood? I think not.

It’s our unyielding hold on our own self-righteousness and self-proclaimed superiority that keeps us from effectively representing the gospel of Jesus Christ in the world. We do not see ourselves accurately. For too long, we have tried to draw people to Christ by showcasing our rightness, when all along the good news of Christ’s forgiveness of our wrongness is the real message.

The degree to which we feel removed from sin and sinners is the degree to which we will render ourselves ineffective for the gospel. We come from a long tradition of thinking that our impeccable lives will be the gospel’s most treasured possession, and that by nature of our glowing brilliance we will draw the world to us. As it turns out, we’re the ones who treasure those perfect lives. The only treasure of sinners is the gospel. When we see ourselves as saints too soon, we leave the point of the gospel behind, forgetting why it is such good news.

Imagine two groups of people: one is a group of sinners; the other is a group of former sinners who are now pretty close to being saints. They think they have put sin behind them, and are proud to not be in with sinners anymore. Which group do you want to be in? Give me the sinners any day.