The Gospel (or Good News of God) is represented in Scripture with six distinct elements of Messianic triumph and intent.

1)The Sentence of Death Removed

Man is imprisoned in his sin – unable to escape the control of sin, the earthly effects of sin, and the eternal penalty of sin.  However, the Good News of God is that the triumvirate of sin’s effect has been canceled through the work of the Messiah, Jesus Christ – the wrath of God has been absorbed by the stricken Son of God – divine justice has been served, sin has been condemned in the flesh.  Thusly, the guilty rebels of earth (you and me), if we would only accept this act of divine intervention with faith, have the privilege of legal justification before the bar of Heaven.  We can be forgiven of our rebellion, self-will, and lifelong resistance to His rule and reign.  Such justification and forgiveness, when accepted through faith, creates a way into the very Presence and Eternal Life of God.  The guilty conscience of man can be swept clean and filled with unspeakable joy, and the condemnation of Hell that hangs justly over the souls of every human can be wholly removed and replaced with hope of life ever after with God. 

2)The Prison Door to Sin is Unlocked

Man is controlled by sin.  And as a result, the pure and holy things he may esteem with his mind and wish to emulate with his life, he is unable to perform and act out.  He finds within his being, a barrier to purity, holiness, and righteousness.  However, the work of the Cross, the triumph of our Messiah, has done more than merely remove the sentence of Death from the children of God - in fact, for those who believe, it has removed the barrier to purity, holiness, and righteousness IN a believer.  That which has always hindered men from living out the commands of God has been removed.  The prison door has been unlocked, and now, the people of faith, have the privilege of walking in the light as our God is in the light, and bearing fruit that evidences a regeneration of the human soul.

3)The invitation to live in His Presence

Though man was a rebel prior to coming to the Cross, and though man was saturated with the dark stain of sin when first approaching the throne of Grace, amazingly, Jesus Christ’s work has created the one and only avenue through which sinful man can enter into the presence of the Divine.  Not just be forgiven, and not just be freed from the dark oppression of the soul, but actually permitted the privilege of living where the King lives, sharing in the rights and allowances of His Kingdom, the privileges and protections of His Spirit Law, being counted among His people, named amongst His company. 

4)The adoption as sons and daughters

Amazingly, the blood of Christ goes even further than even these three astounding realities.  It doesn’t leave us mere citizens of a Kingdom, washed clean and set on our feet with dignity, it also makes a way for us to be adopted into His very family and to be called amongst His sons and daughters.  Beyond mere forgiveness of sins, freedom from sin, and allowance into His Presence, this is the monumental privilege of sharing in the authority of His Name, the pleasures of His person, and the riches of His personal wealth.  We are offered a place not just in His salvation plan, but on His very lap, invited to know Him and become a heart-friend of the Most High God – actually free to call Him Abba, Papa, Father.  And thusly, we are privileged to actually share in His inheritance - all of it!

5)The commission to represent the King’s nature and herald the King’s Word to this lost world

We are also chosen to now represent Him to this lost world, to carry His burdens, to stand for His Truth, to preach His message, and to live as He Himself lived.  As the One who has called us is holy, so we are to be holy in every thing we do, in order to demonstrate to this world the stunning virtue and excellence of our Champion, Jesus Christ.  We are called to be His Body – His very hands and feet to valiantly undergird the weak, His mouthpiece to shout His Gospel, His ears to hear the cries of the needy, and His feet to go into all the world, seeking and saving that which is lost.  We are called to follow Him, to do as He did, and to die in similitude to His dying.  We are called to absolute purity of heart, mind, and life.  We are called to model God’s perfection.  And whereas, such a calling is wholly impossible for us to fulfill and carry out, God doesn’t back down in Scripture in clarifying this amazing intent.  And this is why the sixth piece to the Gospel of Jesus Christ (see below) is so important – because without it, none of the above features can even be realized beyond a miniscule level.  

