Good news: chicken is on sale at the Grocery Store! Wings and things: 5% off when you buy 500 pounds.
Good news: my grandson, Zayden, is celebrating his sixth birthday next week.
Good news: plenty of hot water came out of the showerhead this morning. Happy day!
Good news: my dog doesn’t have fleas! (I don’t have a dog... hence, no fleas.)
Look around. There’s plenty of good news!
The best good news: Jesus came to earth to save his creatures from sin and death. He died, He was buried, and yet He rose to live eternally. His death paid the penalty for sin. His life paves the way for us to live too!
God is on His throne! He’s still in control! Jesus still loves you, and the Holy Spirit still resides in the hearts of His people. It doesn’t get any better than that!
In the Bible, the word Gospel is used for God’s Good News! The word “gospel” is an old English word originating as “good spell” or “God spell.” It means “good news.” It derives from the Greek word “evangelion.” The Gospel was the Good News brought by the herald, the evangel.
The Good News is “the Gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24), “the Gospel of the kingdom” (Matthew 4:23), “the Gospel of Christ” (Romans 1:16), “the Gospel of peace (Ephesians 6:15), “the glorious Gospel,” “the everlasting Gospel,” “the Gospel of salvation” (Ephesians 1:13).
We, God’s people, are commissioned to share this gloriously Good News! We heard the Good News, we believed it, and it changed our lives eternally. We’re commissioned to pass it on. Hey, when the beggar finds bread, he goes to tell his buddies... We found the Bread of Life! Let’s share the bounty!
You could share the Good News by saying, “Start reading in Genesis and don’t stop till you get to the maps!” Indeed, there’s plenty of Good News in there. But we need a simple and succinct method of sharing the Gospel!
Bill Bright, the founder of Campus Crusade of Christ, reduced the Good News to “Four Spiritual Laws.”
1. God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.
2. Man is sinful and separated from God.
3. Jesus Christ is the only provision for man’s sin.
4. We must individually receive Jesus Christ and Savior and Lord; then we can know and experience God’s love and plan for our lives.
Billy Graham condensed the Gospel message to four “Steps to Peace with God.”
Step 1. God’s Purpose: Peace and Life
Step 2. The Problems: Our Separation from God
Step 3. God’s Bridge: The Cross
Step 4. Our Response: Receive Christ
At my church, we’ve reduced the Gospel’s message to just four words: Creation, Fall, Rescue and Life.
That’s pretty simple! Four words! Four power-packed words. Four words that could change the world!
So, this week, let’s consider the simplicity of this declaration of Good News!
South Georgia Baptist Church
Amarillo, Texas
Mike Martin, Pastor
mike@southgeorgiabaptistchurch.org