Why believe in Christ’s Gospel?
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life.” – JESUS (John 3:16 NASB)
“But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, but it is the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus, whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in God’s merciful restraint He let the sins previously committed go unpunished; for the demonstration, that is, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” – Romans 3:21-26 (NASB)
In Genesis Chapters 1-3, Moses recounts the creation of the world and all that is in it — including human beings. In the beginning, when man, and then woman, were first created, they had unbroken relationship with God. He walked with them, talked with them, and they enjoyed His presence. He was their source of life.
But, some time after the woman was created, a serpent who had been possessed by the devil, deceived the woman, Eve, into eating from a forbidden tree called the Knowledge of Good and Evil. God had told the man, Adam, that they were free to eat of all the trees in the Garden, but not the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. God even says, when He finds them hiding in shame and fear, that now that they have eaten this fruit they will be like God knowing good and evil.
Adam and Eve’s ability to know and judge by the Knowledge of Good and Evil cut them off spiritually and physically from God. Furthermore, the promise with that break in relationship held death. Not just an earthly, physical death, but also a spiritual, eternal death that would be filled with torment. God had warned them not to eat the fruit, but they chose to eat it anyway and death became a reality for Adam and Eve along with sin.
“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all mankind, because all sinned…” Romans 5:12 (NASB)
Adam is the father of sin, through His act of disobedience, we all inherited both sin and spiritual death that separates us from God’s love and presence. But, He knew man’s heart and what would transpire even before He created the world and He had a plan.
Some call this the plan of Salvation. It wasn’t Plan B because we somehow screwed up the original plan, NO! Christ was always God’s plan to not only redeem us from our sins and restore us to eternal life with Him, but it also became the greatest love story that continues to be written and told throughout the ages as the Bride, the believing Jews and His body, the Church, await His return.
You see, to satisfy the just nature of God and His righteousness, there had to be atonement for sins. Throughout the Old Testament, even before the Mosaic Law, we find the early generations of humanity making sacrificial offerings to God. Blood offerings. While there were many reasons for these offerings, the primary offering that was given each year was for the atonement of sin. Without the sacrifice the sins were not forgiven each year by God.
But God… In His love and mercy, made a way for us to come to Him not by the sacrifice of blood through bulls and goats — He sent His only Son Jesus as a LOVE OFFERING on our behalf. God knew His justice would never be fully satisfied, and Jesus – eternally existing as the second member of the Godhead – willingly came to earth as a baby, lived a sinless life for 33 years, and demonstrated the Kingdom of God in Israel with many signs, wonders, healings, and miracles. He called twelves disciples when he began his earthly ministry at the age of 30 and by the time He ascended to Heaven after His death, burial, and resurrection, that number had risen to 120 individuals who watched Him go into the clouds. And on that day the church was born…
You see, friends, our sins didn’t just separate us from God, but they offended His love for us. All we need to do is read Exodus 20, or the Gospel of Matthew where Jesus speaks about many of the sins that trap us before we even realize we’ve committed them. And, God is so good, that He not only made a way — He also draws you to The Way, and He reveals Jesus as The Truth who brings us The (Eternal) Life God always intended us to enjoy with Him. (See John 6)
This is why the Gospel is such Good News!
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