Gospel Message
The Gospel Message:
The Gospel means "good news." It is good news because God has provided eternal life to those who will believe in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. The good news is understood by five simple truths.
1st - Eternal life is a free gift. It is not earned nor deserved.
Romans 6:23
"For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Ephesians 2:8-9
"For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 2:9 not as a result of works, that no one should boast."
Titus 3:5
"He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit,"
If you want to go to heaven you must understand it is provided by God as a gift. This becomes more clear when we understand a second truth
2nd - Man is a sinner and cannot save himself. If you want to have eternal life then you must acknowledge that you are a sinner. The Bible is quite clear on this point.
Romans 3:23
"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God"
Ecclesiastes 7:20
"Indeed, there is not a righteous man on earth who continually does good and who never sins."
Though eternal life and entrance into heaven is a free gift, the good news also involves me acknowledging that I am a sinner and deserving punishment.
This comes into sharper focus when we understand the nature of God Himself
3rd - God is loving and merciful and does not want to punish us. But God is also just and must punish sin! It is accurate to believe that God is love for the Bible says,
I John 4:8
"The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love."
But we cannot ignore the fact that God must deal with sin. For Scripture also says,
Exodus 34:7
"...He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished ..."
And for those who will not acknowledge this and come to God on His terms, a verse in Hebrews needs to be understood
Hebrews 10:31
"It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God."
For those who think that God accepts them because they are better than most, Jesus made a sobering statement
Matthew 5:48
"Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect."
At this point each of us should conclude, that's impossible! No one can meet this standard and indeed this is true. None of us can be perfect. But God solved the problem of our imperfection by sending His own Son who was and is perfect. God solved the problem of our sin. For we discover a fourth truth
4th - Jesus Christ is the only One who can forgive sin and make us acceptable to God the Father. It is crucial to understand who Jesus is. The Bible tells us that Jesus Christ is the infinite God-man. He was 100% God and 100% man. The Apostle John reveals the Jesus is God.
John 1:1, 14
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
1:14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth."
Notice that "the Word" became flesh and dwelt among us. Clearly, the "Word" is Jesus Christ. Examining these verses we see that Jesus Christ was distinct from God the Father since He was "with God." But Jesus, though distinct from God the Father "was God." Two Persons of the God-head are mentioned in John 1:1. Thomas would not believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ until he saw the resurrected Lord. When Jesus stood before him and made it clear that He had risen from the dead, Thomas declared that Jesus was indeed God.
John 20:28
"Thomas answered and said to Him, ‘My Lord and my God!'"
Knowing that Jesus is God is vital. But understanding what He has done is essential as well. Jesus Christ died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sin. By His resurrection He assures us that everything He declared was true. By His resurrection He assures us a place in heaven with Him if we'll believe in Him. The work of Christ is seen in the following verses.
Isaiah 53:6
"All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; but the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him."
What an incredible statement! God the Father has caused the sins of those who believe to actually fall on Jesus. My sins were put on Jesus Christ when I believe in Him! This is also seen in another verse.
II Corinthians 5:21
"He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him."
In this remarkable verse we learn that God the Father made Jesus Christ, God the Son, to be sin on our behalf. Jesus Christ was free of sin, "knew no sin." Yet for you and I He became sin so I could receive something from God. Notice what we receive; "the righteousness of God." Earlier we learned that we need to be perfect as our Heavenly Father is perfect. When we believe in Jesus Christ God gives us the best news possible! The good news is this - we are given God's righteousness thereby receiving the perfection of Christ. When we receive His perfection our entrance requirement to heaven has been met.
5th - But there is a key that unlocks these truths for us individually for we must "believe" in who Jesus is and what He has done. We need faith. Faith is not merely intellectual belief or temporary. It is trusting in Jesus Christ alone for salvation. Scripture tells us,
Hebrews 11:1
"Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen."
Let's say we are desperately in need of sitting down or we'll collapse. Imagine that a chair sits just a few feet away from us. Acknowledging that the chair exists won't help us. Even believing that the chair can hold us will do us no good. If that chair is going to do me any good I must sit in it! I must place my trust in it by sitting down. Faith is like this. Some people believe that Jesus lived, died and rose again. Still others believe that Jesus Christ is able to forgive and provide eternal life. But this information will provide no value whatsoever if left at this point. Notice how the Apostle James described this very thing.
James 2:19
"You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder."
One of the most dangerous things a person can do is to miss the final step of the good news. For the final step to have eternal life is to believe and do what is found in Romans 10.
Romans 10:9
"If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved;"
If you have not done this you can do this right now! For these are the basic and essential truths that can provide you with eternal life. Why not respond this very moment? Why not express these truths to God in a prayer and experience what the Bible declares.
John 3:36
"He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him."
There is a heaven and there is a place called hell. God gives you a choice! What will it be?