What is the Good News?

I’ve heard people talk about Good News – what is it and why is it good?

The Good News starts at the beginning of everything – God formed the world, sun, moon, stars, land, water, plants, and animals.  His crowning achievement was the creation of Adam, made in His image, and Eve, formed from Adam’s rib.  God the Father knew Adam and Eve, walked with them in the Garden of Eden, and loved them. When Adam and Eve chose to break the one rule God gave them, sin entered the world and humanity.

Sin has cursed every human being since then, and we see its effects every day of our lives in the small things like a child hitting his brother to big things like wars and genocide.  Even the planet itself suffers from our sin, and it “groans” as we experience hurricanes, earthquakes, and other natural disasters.

The consequences of sin, however, did not take God by surprise.  Before He created the world, He had a plan to rescue us.  The King of the universe had a plan – one that takes most of us by surprise.  The One who had all authority, who is worthy to be worshiped by every person on the planet, demonstrated His great love for us.  He chose to send His only Son, with Him for all eternity, into the world on a rescue mission.  Jesus left His throne in heaven to come into the world, taking the form of a baby.

The God who created the universe with His words made a miracle happen as a young virgin named Mary became pregnant by the power of the Holy Spirit.  An angel appeared to her to instruct her to name him Jesus which means “God saves.”  Jesus lived a perfect life, not sinning even once.  The religious leaders took offense at Jesus, and had him crucified by the Roman ruler, Pontius Pilate.

As Jesus hung on the cross, darkness covered the land at midday.  After he died, the earth shook and dead people came out of their graves.  “And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, saw how he died, he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!” (Mark 15:39).  His death was no ordinary death, and what happened next was a miracle.

Three days after Jesus died and was buried, his followers came to visit his tomb. Instead of finding his dead body, they found the stone rolled away from entrance and two angels who announced to them that Jesus was alive.  Jesus appeared to them later and to hundreds of other people.  Then as many of his followers watched, Jesus went up in the air to heaven.

It may sound like a fictional story to some, but these events really happened and are documented in historical references and in the Bible.  Jesus came to save you and me from our sins.  He came to give us life to the fullest.  We can have that life if we will take a simple step.

Believe and receive.

“Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God…” (John 1:12).

It’s that easy – and that hard.  Simply believe what God says about His Son, Jesus – that He is God and that He died for your sins.  Agree with God that you have thought, said, and done wrong things – that’s called sin.  Admit that your sins have to be paid for – there is a consequence – and that Jesus chose to pay your debt for you.  Accept that Jesus’ blood is payment in full, and that by receiving His sacrifice for you, you are now clean and can know God.

If you want to take that step of faith, you can do it right now by talking to God – out loud or silently.  You can use your own words or, if you’re not sure what to say, here’s a suggestion:

God, I believe that You sent Your son into the world to save people just like me.  I have sinned, and I deserve to die.  Thank you for letting Jesus die instead of me, paying the price for my sins.  I accept Jesus’ sacrifice for me.  Thank you for loving me that much!  I humbly ask for Your Holy Spirit to come live in me and give me the power to live every day for You.  Thank you for making me new.  I love you.  In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

If you just talked to God and received Him, you were just born again!  The old has passed, and you are now a new creation!  As a new Christ-follower, it is important for you to take steps of growth with other Christ-followers.  Some important ways for you to grow are: 1) read something from the Bible every day – that’s how you get to know God better and learn about who you are in Christ, 2) talk to God through prayer – thank Him for who He is and the ways He blesses you, tell Him about your dreams, fears, and the things you need, 3) meet with other Christ-followers every week to encourage each other, learn the Bible together, worship and pray together.

Will you allow us to celebrate this important event in your life?  If you were just born again or are coming back to God, we would like to pray with you and give you a free resource that will help you grow in your faith.

If you have made a recent decision to follow Christ or would like more information on the Good News of the Gospel, please contact us. We would love to get you more information! Click Contact  and we would love to follow up with you!