The Gospel: Reality's Foundation Part 8

The nature of the gospel forces one to contemplate the reality of Hell. The Bible does not flinch in its very real, highly disturbing portrayal of the damned being separated from God forever due to their unwillingness to listen to reason. God permits us to reject Him, no matter the evidence presented. But there is no genuine autonomy outside of God; Hell is a place of condemnation, where we will be aware of the choice offered us, and how we declined reconciliation.

The Gospel: Reality's Foundation Part 7

On due consideration, let us postpone a more in depth search into the topics of legalism and license at a later time, God willing. The focus here should rather be the gospel of God and our need as human beings separated from God's presence and life to be restored both to this relationship and the image we were initially created in.

The Gospel: Reality's Foundation Part 6

The gospel is God’s rescue mission to restore mankind to His intended state for us; one of fellowship and worship forever. Our present condition is not God's purpose for us; the suffering endured in this life coupled with the reality of death's finality demonstrate this elegantly. Man needs restoration; and this can only come from the willing offer made by his Creator. God freely offers the free gift of His gospel and the sacrifice of His Son to any and all who will simply and truly believe, Romans 5:15; John 11:25-26. This gospel is everlasting, and it reunites us, God’s wayward creation with its Creator.

The Gospel: Reality's Foundation Part 5

The gospel is God’s answer to man’s dilemma; it is His only solution for our genuinely lost condition. Whenever someone rages, demanding why God doesn’t do something about this world’s evil, the answer is that He has: He sent Jesus to die on behalf of sin, paying the penalty that our sin deserved. There will come a day when God acts to remove sin's presence from this universe, ushering in a new heavens and a new earth but He postpones that day of judgment because to rid the world of sin He would also have to rid it of sinners who have yet to receive Christ as their Savior.

The Gospel: Reality's Foundation Part 4

The Gospel, which is everlasting (Revelation 14:6) has existed since the primeval promise to Eve that would bruise the serpent's head while the woman's seed would have his own heel bruised, Genesis 3:15. Not only were God's words--prophetic of the coming Messiah--extremely important, but what He did next was equally so. After cursing Adam, Eve and finally the serpent, God clothed our first parents in tunics of skin, signifying shed blood for the remission of sin; it was the first blood shed on earth and God apparently shed it to atone (literally cover) the guilt and nakedness of Adam and Eve. This symbolized the vicarious death He only just spoke of when he mentioned the seed of the woman being bruised while bruising the serpent. Isaiah the prophet understood this when he was led to write about the virgin mother giving birth to one who would be: "Mighty God, Everlasting Father...of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end," Isaiah 7:14; 9:6-7.

The Gospel: Reality's Foundation part 3

Let's consider an experiential example that I think all of us can picture: watch a group of children at play. Do we have to teach them to cheat, lie to or hurt one another, or does it seem to come naturally? No; we need to train them to be honest, play fair and care for others selflessly. Sins are symptoms of a sickness, like coughing when we catch a cold. Sin is the root of the sickness that creates mankind’s many miseries. Behavior modification (teaching people to practice ethics and morals on par with what we consider "good") can alleviate the symptoms, but it does not reach the true sickness. The sickness is sin which is part of our nature, and why it occurs in the young and old, rich and poor, learned and foolish. It is universal in nature and corrupts us from the inside.

The Gospel: Reality's Foundation Part 2

If we are honest, each of us knows that not one of us has ever lived up to our own moral standards as we live to various degrees within this moral order we find ourselves in. We have, on many occasions, broken this moral law and are offenders. If we follow this natural train of thought, we find that we have offended the intelligence that is back of creation, and back of the moral order. If we posit that the First Cause established morality innately within each of us this only stands to reason.

The Gospel: Reality's Foundation

I would like to address the gospel’s relevance and necessity in our society and our world. But first I would like to lay a foundation regarding observations about the world we live in and our place in it. Life abounds with poignant questions like: who are we, how did we come to be here? If there is a God, what type of relationship does mankind have toward Him?