The Good News

The message of the Gospel goes way back the the beginning of the Bible in a book called Genesis. In the beginning God created everything. The stars, the animals, the plants and the first humans Adam and Eve. Everything that He made was good (Genesis 1-2). However that changed when Adam and Eve disobeyed God and sinned by attempting to become like God (Genesis 3). This first sin separated mankind from God, severed mankind from eternal life. and now because of Adam’s original sin all human beings born after him have a sin nature and are condemned (Romans 5, Ephesians 2:1-3). Sin is the reason that there is evil and wrong and suffering in our world, and mankind’s separation from God and life eternal are the reasons why every human being has an innate sense of longing for the transcendent. That there has to be something more, that there has to be ultimate meaning or purpose to life. This is what sin has taken from us, but God even then promised a way back. God promised Adam and Eve to send a savior who would defeat evil and restore what was broken and marred by sin. That Savior is Jesus.

From here in the story of the Bible God continues to promise and point forward to the coming of this savior through Covenants or promises, prophets, types, and shadows. God also gave His people the Law, a set of requirements for His people meant to reveal His Holy character and expose human sinfulness and the need for a savior. A common example of the Law are what is often called the Ten Commandments which show us that it is sinful to worship other Gods, to make empty promises, to lie, to steal, murder, and be jealous of our neighbor. When we look at God’s Law we cannot help but see how sinful we are and that we are unable to earn salvation and eternal life. The Old Testament (Genesis-Malachi) ends promising a savior or Messiah Who would come to make a New Covenant with people from every tribe nation and tongue. Who would give His people new hearts and life eternal.

Then at the start of what we call the New Testament (Matthew-Revelation) this promised savior arrives, an His name is Jesus. God the Son, the Second Person of the Trinity (Orthodox Christians believe that God is Triune: One in Essence, Three in Person: Father, Son, and Spirit), took on human flesh (John 1:1-18, Philippians 2:1-5 and was born of the Virgin Mary. Truly God and Truly man. He did this so that He could represent us as our substitute and so that He as God could suffer in our place. That is exactly what He did. He lived some thirty years on this earth without ever sinning, fully obeying God’s Law because we could not, and died a criminals death on the cross in our place (Matthew 27). On that cross He took the punishment for sin, He bore our sins and iniquities in His body, He suffered the wrath of God in our place, and He died. Three days later God raised Him from the dead, conquering sin, the devil, and the grave. Now all Who believe in Him are forgiven of their sins, receive Christ’s righteousness to cover their unrighteousness, and are guaranteed to be bodily raised from the dead at His return just as Christ was raised from the dead (Romans 4, 1 Corinthians 15). This salvation, this eternal life, this forgiveness is God’s grace offered freely to sinners and it is received through repentance and faith. Repentance is turning from self to God, and faith is trusting or believing and its object is Christ. It is not the faith that saves you but what the faith grasps, Jesus Christ, that saves you.

If you want to become a Christian we invite you to turn from sin and self and place your faith in Jesus, and God promises in His Word that you will be saved. If you have more questions please reach out to our Church through the form below, we would love to walk you through this.