6)The privilege of becoming the dwelling place of God

The Cross was about far more than forgiveness.  It was about more than men being set free, invited into the Kingdom of their King, being adopted as His very children, and being commissioned to represent His Truth to this world.  Shockingly, the Cross also purchased the way for us to find the fullness of Life.  The Cross created an avenue through which the awesome, all-powerful, consuming fiery Life of God can actually enter into the bodies of believing men and women and make the entirety of this Gospel (as mentioned above) a living, breathing reality.  God desires to live inside us, to speak through us, love through us, feel through us, hear through us – live, move, and have His being in and through us.  Just as Jesus did nothing but what His Father in Heaven was doing (He only spoke that which His Father spoke and only did that which His Father did), so we are to be baptized with the very living presence of God within, enabling us to do precisely the same thing (speaking only that which Jesus is speaking and do only that which Jesus is doing).  Our life is not our own, it’s been bought with a price.  And when we yield to this indwelling Life of God, suddenly it is no longer just a human attempt at imitating the magnificence and perfection of God, but it is the magnificence and perfection of God at work within us demonstrating His Life to this onlooking world. 

Despicable Pharisaism

Robert Speer said, “The evangelization of the world depends first of all upon a revival of prayer. Deeper than the need for workers; deeper far, than the need for money; deep down at the bottom of our spiritual lives is the need for the forgotten secret of prevailing, worldwide prayer. Missions have progressed slowly abroad because piety and prayer have been slow at home.”

Robert Speer is right; prayer is evidence of our utter dependence on God. Without Him we can do noth- ing. However, never forget that Jesus said there was a lack of laborers in His time, and there is a lack of la- borers in our time (see Matt. 9:37). It is easier to pray for this world than to preach the gospel to them. So make sure that you don’t substitute the sacrifice of prayer for the obedience of evangelism; to do so is to play the hypocrite.

“We Christians too often substitute prayer for playing the game. Prayer is good; but when used as a substitute for obedience, it is nothing but a blatant hypocrisy, a despicable Pharisaism...To your knees, man! And to your Bible! Decide at once! Don't hedge! Time flies! Cease your insults to God. Quit consulting flesh and blood. Stop your lame, lying, and cowardly excuses. Enlist!” C. T. Studd

Charles Spurgeon- Prayer

“All hell is vanquished when the believer bows his knee in importunate supplication. Beloved brethren, let us pray. We cannot all argue, but we can all pray; we cannot all be leaders, but we can all be pleaders; we cannot all be mighty in rhetoric, but we can all be prevalent in prayer. I would sooner see you eloquent with God than with men. Prayer links us with the Eternal, the Omnipotent, the Infinite, and hence it is our chief resort...Be sure that you are with God, and then you may be sure that God is with you.” Charles Spurgeon

Handling Temptation

It is Satan’s purpose to steal the seed of truth from your heart by sending distracting thoughts. It should encourage you to know that the devil considers you a good enough Christian to use as a target. Think about. You're on Hell's most wanted list!

The difference between a Christian and a non-Christian is: though they both may have good and evil thoughts, Christ gives His followers strength to select the right rather than the wrong. You see a man going to prayer meeting with a Bible under his arm. That man was undoubtedly tempted to stay at home, go bowling, or to some other activity. But, as these diverse thoughts came to his mind, he made the right selection, and headed for the church.

Another man walks through the night to a bar. It no doubt occurred to him that he had best stay home with his family. But he yielded to the negative thought, and gave in to his lower appetites.

It is not the temptations you have, but the decision you make about them that counts.

