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God's Good News

"I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone

who believes."1

The word "gospel" means good news

it is the greatest news in all the world

it is the GoodNews of God's salvation, without which mankind would be doomed for eternal damnation and

separation from God, the author of all love and life.

But why is the gospel God's Good News?

First, the gospel is not a message about religion but a message about God's eternal love and

purpose for all mankind. Religion wants to fix us from the outside in. God wants to fix us from

the inside out. The first can become an impossible burden. The latter is what brings freedom.

Also, it's important to realize that no matter what we have ever done or have failed to do God

loves us with an everlasting love and has a wonderful purpose for our livesfor this life and the

next. As Jesus said, "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that

whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."2

And again, "I have come that

they may have life, and have it to the full."3

Second, the gospel is a message about sin, something we are all guilty of. As the Bible says, "We

have all sinned and fallen short of God's standard."4

Sin, however, is not only doing harmful

acts. It is anything that falls short of the standard of perfection that God envisioned for us. This

includes an unforgiving spirit, pride, jealousy, mixed motives, etc. Most of us, too, are guilty of

sins of omission; that is, not doing what we know we should and could do.5

However, a common misconception about God is that he is out to punish us for our sins. The

fact is we bring sin's punishment on ourselves because sin has its own natural consequences. If

we try to break the universal law of gravity, for instance, we can't. It will break us. Neither can

we break God's universal moral law. When we try to do so, it breaks us. And besides its painful

effects in this lifesuffering, sorrow, sadness, sickness and spiritual deathits ultimate and

tragic consequence is eternal death and separation from God.6

Third, the gospel is a message about God's remedy. Because sin has separated or disconnected

us from God, we have been left with a "God-shaped" vacuum or spiritual emptiness within. As

St. Augustine put it, "You have made us for yourself, O God, and our hearts are restless until

they find their rest in you." The world's many religions are all evidence of man's endless search

to find God and fill this vacuum. However, because God loves us so much, he sent his own

sinless Son, Jesus Christ, to save us from our predicament.7

Christ did this by dying on the cross

in our place to pay the consequence of, and ransom price for, our sinsdeath. Thus, Jesus

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Christ is God's only provision for our sin. He is the only way back to God and the only door to

eternal life.8

Finally, the gospel is a summons to faith and repentance. If you were found guilty of a serious

crime and were condemned to death, would you accept a free unconditional pardon, if

offered? Because Jesus Christ died on the cross in your and my place, God now offers you

complete acquittal, forgiveness, and the gift of eternal life. All you need to do is confess and

repent of [turn way from] your sinful actions, believe that Jesus is the Son of God and that he

died for your sins, and invite him into your life as Saviour and Lord.

The following prayer will help you do this. "Dear God, I confess that I am a sinner and am sorry

for all the wrongs I have done and the sins that I have committed. I believe that your Son, Jesus

Christ, died on the cross for my sins. Please forgive me for all my sins and I invite you, Jesus, to

come into my heart and life as Saviour and Lord. I commit and trust my life to you. Please give

me the desire to be what you want me to be and to do what you want me to do. Thank you fordying for my sins, for your forgiveness and free pardon, for your gift of eternal life, and for

hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus' name, amen."

NOTE: This article is condensed from, "Godspell" on our ACTS web site at:http://tinyurl.com/4896egr

1.Romans 1:16(NIV).

2.John 3:16(NIV).

3.John 10:10(NIV).

4.Romans 3:23.

5.James 4:17.

6.Romans 6:23.

7.See Ephesians 2:8-9.

8.See John 14:6andRomans 5:8.