The Gospel of Jesus Christ
The Bible makes clear for us that everyone has sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. No one is righteous, no not one. This is bad news because our God who created the heavens, the earth, and everything in it is a just God. He will not leave one sin unpunished. And we are guilty not just of one sin, but of many sins!
Therefore all of humanity is rightly deserving of eternal condemnation in Hell. And one day we will all stand before God’s Throne to face his judgment.
How can we be delivered from the just judgment of God?
The Gospel! Gospel means Good News. What is this good news? That Jesus, the Son of God, became man and came into the world, he lived a sinless life. He then died on a Roman cross convicted of crimes he did not commit. And as he hung upon that cross, as the perfect sacrifice, he faced the full weight of the wrath of God for the sins that his people have committed, are committing and will commit and then died.
But he did not stay in the grave, three days later rose from the dead, showing that his life and death were the sufficient sacrifice for sins and that he has conquered sin and death. And now for anyone who trusts in Jesus’ life, death and resurrection for their salvation will not perish but have eternal life.
The gospel is clearly summed up by the Apostle Paul in 1 Timothy 1:15, "The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost." In other words we are sinners in need of saving, we cannot save ourselves. We needed Jesus Christ, the Son of God, to come and save us.
The Prophet Isaiah understood this reality well. In Isaiah 6, he had a vision where he found himself in the very presence of God. And upon realizing where he was, he cried out in despair, "Woe is me, for I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!"
Why did he cry out? Because he was a sinner, and in the face of God, who is perfect and without sin, there is no other proper response besides humiliation and the expectation of condemnation and death. But there is hope. A coal is extended to Isaiah that makes him clean. This coal is pointing to something that was still to come. Something better. Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ would cleanse and purify us of all of our sins. How? By going to the cross, bearing the punishment that was due to our Just and Holy God for our sins. So that the guilt of our sins is paid in full!
But not only that! While Jesus Christ lived on this earth in the flesh, he lived a perfect life, a life without sin. And now for the one who believes that Jesus died for their sins and rose from the dead conquering sin, that perfect record is now your record!
To receive this forgiveness of sins, to receive this perfect record, all that is needed is to faith in Jesus. If you are interested in getting to know this Good News, we want to invite you to come and worship with us.