Higher than I

When my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the Rock that is higher than I.
Psalms 61:2

Most of us know what it is to be overwhelmed in heart; emptied as when a man wipeth a dish and turneth it upside down; submerged and thrown on our beam ends like a vessel mastered by the storm. Discoveries of inward corruption will do this, if the Lord permits the great deep of our depravity to become troubled and cast up mire and dirt. Disappointments and heart-breaks will do this when billow after billow rolls over us, and we are like a broken shell hurled to and fro by the surf. Blessed be God, at such seasons we are not without an all-sufficient solace, our God is the harbour of weather-beaten sails, the hospice of forlorn pilgrims. Higher than we are is he, his mercy higher than our sins, his love higher than our thoughts. It is pitiful to see men putting their trust in something lower than themselves; but our confidence is fixed upon an exceeding high and glorious Lord. A Rock he is since he changes not, and a high Rock, because the tempests which overwhelm us roll far beneath at his feet; he is not disturbed by them, but rules them at his will. If we get under the shelter of this lofty Rock we may defy the hurricane; all is calm under the lee of that towering cliff. Alas! such is the confusion in which the troubled mind is often cast, that we need piloting to this divine shelter. Hence the prayer of the text. O Lord, our God, by thy Holy Spirit, teach us the way of faith, lead us into thy rest. The wind blows us out to sea, the helm answers not to our puny hand; thou, thou alone canst steer us over the bar between yon sunken rocks, safe into the fair haven. How dependent we are upon thee-we need thee to bring us to thee. To be wisely directed and steered into safety and peace is thy gift, and thine alone. This night be pleased to deal well with thy servants.
-Charles Spurgeon

You know who one of the hardest groups to witness to is? Your loved ones. I find it easier sometimes to witness to strangers rather than family members and I've figured out why. If a stranger gets offended and walks away, I've lost nothing, but if a family member gets offended and walks away, I've lost everything. I know some of you are home with our families, so I encourage you to take the time and talk about the things of God with them, open up your Bible, or share your testimony with them. Let love swallow your fears and share your faith. Think of the outcome if they died in their sins tonight. I pray that that gets into all our hearts and moves us!

Repentance- it's neccesary for Salvation

Instead of desperate sinners knocking on the door of heaven, we incorrectly paint a picture of Jesus pleading at the heart of the sinner. This type of “invitation” gives the impression that the sinner will be doing God a favor if he responds. The gospel is not an invitation because invitations can be politely turned down without fear of reprisal. Scripture says that “God . . . commands all men everywhere to repent” (Acts 17:30, emphasis added).

“If my six-year-old daughter was out on the road playing in front of my house and I saw a huge truck barrel- ing around the corner, what would I do in that moment? Out of my love for my daughter I would not gently invite her to step away from the street. I would command her to change her direction, and get off the road! Why? Because of my love for her. I know that the truck would not be able to stop in time and it would run her over and kill her. The same is true of the Father’s love for us. Out of His love, he commands us to repent, because at any moment the truck of sin and death could run us over for playing on the road of rebellion!”
- Rob Price

Prayer

These are the two enemies of prayer: our sinful nature and the world. On the inside, they try to decrease our desire to pray, and on the outside, they try to chase us away from prayer. All we can do is continue crying out to God. We should pray for strength and better understanding of his Word. -Martin Luther
How is your pray life? How do you view prayer? Do you feel prayer is boring or hard to get into? Feel like you don't have the words? We need to arm ourselves with the mindset that this is extreme privilege we have to come before the throne of Almighty God and speak to your Heavenly Father asking what we will?

Raw Nerves

When you’re preaching open-air, don’t let angry reactions from the crowd concern you. A dentist knows where to work on a patient when he touches a raw nerve. When you touch a raw nerve in the heart of the sinner, it means that you are in business. Anger is a thousand times better than apathy. Anger is a sign of conviction. If I have an argument with my wife and suddenly realize that I am in the wrong, I can come to her in a repentant attitude and apologize, or I can save face by lashing out in anger.

