Jesus saves us by bringing us into fellowship with God. Jesus did so be taking away sin which was the chasm that separated us from God. This is seen in the gospel message of Jesus. The word "gospel," means "good news." So there is good news for us because of Christ. The gospel message is the message of how Christ made it possible to be in fellowship with God and be saved. Therefore, it is through the gospel that we are saved. Romans 1:16 says, "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes; first for the Jew, then for the Gentile." So we see that God uses the gospel (the good news about Jesus) as the means to save us. So if the gospel is how God saves us through Christ, the next logical question is, "What exactly is the gospel?"
The apostle Paul makes known what this saving gospel is and defines it in 1 Corinthians 15:1-7. From this text we see that the apostle gives 3 parts to the gospel of Jesus and He also gives 2 proofs that help show that the gospel is legitimate. From this text we see that the 3 parts of the gospel are the death, the burial, and the resurrection of Jesus. Then the apostle Paul gives two proofs: 1) Paul says, "according to the Scriptures." The Old Testament is full of prophecies about the coming Messiah and His death, burial, and resurrection. So if Jesus was that Messiah as He claimed, then He had to fulfill every messianic prophecy and He had to die, be buried, and rise again, which He did. The prophecies of the Messiah are so numerous that they would be next to impossible to fulfill, but Jesus was able to do so because He is the Son of God. The death and resurrection of Jesus were foreseen and prophesied long before Jesus. So those who question the concept of Jesus dying, being buried, and rising again to save mankind merely need to research the Old Testament Scriptures and see that this was God's plan to save mankind. Jesus did just as God purposed. Jesus proved His Deity by being raised from the dead on the third day. 2) The second proof that the apostle Paul gave was the confirmation of the resurrection fact by eyewitness testimony. The text makes known that the apostles, James the Lord's brother, and more than 500 people saw the resurrected savior. Is that great proof to the fact that Jesus rose from the dead? The greatest piece of evidence in a court case is eyewitness testimony. One witness is ok. Two witnesses is good. Three witnesses is great. Can you imagine a court case in which the lawyer could call on over 500 witnesses? That would be a slam dunk case. Not to mention that the tomb Jesus was in was empty. Why is it that Christianity didn't die off immediately shortly after Jesus death? Why didn't those who had Jesus killed bring out the body of Jesus and showed the world Jesus was a fraud? It's because Jesus was who He claimed to be; the Son of God. The Jewish leaders who opposed Jesus knew the prophecy that the Messiah would rise on the third day and asked Pilate to the guard the tomb. Pilate agreed and had the tomb guarded. Due to what we know about the Roman guards and the intentions of the Jewish leaders we know that the disciples could not steal the body of Jesus for they would not be able to overcome the Roman guards, the Jewish leaders wouldn't have done it for it would have gone against their intent to having Jesus killed and the tomb guarded, and the Roman soldiers had no reason to do it, for if they failed to do their duty to guard the tomb they would have suffered the penalty of death. So why is it that the dead body of Jesus wasn't revealed to the world? It's because there was no dead body to show the world. Jesus had risen from the dead and conquered sin, death, and hell for our sake. There were over 500 witnesses to confirm that fact. So the way we can define the gospel is this: The death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus according to the Scriptures and proven by eyewitness testimony.
So we see that Jesus gave mankind the opportunity to have a relationship with God and be saved by Him dying on the cross, being buried, and rising to life on the third day. This is the good news of Jesus. It's good news for us for this is how Christ conquered sin, death, and hell for us so that there would be no chasm between us and God. Therefore, the gospel is good news for it spares us from the just consequences of our sins but instead gives us an opportunity to accept God's benevolent grace.
Now the gospel saves and is powerful, but why is it relevant to me? Why should I care about the gospel? What does it benefit me personally? 2 Timothy 1:10 makes known the personal benefits of the gospel. That text makes known that through the gospel Christ destroyed death and has brought life and immortality. The benefit of the gospel is instead of death in hell, you get eternal life and immorality in heaven. Isn't that a great blessing? Jesus Christ is offering to give you eternal life and immorality rather than what you do deserve which is death and destruction. The acceptance of the gospel is worth eternal salvation and life. This is why its relevant to you and how it personally benefits you.
What about those who do not obey the gospel? Those who accept and obey it get life and immorality, but what happens to those who do not? 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9 makes known that God will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. He will punish those who do not obey the gospel with everlasting destruction and will be shut out from the presence of God. This is in fact one of the best descriptions of hell. It'll be everlasting suffering and worse - shut out from the presence of God forever. At this point some may say, "But I don't worship God now and don't desire His presence and I'm doing just fine." The problem is that during your earthly life, even if you are evil, you receive benefits from God. The Bible makes known that all good things come from God. It'll also makes known that God sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous (meaning for a period He blesses all people regardless of their faithfulness to Him). Now imagine, being completely shut off from God and all the good things He does for you and provides for you even though you haven't wanted a relationship with God and at this point haven't obeyed the gospel. Imagine a life where there was not even one single good thing in your life. Imagine that life with everlasting destruction and suffering. It doesn't sound good at all does it? Well, that's hell. That is what God is trying to save you from. God doesn't want you to receive the punishment you justly deserve, that is why He sent Jesus to die in your place, so that you will not suffer that fate in hell. God takes no pleasure in punishing the wicked. He desires for all men to be saved and desires an eternal relationship with you. Now as we discussed before in earlier posts, God sending us to hell is not His fault and does not discount His loving character. His just nature demands Him to punish those who are guilty. That is why it was necessary for Christ to die on the cross to pay the price of your sins. His blood shed on the cross has the power to wash all your sins away and make it so that you are free from accusation. The cross of Christ is your "get out of hell free card." The cross of Christ is your pardon from the judge. So it is essential for all men who want to escape this fate to obey the gospel. Those who obey the gospel will receive eternal life and immortality. Those who disobey the gospel receive everlasting destruction and are shut out from God and all His goodness and blessings forever. So which do you choose: to accept it or disobey it?
Reaching out to the members of the Moses Lake community and its surrounding area with the gospel of Jesus Christ.
WELCOME
Life is difficult. Life is full of problems. Life is confusing. Life is stressful. Do these statements about life seem to fit your life? Often times it feels as if life is pointless and makes no sense. Maybe as you have thought about your life and you've asked yourself, "What is the point of living? or "Is my life worth anything?" or "Why does life seem so hopeless?" or Does anyone really care about me?"
If you are one of those people that looks like the person stated above then you are no different then so many other people, for many people feel and think just like you. You just might be the kind of person that is looking for joy in your life, true love in your life, a feeling of acceptance and belonging, answers to your questions of truth, and forgiveness of the wrongs of your past.
If you are that kind of person, then you are a person who is looking to have a relationship with Jesus Christ. For Jesus Christ is the One who fills the true needs we have in our lives. He may not make you wealthy and He may not make you more physically attractive, but Jesus gives you what you truly need. For money and beauty will one day fade away and lose its personal value to you, but love, grace, forgiveness, joy, peace, salvation, community, and a purpose in life are things that He freely wants to give to you. These are benefits in Christ that never fade away as long as you are in Christ and remain in Christ. These are truly the needs of your heart and Jesus is eager to give them to you.
So this blog is designed to help you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, to help you know how to accept His grace so that you can be saved, and for you to come in contact with followers of Christ who will help you in your search for truth and in your walk with Jesus Christ. So explore this blog and let us know if there is anything we can to help you in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
