The Gospel

(Romans 1:16) “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”

 

The Gospel and the beauty that lies within, there is such beauty there and if only we would dare to enter in. Sadly with the brilliance of God on display, there must also be evil intent that looks to thwart. When mankind ate from the forbidden tree, it unlocked the door to both the knowledge of good and evil. Equally competing to gain victory and it is no different with the Gospel of God. As great and as liberating as the Gospel can be, so too can its message be frustrated to the extent of falsehood. A message that is full of half-truths, tricking someone into a false sense of God’s intervention into their lives when in fact their experience remains superficial. They may even believe that they are born of the Spirit, born again, when in fact nothing truly changes in their lives. They see Christianity as a help to benefit them in this life. A means to lighten their load. True salvation brings with it an abundance of peace but a struggle through life that would be impossible to endure without a daily measure of Gods grace in our lives. Therefore it is crucial to address the Gospel with the merit it deserves.

 

God in His brilliance has place this burden on some who have understood their responsibility to tackle this subject head-on. Its iron that sharpen iron. Take an iron rasp, stroke it across an iron blade and observe. It’s obvious that although the pressure is fierce, they work in harmony to achieve the required result; a sharper blade. We sometimes need the hard truth without the frills of a vacillating love to set us free and bring us to our senses. Please pay careful attention to what is penned, we need to be sure of our understanding of the gospel and how it fits into our lives.

 

Unequivocally Paul Washer is a man whom God has burdened with a deeper understanding on this subject, so I will look to examine some of his findings and then share what I find appropriate. Although the sinners prayer is often prayed by many. Those who have responded to an alter call seems to be extremely encouraging for the rest of those attending the meeting. However, if the message is a dispatch that God will fix your finical woes, those who have responded have the wrong idea of the gospel. And so there are many other reasons why people may respond and come forward. These types of messages are evil because they promise what is good, when in fact it is a lie. A false gospel message has lured them to answer the preachers call.

 

Let us look at what the gospel is and then hopefully you will be able to appropriate it into your lives accordingly. That old adage, if the shoe fits, wear it. If a knife is dull take an iron rasp to it.

 

The gospel means good news and it is a message accomplished by  the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob for a fallen people through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ the Son of God. Jesus who is equal with the Father and the exact representation of His Father willingly left the glory of heaven. Conceived by the Holy Spirit into the womb of a virgin and then was born the God man, Jesus of Nazareth. He walk this earth in perfect obedience to the law of God. Eventually he was rejected by man and they crucified him. On the cross of Calvary he bore man’s sin, suffered God’s wrath, in other words was punished for our sin and then died in man’s place. On the third day God raised him from the dead, this is the proof that God the Father accepted His Son’s sacrifice as an atonement for mankind’s sin. Jesus paid the penalty for our disobedience, satisfied the demands of justice and pacified the anger of God. Forty days after the resurrection the son of God ascended into the heavens and sat down at the right hand of God the Father and was given glory, honour and dominion over all.

It is therefore imperative that theses truths be highlighted when presenting the gospel message. There is no wiggly room when it comes to our sin. Our sin has offended God, we need to own it and repent, seeking out God’s forgiveness. It’s not an altar call that invites us to try it out as if we are in a fitting room trying on a pair of slacks. How dare we venture down that road, the liberty found in the gospel came with great cost, the death of God’s only begotten Son. It’s only those that acknowledge their sinful state before a Holy God that God will pardon and then declare righteous, not because of what we have done but because of what HE has done. But we must own our sin as the offence that drove Christ to the cross.

 

Paul washer highlights a point that he refers to as one of the greatest crimes committed by this Christian generation is its neglect of the Gospel. “It’s not that the world is gospel hardened but rather gospel ignorant.” On reflection, how true that is. Money preaches and the like spewing out filth and the masses eating it up. Religious organisations accommodating sin as progressive application to entice new membership. GOSPEL IGNORANT! We will all stand before the judgment seat of God and just like the laws of the land, ignorance will not excuse us.

 

The work of God in an individual’s life is miraculous. He causes the blind to see, the deaf to hear and the lame to walk. If you have not had a similar experience, I wonder how real the encounter. I’m not talking about the mistakes we may make along the way, as I know I am chief of blunders. However, I will not cling to the grace of God so that His grace may abound, accommodating my sin, living in a breach to God’s Word and expecting his grace to cover me. Jesus died for it. Do we have a burning desire to find grace to rid ourselves of every offence that nailed Jesus to the cross? If not, have we responded to the correct Gospel message?

 

There is much more to be said on this topic but time does not permit.

 

It’s crucial that you examine where you sand in relation to the correct Gospel message. Why did you respond to the altar call? Are you activity driven of Christ centred? If your blade need sharpening pull out the iron rasp of the correct gospel, fall to your knees, repent and ask for forgiveness and if God steps in, your life will change. You will begin to cry, I can see and begin to seek out God’s grace to right those areas in your life that offend. You will have a desire for Christ.

 

Signing off

 

Tyrone