Read Acts 19 and see how Paul was a dentist with an eye for decay. He probed raw nerves wherever he went. At one point, he had to be carried shoulder height by soldiers because of the “violence of the people” (Acts 21:36). Now there’s a successful preacher! He didn’t seek the praise of men. John Wesley told his evangelist trainees that when they preached, people should either get angry or get converted. No doubt, he wasn’t speaking about the “Jesus loves you” gospel, but about sin, Law, righteousness, judgment, and hell.

The Challenge

Every one of us shall give account of himself to God.
–Romans 14:12

I never try to defend religion. Religion has spawned wars. Many so-called religious people have been characterized by prejudice, pride, bickering, and even tolerance for slavery. However, I would call you to a simple faith in Jesus, who said, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Are you really concerned? Are you disappointed with society? If you are, I challenge you to take the first step. I challenge you to look at yourself in the light of God's law, the Ten Commandments, and see how you do.

Ever lied, stolen something regardless of value, ever use God's name as a filth word, ever looked with lust? If you said 'yes' to these, then God sees you as a lying, thieving, blasphames, adulterer at heart. And that is only four of the Ten Commandments. You would be guilty before a Holy God on judgement day and end up in Hell. The Bible tells us all liars will have their part in the lake of fire and if you have broken just one of His laws, you are guilty of breaking all of them.

But that is not God's will. His will is that none should perish, but come to a place of repentance and trust Christ. Do you know what God did for you so that you wouldn't end up in Hell? He sent His son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for your sins. He took your punishment. But here is the good news, Jesus rose again on the third day, defeating death itself. You broke God's law, but Jesus paid your fine in His life's blood. God can now legally dismiss your court case, but what you need to do is repent (turn from sin) and trust in Jesus. The moment you truly do that, God will grant you everlasting life.

So the challenge is thrown down! Will you take that first step, or continue to walk with your back to God?

Accepted?

Why is it that we can get a thousand compliments, but one negative comment out weighs them all? Even Madonna once said in an interview that if she was performing and saw one person not enjoying the show among the thousands that were, she would remember that one person over anything else that show.

We are beings of acceptance. We want to be accepted by our family, friends, co-workers, and overall society. We fear reject. Isn't that what hold us back on so many things? There is typically a downward spiral that come with the fear of reject. It starts with fear, which leads to an anger, which leads into hate, then a depression, and in some cases to suicide. If you look at Bible, isn't that what happened to King Saul?

Why do we desire to be accepted by man more than God?! The Bible even say, " if I was trying to please man, I would not be a follower of Christ". (Gal 1:10) God's the lover of our souls. He knows the number of every hair on our heads. And we need to arm ourselves with the thought 'so what if I'm too tall, too short, too round, too skinny! God's the lover of my soul!'

I heard a question once a few years ago, " if you knew you couldn't fail, what would you attempt today?" Doesn't just the thought of that give you a sense of freedom? It does me. Well guess what? There is a statement that reflects that question that we should hold on to more tightly that that question. The statement is "I can do all things through Christ that strengthens me".

So, I urge you to stop listening to your fear of rejection, and share your faith. We are more than conquerors through Him who loves us! And if you don't know Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, you need to seek His acceptance, not this dying world's acceptance. You need to repent and put your trust in Him alone. God's wrath abides upon you. But Jesus paid your fine in His life's blood. Turn from sin and trust in Jesus. And the moment you do that, God will grant you everlasting life.

Madness of the Gospel

We preach Christ crucified . . .
–1 Corinthians 1:23

One of the great needs in the church today is for every Christian to become enthusiastic about his faith in Jesus Christ. This is the essence of vital spiritual experience. The apostles had been with Christ, and they could not help but testify to that which they had seen and heard. Every Christian should become an ambassador of Christ. Every Christian should be so intoxicated with Christ and so filled with holy fervor that nothing could ever quench his ardor. The Gospel that Paul preached seemed madness to the world of his day. Let us have this madness! Let us capture some of the magnificent obsession that these early Christians had! Let us go forth as men and women filled with the Spirit of God!

