I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
John 10:10
2000 years ago everything changed! The Creator of stars and countless galaxies entered into our broken and hurting world and changed the course of history forever.
The Bible teaches the reason we live in a broken and hurting world is because we have turned from God, the Giver and Sustainer of life. Embracing the lie that God was against us we rebelled in the name of freedom only to become enslaved to corruption and death.
There is Good News
The Good News of the Gospel is that God has not forgotten nor forsaken this world. God entered into human history as one of us, the person Jesus Christ. He taught that God’s good and perfect Kingdom was breaking into this world, as light shining in darkness. Jesus spoke of a future day when He will bring justice and peace to reign on the earth. The world will be how it is meant to be and all that stands in opposition to the good and perfect rule of God will be eternally destroyed.
The ‘Problem’ of Good News
But that poses a problem for us because we stand in opposition to the good and perfect rule of God. The darkness is not simply ‘out there’ it is within our own hearts. If we’re honest, we’re not the people we want to be, let alone the people God created us to be. The Bible teaches that every one of us ‘falls short’ of living God’s way. We’ve all turned from God, whether in big or small ways. In so doing we’ve made an alliance with evil and destructive forces, which we see manifest in our world and lives every day. This rejection of God’s rule is what the Bible calls sin, it is a destructive path that leads to destruction. God, in His goodness and justice, will one day bring our sin to judgement.
The Good News Gets Better
But the Good News of the Gospel is not simply that God’s Kingdom is coming but that we can come into God’s Kingdom – we can share in the life of God’s Kingdom. What we cannot do for ourselves God has done for us, through Jesus Christ. Jesus’ death on the cross was no tragic accident but was God’s great rescue plan. The God whom we had convinced ourselves was our enemy works to bring us back to Himself. As soldiers bartered for His clothes and the crowd hurled insults, Jesus cried out ‘Father, forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing.’ Yet this was not simply a revelation of God’s love, it is a rescue from the corruption and hardness of our own hearts. Absorbing within Himself the pollution and poison of our sin Jesus was lifted up on a cross and faced the full force of God’s judgment. Having died and been buried Jesus was raised to life on the third day, breaking the power of sin and death.
The Kingdom of God has broken into this world and now we can begin to enter in. It is through Jesus Christ that we receive forgiveness and new life. It is through Jesus that we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit to change and transform us that so our lives increasingly align with God’s good and perfect ways. This is not something we earn, it is a gift that is to be received.
One day, the future day Jesus spoke of will be a present day. Justice and peace will reign eternally on the earth and all that is in opposition to His good and perfect rule will be eternally destroyed. Until then Jesus has called His church to share the Good News. He waits, not desiring people to perish but to turn to Him and live.
Will you turn to God and receive the gift of forgiveness and new life in Jesus Christ?
For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.
1 Peter 3:18
We run a course called Christianity Explored that provides you with the opportunity to explore the Good News about Jesus Christ further.
You can find out what the course looks like by watching the video below
For further information and enquiries contact us at: info@therfieldchapel.org