The Gospel - God loves you

For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. - 1 Corinthians 1:18 (ESV)

The Good News

What is the Good News?

Well, let's start with what the Good News isn't. It isn't that you can attend church, that you can fit in with a new social group or that you can pride yourself about how good of a person you've become.

The Good News is that God loves you.

Now you might be saying to yourself, "Yeah, sure I knew that. God is love and I'm a pretty good person, sure, good news, great."

But, that's not just it.

The Good News is that God loves you.

Now tell me, what have you done for the Creator of the universe lately? He gave you your life, yet what do you do with it? Do you pursue your career? Do you entertain yourself with media? Do you spend your time eating and drinking and making yourself merry?

But we all know such moderately innocent pursuits do not stop there.

Do you lie? Do you lust? Do you obsess over your money? Do you tolerate the Lord's name to be used as a cuss word? Do you envy what people around you have? Do you yearn for any of your passions above Him?

Do you honor Him with your life?

Take a look at it from His perspective. God is perfect; He created you to be with Him, but how have you received Him? (With indifference) How often have you even thought of your Creator, the all powerful being who loves you? Once a week? Once a month? But we do more than that. We oppose Him. We are daily, hourly committing imperfect acts which we morally smear against God's face. He loves us and we throw Him on the wayside of our lives collectively spitting in the face of the One who created us.

And what must a perfect Creator do to the creation which constantly dishonors Him? He must separate Himself from it. Just as a judge can't harbor a criminal, so too, God can not tolerate rebellion. It must be punished. But...

Here is where we get to that Good News. At the same time that we were collectively spitting in the face of the Creator who loves His spiteful creatures, we have a God who set about to save anyone who would come to Him. This is the greatness of the Good News: "But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." - Romans 5:8 (ESV)

That is the sweet news of the Gospel: God loves you.

He did not let the relationship of Creator and creature remain broken. Instead He sent His Son Jesus Christ to die for your rebellion and for your sins. He paid the penalty, He paved the way.

So let me urge you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to the God which you have lived your life against. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us so that in Him we might be reconciled.

Repent of your rebellion.

Put your faith in Jesus.

Live your life for the God who loves you.

That is the Good News.

For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that He might BRING US TO GOD.... - 1 Peter 3:18 (ESV)


(Written by Bryan and Caleb at 10:31 Sermon Jams)