The Young Pastor

There once was this young pastor that was asked if he would like to come lead a church in a small town. The young pastor was delighted to. He packed his things and went down to the bus stop to go this small town. The young pastor got on the bus and as he took his seat on the bus, he realized that the driver had given him a quarter change too much. The bus headed off to it's destination and as it did, the pastor looked down at the extra quarter in his hand and first thought, 'I need to give this back to the driver'. But the next thought that came to him was, 'well, it's only a quarter. It's not really that big of a deal. This kind of thing probably happens all the time'. The young pastor struggled with these thoughts the entire trip. When the bus arrived at it's destination, the young pastor gathered his things and started to walk towards the front of the bus. He stopped looked at the driver and said, "Here you go. You gave me twenty five cents too much." The driver held out his hand and took it, and then said something that caught the young pastor as odd.
"You're that new pastor fellow, aren't you?"
"Yes, I am," the young pastor replied.
"I gave you that extra quarter to see what kind of pastor you really were. You see I live here in this town, and I wanted to see if you were honest or just worried about your collection plate. I'll see you at church this Sunday Sir," the bus driver said as he shooked the young pastor's hand. As he walked off the bus and it drove away. The young pastor dropped his bags on the sidewalk and leaned against the lamp post. Tears began to well up in his eyes and he said a little prayer.
"Father, forgive me. For I almost sold your son for a quarter!"
*So the question is, how much would you compromise your walk with Jesus Christ? Don't be quick to answer this. Think about it. Is your relationship with Jesus the most valuable thing you have? Or is you walk with Him worth about a quarter? Maybe thirty pieces of silver?"

Examine Yourself

Contrary to Scripture, the modern gospel assures people that if they sincerely pray a “sinner’s prayer,” they should never doubt their salvation. Some go so far as to say that any doubts are from the devil. With eternity at stake, however, Paul admonishes believers to test themselves to make sure their faith is sound and secure.

Think of what you would do if you were wearing a parachute and waiting to jump out of a plane. You would have faith in the parachute, but you would also regularly check to make sure that the straps are firm. Once you have put on the Lord Jesus Christ through conversion (repentance and faith), you should regularly examine yourself to see how firm your relationship is with the Lord. Are you reading the Word daily? Do you have regular prayer? Are you fighting sin, or giving in to it? Are you living in holiness? Are you confessing sin? How is your relationship with other Christians? Is there any hidden bitterness against anyone? Are you sharing your faith? What is your greatest passion? Is it the Lord, or are material things more important? Do you love the world and the things in the world? On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate your walk with God? It should be a ten. If it is not, strive to make it a ten.

2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified.

Why does God torture people in hell?

God will not “torture” anyone. He will simply give them justice. A criminal who viciously raped three teenage girls may believe that his being thrown into a cold prison is torture. The judge rather knows better. He calls it “justice.”

God will “damn” rebellious sinners from all that is good in a prison called “hell.” He gave them life and lavished His goodness upon them, and they despised Him, violated His Law, and then refused His mercy. He is extremely kind and “rich” in mercy, and offers complete forgiveness to all who repent and obey the gospel. Those who despise that mercy will get what the Bible calls “equity” (see Psa. 98:9). Equity, according to the dictionary, is “the quality of being fair or impartial; fairness; impartiality: the equity of Solomon.” In law, it is “the application of the dictates of conscience or the principles of natural justice to the settlement of controversies.” In other words, impartially doing that which is right, fair, and just.

The Bible tells us that God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked (Ezek. 33:11). His Word even says that “mercy triumphs over judgment” (James 2:13), meaning that God would rather see someone sorrowful and repentant and have their sins forgiven, than receive the full wrath of His justice. But if sinners remain hard and impenitent, His Word warns, “But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who “will render to each one according to his deeds” (Rom. 2:5,6).

