Genuine Gospel

Genuine Gospel

I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 

John 14:6 NIV

What is the genuine gospel? Is it a message of works? Is it a message of positive thinking? Some spread a gospel of kindness and living in community. And there are others that have concluded that truth is in the eye of the beholder, or in other words, each person decides their own truth.

I think there is really only one truth and one gospel that the Bible teaches. The gospel is that - we were once alienated from God and were His enemies in our minds because of our evil behavior. But God changed us from enemies to family by the cross-work of Jesus Christ. He reconciled us by Christ's physical body through death to present us holy, without blemish and free from accusation; that is, if we continue in our faith, established and firm, not moved from hope (Colossians 1:21-23). And, that God will judge mankind for its unbelief in Christ (John 3:18). -  This is the gospel we have heard and it is what has sealed our hope. Since this is the gospel that is saving us, shouldn't this be the one that we proclaim?

The only gospel that has eternal value is that the world has access to God via no one else except Christ. If we offer any other gospel other than Christ then our words are meaningless and our message is counterfeit. The message of Christ delivers hope, joy and eternal life to all who will accept and obey. Surely, this is a greater message than any other. Isn't it?  

Don't Give Up

Don't Give Up

Let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap a harvest. 

Galatians 6:9

A few times a year God brings me into a season of listening, learning and understanding. And my last lesson came as a message from a new believer. Before mentioning the lesson I should say that I was struggling with doubt. I was unsure if anything I did was useful to God…

Suzy asked me why I was downcast. I told her that I was considering an end date to any sort of ministry. I was unable to see any viability to witnessing and teaching. Suzy asked, “What am I, chopped liver?”

I attempted to wrangle together some sort of explanation that might calm her demeanor. She cut me off and said, “I learn every time we pray together. I pray aloud now. I call God Father now. I pray to Jesus because of you, and you don’t think you are doing anything useful?” Suzy turned on her heels, made some kind of  snort sound and walked away.

Don’t give up. You have no idea how God is using you to reach His people. We cannot judge why, when and how God will use the simplest of things to draw a person to Himself. My sin was trying to judge what God was doing through me before its time. One day, the Lord will bring everything to light, even if was done in secret (Eccl 12:14). That is why we can’t grow weary of doing good. If we give up now, how will we gain the blessing God has for us? If we give up others may loose out on the blessing that was meant to come through us. Persevere to the end and gain the crown the Lord promised.

A forgotten Celebration

A forgotten Celebration

Give Thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. Psalm 107:1 NIV

It is okay to ask of God, "What's in it for me?" This is essentially the same thing the super apostles asked of Christ (Luke 18:28-30). And the Lord was happy to assure them (and us) that there are plenty of good things in store. But we cannot get stuck there. A theology of consuming will always leave us spiritually wanting, like baby birds with mouths always open to receive, but never capable of giving. There is never anything wrong with receiving, but too often we forget to give. That seems to me, the forgotten celebration and a forgotten art among some genuine believers.

So, the question lingers in my mind; where is gratitude in the hearts and minds of the people that belong to God? If gratitude is lost in the believer, then there are probably two major reasons; Either we think that God could have done better when He blessed us, or our arrogance has taken over and we think we deserve all that we have. Either way, repentance is in order. We should give thanks and remember that everything we have came from Him, for He is where all blessings come from (James 1:17).

And this is not a discussion of “things” per se, and much more so a discussion of the spiritual and the intangible. So no matter if you are in a season of acquiring or facing hardships and losing everything; either way, we have the right, privilege and the responsibility to thank God for the great love he has already lavished upon us with the blood of His son. Such a love transcends mere tangibles such as a people, places and things. It reaches into the heart, saving the spirit and making peace between God and us. And this is what endures for all time, God’s love and our gratitude. The people of God will always recognize the works of God’s hands and give thanks in this world and they will continue to give thanks in Heaven.

The word of the Lord

The word of the Lord

This is what the Lord says... Jeremiah 2:5 NIV

Man cannot survive on bread alone, but by every word that comes from the Lord (Matthew 4:4). As believers, I think we have to make it a priority to make our entire lives, all of our opinions and thoughts subject to the word of God. If we only offer God our souls, but hold back our bodies and minds, have we truly given all to Him? Think of the thing most dear in your heart... if that person, place or thing is more important than God, then you are unfit for His kingdom (Matthew 10:37/Luke 9:62). God never settles for some, He wants the whole.

Believe me when I say that the opinions of this world will attempt to crowd God right out of your mind. And this is where we must guard ourselves at all costs. We don't (or can't) live on what the world says, rather, we live by what the Lord says because that is where light, understanding and life reside. Is it possible to harbor both the world's ideas and God's words and still remain obedient to God? My guess is that if we tried to meld the words of the world with the word of God, we would find ourselves constantly tossed hitherto, wishy-washy in our convictions (James 1:8) and fairly useless to God and quite possibly living completely against Him.

If we compromise on the word of God for any friend, family or loved one, doesn't that sort of void out the rest of the scripture in people's minds and in our own lives? If we compromise any part of the word, then inevitably people will try to compromise on Christ. But there is no other name given by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12). There is no compromising Christ. We must study God's whole word and let Him write the same word in our hearts and in our minds (Hebrews 8:10) so that we will be capable of living it. Without the word of the lord, we’re lost. But with the Word, there is abundant life!