The Apostles' Gospel Part 2

Last week we talked about our sinful condition before a holy God. It's not a pleasant discussion. No one wants to be told they've done wrong. No one wants to be told they deserve death. No one wants to be told that there's nothing they can do to fix their own problem. Unfortunately for us, all of these things are true. We HAVE done wrong (Romans 3:23). We DO deserve to suffer God's wrath for what we've done (Romans 6:23). And there's NOTHING we can do about it (Isaiah 64:6; Romans 3:20). That's the "bad news."

But here's the good news (the Gospel). God made a way for us to be forgiven so that we could live with Him forever. God became a man (John 1:14) and lived among us. He was given the name "Jesus" because He would save His people from their sin (Matthew 1:21). Unlike every other human being in history, He never sinned (Isaiah 53:9; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15; 1 Peter 2:22; 1 John 3:5). He was the only man who DID NOT deserve to die. Yet He gave His life willingly (John 10:17-18). Even though we were still sinners, even though we made no effort to seek God or ask for His help (Romans 3:10-12), He died for us in the midst of our rebellion against Him (Romans 5:6-8). Through His death on the cross, Jesus took the penalty for sin, God's wrath, upon Himself (Isaiah 53:4-10; 2 Corinthians 5:21). But Jesus did not remain dead. He rose again on the third day to prove that He was God and not just a mere man who was a good teacher (Acts 17:31).

Now that the saving work of Jesus is complete (John 19:30), He calls people to repent from their sinful ways that lead to death and turn to Him to receive life and forgiveness (Acts 17:30-31; Matthew 11:28; John 10:10). He has promised that whoever believes this Gospel and puts their trust in Him will be saved (John 3:16; Romans 10:9-10) and all of their sin and condemnation will be gone forever (Psalm 103:12; Romans 8:1-2). Not only did Jesus take the blame and punishment for ALL of the believers' sins in the past, present, and future, but He also GIVES the believers credit for His righteousness (Philippians 3:9; 2 Corinthians 5:21)! As a result, they receive a glorious inheritance (Ephesians 1:17-21) because they become heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17). And, of course, those who believe in Christ receive the Holy Spirit who lives in them (1 Corinthians 6:19-20), gives them peace (Romans 8:6), moves them to obey God's commands (Ezekiel 36:27), and guarantees their eternal life with God in heaven (Ephesians 1:13-14).

The question that you need to ask yourself is: Will you repent from your sin and believe in Jesus? If you already believe, read through 1 John for a better understanding of what a Christian's life should look like.