The Goodness of the Good News

There are always two sides to any coin.  Two sides to every story.  In first grade I teach my students how every good story has a problem and a solution.  The same holds true for the gospel of Jesus.  There is a big problem with humanity.  There is a lot of bad news about sin.  But God gives us a solution, and there is good news for those who believe.

Our pastor Mark Oshman has often been quoted as saying, "The good news is only as good as the bad news is bad."  If we don't grapple with our sin and understand the seriousness of our separation from God, we won't ever understand our need for a savior.  Until we see our sinful nature for what it is, the gospel will ring hollow and empty in our ears.  So here's the bad news: we are sinners, separated from God, deserving hell.  But the good news is God has provided a way out for us.  God himself is the sacrifice to atone for our sin and be saved from death.

Jesus came to give us hope for eternity.  I know that sometimes Christians throw around words like hope, faith, joy, etc. without giving any real weight to what they mean.  So what does it really mean that we have hope in Jesus?  He didn't come just to give us a good life here on earth; in fact, many Christians suffer severe persecution for their faith.  The gospel is about having an eternal perspective and realizing that there is more to life than what we have here on earth.  We will one day worship at the throne of God in heaven for eternity.  We have hope that one day all the ugliness of this world, all the suffering and pain, will be wiped away by the One with nail-scarred hands.  "I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us." (Romans 8:18)  This life is but a glimpse of eternity.   Now that's something worth living for.

In Mark 2:17 Jesus says, "it is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.  I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."  Jesus' sacrifice on the cross is an atonement for every man, woman, and child on the planet.  His death was enough to cover us all with His grace.  The gospel is for everyone, not just the ones who sit in the pews on Sunday morning.  It's for the homeless man on the street, and the crack-adled prostitute desperate for money.  It's for the single mother and the gay couple next door.  The gospel is for the frazzled college student and the retiree in the nursing home.  The gospel is for you and me.  There is no sinner beyond the reach of God's hands.  In 1 Timothy 2:3 Paul reminds us that we serve a God "who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth." 

God's grace is for everyone who believes, and the most important decision we will ever make is how we will respond to that grace.  For many it is a lifelong question.  My prayer for you is that you will know the goodness of God and answer his call to eternal life!