Psalm 98:9 For He is coming to judge the earth. With righteousness He shall judge the world, And the peoples with equity

Lunch Time Tracts

How do you feel when you walk into a fast food place and the dinning room to packed and there is a line to the door. Most of us would say forget it and go someplace else, but today I decided to wait. As I'm standing in line and looking around, a thought came to me, 'look how many people you could give tracts to right now'. At first I was like 'YEAH!', but then something said, 'but what if they throw you out of the place? If you tried to do that while these people are eating their lunch, they will probably call you rude or worse!' I thought, you're probably right, but as I slowly moved forward with the line, something came over me and I said a little prayer. Something like, 'God if this is something you want me to do, help me to be bold to do it'. After I got my food and paid, I walked over to the side and pulled out my tract wallet and removed every single million dollar tract I had in there and started walking around to every table and would set one on the table for every person at that table and would say something like, 'Here you go. Just passing out a few million dollars. Trying to help out with the nation debt'. No one said 'no'! Some said 'thanks', others mostly laughed. It was awesome! I walked out of there feeling so incouraged! Think about out, most of those people's mouths were filled with food so they couldn't speak back to me and I was able to do a little witnessing. Some of them probably went back to the office telling co-workers about this tall, goofy guy walking around passing out money during lunch. When I got outside I prayed for everyone I had given a tract to, that God would use that silly little piece of paper to bring just one of those people to a place of genuine repentance and that they would put their trust in Jesus Christ.
We need to be bold people! We need to beat fear with faith! We need to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ and say with one voice "I AM UNASHAMED OF IT"!! He has given us a commission (yes the God of the universe that we have spat in the face of with our sinful nature wants us to work for Him!). We are to represent the very image, and name of God Almighty. We are His flock! Yes we a like fluffy little lambs, but we are fluffly little lambs with the face of the Lion of Judea! The righteous are as bold as a Lion, the Bible says. Be bold today my friends. Share your faith with someone today! A Pastor friend of my once said, ''the key to Evangelism, is to make yourself available for God to use you." Well, here I am Lord! Send me, use me, and in light of what you did at the cross for me, spend me any way you need to. Your will Abba, not my own!

Conscience is given by...

It is interesting that every culture has a sense of morality, and that no matter how “primitive” they are, they acknowledge some sort of Creator. I am not aware of any past culture that has been found to be atheistic. Every culture acknowledges God because the knowledge of His existence is manifest through the conscience, as well as through creation (see Rom. 1:19–21).

The word “conscience” comes from two words and means “with knowledge” (con means “with” and science means “knowledge”). Here is the dictionary definition: “knowledge within oneself, a moral sense; lit. with-knowledge.”

Consider the experience of a minister who went to Papua New Guinea and met with a tribe that had no prior contact with Christianity. He asked if they believed that certain behaviors were wrong. They admitted that things like stealing, cannibalism (which some of them were practicing), and adultery were wrong. When he asked how they knew it was wrong, they said they knew it in their being...in their heart. That’s the conscience. With no contact with the Bible or with Christians, instinctively they knew the difference between right and wrong.

However, let’s say that you are right—that it is society and not God that entirely shapes the human conscience. Let’s imagine that a man has been rescued by authorities after 20 years of being raised by wolves. He is found to be intelligent and completely sane, but has had no moral instruction from any human being in those 20 years.

He is cleaned up, given a nice suit, and taken to New York where he is overawed by what he sees. He is still given no moral instruction. When he is left alone, the first thing he does is find a pretty young woman. He rapes and murders her, then he steals her money and is captured while spending it.

In court, his attorney’s defense is that he didn’t know right from wrong—society had given him no moral instruction. Is the judge going to let him go? Of course not, because although the human conscience may be influenced by society, it is not given to us by society. We each have the moral Law written on our heart, and it speaks of issues of right and wrong. The conscience is given to us by God, so that every sane human being intuitively knows that some things are “right” and some things are “wrong” regardless of what was taught to us. That is why we will all be without excuse on the Day of Judgment