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Good News |
| Yes! There Is Good News! |
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In our world today we are constantly inundated with information, or we might say, with news. Sadly, it seems that much of the news we hear is not good. We hear of increased lawbreaking, massive storms, political corruption, and the like. We read about unjust wars, genocide, and other horrific crimes. So then, when we do hear good news it’s refreshing.
The Bible contains a message that is good news. But even in this case that good news is set in the context of some bad news. However, once we understand what the bad news is telling us, it makes the Bible’s good news all the more good. So then, before I share the Bible’s good news, let me set the context that helps us understand why it is so good. In doing so let me point out three items in particular.
First, there is a “sin” issue. Everyone born into the world is a sinner, not only by birth but also, as we make decisions, by choice. God, who is our creator, has set standards of right and wrong and in the core of our being we recognize them. Yet in our choices everyone has violated these standards by doing that which is knowingly wrong. For example, in our hearts we acknowledge that lying and stealing are both wrong. Yet who among us has not lied and stolen? Doing that which is wrong before God is what we call sin. Sadly, we have all been tainted by sin and are consequently guilty and accountable to God. This is bad news.
Second, there is a “righteousness” issue. Because of our sin issue, everyone born into the world lacks a righteous standing before God. God is a holy being who will not accept those who are not righteous. As those tainted or stained by sin, we lack the purity that God requires of us. The problem is that even if we want to be acceptable to God, our own lack of righteousness creates a separation between us and God. In our present condition we are in conflict with God. And on our own there is nothing we can do to rectify this situation. This too is bad news.
Third, there is a “judgment” issue. As a consequence of our sin and lack of righteousness, everyone born into the world is under God’s judgment and is condemned by God. As long as we lack the righteousness that God requires of us we stand condemned. And the picture that the Bible paints of what that condemnation brings upon us is not pretty. God’s condemnation of sinners involves his wrath being poured out as judgment on those who are condemned. This is especially bad news.
We see then that we are born as human beings who sin, who lack righteousness, and who are under God’s judgment. This is truly not good. So how do we deal with this? What must we do to rectify our situation? What must we do to get out from under God’s wrath? Or, to use the words of one account in the Bible, “What must [we] do to be saved?”[1] The answer to these questions is found in the good news of the Bible. But before we answer these “what must we do” questions, a bit of information is needed. It is this background information as well as the answer to these questions that is truly good news.
This good news begins with the fact the God sent his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, into the world to address these “bad news” issues, issues we ourselves cannot address on our own. Jesus, as the Son of God, was God. He came into the world to provide a solution to our “sin-righteousness-judgment” problem. How did he do that? The Bible tells us that unlike us, Jesus lived a perfect life, i.e., a sinless life. That means that in every way Jesus was fully pleasing and thus fully acceptable to God. For Jesus there was no “sin-righteousness-judgment” problem. Because of his sinless life, it means that Jesus could offer himself as a perfect sacrifice for those of us having such a problem. This is what he came to do; and this he did. Having lived a perfect life before God, he willing laid down his life as a sacrifice to God in order to provide the payment needed to rescue us from our plight. By the shedding of his own blood he made an acceptable offering to God. It was a payment that could be applied to us in need, to us who could not ourselves make such a payment. That this offering was acceptable to God is seen by the fact that Jesus did not remain dead. He arose from death and now lives evermore. This is all good news.
With this background in mind we now return to the earlier “what must we do?” questions. Given the perfect sacrifice of the Son of God, what must we do to be rescued from our plight, to be saved from the condemnation due us who were born in sin? The good news continues. Because of the work of Jesus Christ in his death and resurrection, we sinners can be accounted as righteous. We can be saved from the wrath of God’s judgment. But how is this possible? The answer is that we must believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, placing our faith and trust in him and his work done for us. One of the Bible writers, a man named Paul, expressed it this way. He wrote, “By grace you are saved, through faith” and this is “a gift of God, not by works.”[2] What was he saying? Paul was saying that our rescue, our salvation, comes “through faith.” This is the way God has seen fit to make us acceptable to him. It is the only way. There is no amount of working that we could do as a substitute for having saving faith. We cannot work to attain our own salvation. It’s a gift from God given on the basis of faith and cannot be “by works.” As Paul noted, our working to earn a place with God is specifically excluded. This salvation by grace through faith is really good news.
So then, let me clarify a bit. We each must recognize our “sin-righteousness-judgment” plight and realize we are in need of salvation. We must know God’s solution to our problem as seen culminating in the death and resurrection of his Son to provide a necessary sacrifice for us. Then we must exercise trust in order to be saved by means of that faith, faith in the work of the Son on our behalf. That is what God asks. In another place this same author, Paul, wrote to another group of Christians. He told them that they had believed “the gospel” or good news. This was the gospel he had proclaimed to them and they had received. And this was the gospel “by which [they were] being saved.”[3] The bottom line is this. When we acknowledge the work of Jesus Christ as the Son of God in making payment for our sins and then trust that on the basis of our faith alone God will save us, then he does. Such a faith is purposeful, saving faith and not useless, empty faith. That we can come to be acceptable to God on the basis of our faith is, as said before, really good news.
So then, yes the Bible delivers a bad news message. But it also counters that bad news with good news. God has provided a means by which sinful, unrighteous, under judgment human beings can become acceptable to him. So then, what must YOU do in order to be forever saved from the wrath of God? Here is a synopsis.
If YOU have taken these steps, first thank God for his gift of salvation to you. Your sins have been forgiven and you are now acceptable to God and no longer under his judgment. And now, as one of his own children, you are in a different relationship with him. God is truly your heavenly Father. Second, get a Bible and regularly read God’s Word. A good place to start is with the Gospel of John. You may not understand everything you read, but in time, by God’s grace and with the help of others, you will grow in your understanding. Third, find a good church and start attending its services. A good church is one that proclaims the truths of the Word of God and this same good news message. Fourth, get involved in that church. God has already blessed you. And he will further bless you as he works in and through you to bless others, especially your new brothers and sisters in your church. And fifth, share with others this “bad news, good news” message and tell them what God has done for you.
If you have any questions, let me know. Or, as an encouragement to me, just send me a note sharing how God has worked in your life in bringing about your salvation. I can be reached via email at .
To the glory of God alone,
Bruce Curlett
2023/06/02