What Is The Gospel?

The Gospel is God's

good news to mankind. In fact, the word gospel means "good news." But before I tell you the good news, let's get the bad news out of the way. This way you'll appreciate the Gospel even more.

The Bad News: You're a sinner. Don't believe me? Take the good person test and see how you do.

You see, the bottom line is, God is holy. He has given us laws to live by and, at the end of history, He will judge us by those laws. So the question you have to ask yourself is, are you good enough to pass God's law?

Most of us know, without having to take a test, that we have sinned at one point or another. In fact, Romans 3:23 makes it clear that we have. "For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard" (NLT).

Which brings me to the really bad news. All it takes is breaking one of God's laws and you become a law breaker. James 2:10 "For the person who keeps all of the laws except one is as guilty as a person who has broken all of God's laws" (NLT).

This results in both our physical death (Romans 5:12), as well as our spiritual death (Isaiah 59:2). The Bible also makes it clear that if you die in your sins, you will spend eternity in hell (Matthew 25:46).

Where's the good news?

At this point, it may seem like all hope is lost. That there is no way you can make it to heaven. In all honesty, you are correct. All of us deserve punishment because we are all criminals, we have all broken God's law. But God, rich in mercy, has made a way!

Jesus, the Father's own Son (John 3:16), came to earth. He was born of a virgin, and lived a perfect life. He never sinned. Yet, He died a criminals death on the cross, taking the punishment that we deserve! 2 Corinthians 5:21 "For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ" (NLT).

Now the choice is yours. You can either choose to pay the fine yourself, which means eternal hell. Or, you can put your trust in Jesus and what He did for you and turn away from the sins that separate you from God (Matthew 3:2). If you do that, you have God's promise that you will be saved. Romans 10:9 "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved" (NLT).

Repent and believe before it's too late