Good Newsنموونە

This is the Good News

So far, we’ve talked about what the Gospel is not (i.e. bad news!), and we have talked about the dangers of picking and choosing the parts of the Gospel that we like, whilst leaving out the bits that we don’t like so much. Both beliefs and approaches are not conducive with a solid foundation of faith, and both severely short-change the true beauty of the Gospel.

So, what actually is the Gospel?

The Gospel begins with Jesus.

Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on the cross.

(Philippians 2:6-8 NLT)

Jesus had all the glory of Heaven around Him. He was living in the most beautiful, perfect environment, beyond human imagination. And yet, when the Father asked who would be willing to leave the paradise of Heaven, come to earth and save humankind, Jesus’s answer was ‘send me.’

As scripture tells us, he was born to an unwed, virgin girl named Mary. She was due to marry a man named Joseph, but the wedding had not yet taken place. The very fact that Jesus was willing to entrust himself – as an infant! - to a young girl and her soon-to-be husband speaks of the humility He carries.

Jesus did not see His deity as something to cling to, He gave it all up to walk the earth for 33 years and die a death that makes most of us shiver with terror.

Why did He do this?

Because sin must be atoned for, God is holy and just and He cannot allow sin to go unpunished. Each of us - man, woman and child – have all done things wrong in our lives. This could be anything from lying, to cheating, to breaking the law of the land. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. (See Romans 3:23).

The standard of God is set out clearly in the Bible.

Some may say that the New Testament and Jesus’s death mean that we no longer have to adhere to the laws laid out in the Bibles we read.

Scripture would disagree with you:

“Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved. So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.”

(Matthew 5:17-19 NLT)

If anything, the Gospel as expressed in the New Testament demands more of us. More morality, more grace, more truth, more love.

Jesus clearly states in the scripture above that He did not come to abolish the law, but to fulfil it.

Jesus came to take the punishment and consequences due to all humankind because of their sin and put it to death, atoning for all sin – past, present, future – once and for all.

This is Good News my friends!

Upon accepting Jesus into our hearts and lives we can live free to be in relationship with the Father again, connected to Heaven and at peace with our Creator.

That is Good News.