The culture tells us that mankind is basically good. However, the bible says different. The bible says that we are all born sinners and our hearts are wicked. Our thoughts, our actions, and even our very nature are in rebellion towards God. God’s holy and righteous standard is set forth in the bible; however, we break those commandments every day. God’s requirement for mankind to be in His presence is perfection. Since we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, we all stand hopeless before Him. We all deserve hell. Good works won’t save us, knowing the bible won’t save us, having Christians parents won’t save us, being baptized won’t save us, going forth during an alter call won’t save us, filling out a decision card won’t save us, even having a clinical knowledge about God won’t save us, nothing will save us from this eternal damnation that we all deserve – except one thing, and that one thing is a Person – Jesus Christ. God sent Jesus, His Son, to save us. Jesus came to earth and lived a perfect sinless life and was crucified on our behalf. The wrath and judgment that was meant for us was poured out on Jesus. His mission was to restore us to God and set us free from the curse of sin. God has been good and kind to us and has allowed us time to repent and turn to Him. This should motivate us to forsake our sinful life and turn to Jesus Christ for forgiveness – this is called repentance. When we repent of our sins and place our trust in Christ by confessing Him as Lord and Savior, the bible says He will save us and grant us eternal life. The broken relationship we once had with our Creator will be restored through the saving works of Jesus Christ. He will make us into new creations and we will have the privilege of enjoying fellowship with Him for all of eternity. Our salvation not only means we have a new relationship with God, but we also have new relationship with sin. The sins that we once loved and embraced we now forsake and follow Jesus with all of our heart, soul, and, mind. And for those who reject this truth, their sins remain and they will suffer eternal damnation in hell. There is no other way, there is hope in no other name than Jesus – turn to Him, He loves you, He is able and willing to save you.
In “What is the Gospel?” Greg Gilbert explains the Gospel in very simple but profound terms. Gilbert says that the Gospel is throughout the bible, but is best explained in Romans, more specifically chapters 1-4. According to Gilbert, the Gospel should always be explained with these following points included:
1.) Who made us and whom are we accountable to? Answer: God made the entire universe including every human; therefore, every human is accountable to Him.
2.) What is man’s greatest problem or need? How are we in trouble and why? Answer: Mankind has rebelled against God, this is called sin. Since we are all guilty of sin, we all deserve hell.
3.) What is God’s solution to this problem? How has He acted to save us from it? Answer: God sent His Son Jesus to live the life we couldn’t live and die the death we should have died. By doing this, He paid the penalty for our sins in His life’s blood. His death and resurrection from the dead sets us free from our greatest problem – sin.
4.) How do I bring myself to be included in this salvation? How is this good news for me and not someone else? Answer: Turn from sin and turn to Jesus Christ – repentance; place your faith and trust in Jesus to save you as you would a parachute if you were about to jump out a plane. When this happens, Jesus will make you right before God and grant you eternal life.
No comments:
Post a Comment