rjones
Member
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2007
- Messages
- 314
"I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile" (Rom. 1:16).
The Gospel is the salvation of God in action. It describes how we enter into God's salvation and how that salvation continues to work in our lives.
"For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: 'The righteous will live by faith'" (Rom. 1:17).
This verse reveals three things about the Gospel:
It is from God
The Gospel reveals a righteousness which is "from God." These two words summarize the whole orientation of the Gospel. It is a God-to-you direction, not the other way around. The Gospel sets the compass-needle of our lives to a "from-God" bearing, not a "from-me" bearing. The Gospel returns our lives to the orientation that God created us for.
"...yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live" (1 Cor. 8:6).
It is by faith
The Gospel reveals the way we receive this gift of righteousness - "by faith" (Phil. 3:8-9). God has designed the Christian life in such a way that as we release our faith toward God, He releases His power to work in our lives. It is faith that reverses the original rebellion and returns our life to God-centeredness, God-consciousness and God-dependence. This faith sets the pace for the rest of our life in Christ.
"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him" (Heb. 11:6).
It is from first to last
The Gospel embraces the whole Christian life from start to finish. We begin as a Christian by faith in the saving power of God and we live as a Christian by faith in that same saving power. The Gospel does two things:
It introduces us to Christ (Eph. 1:13) - "from first"
It establishes us in Christ (Rom.16:25) - "to last"
Satan works hard to deceive Christians into thinking that after receiving the Lord, we must try to live the Christian life in our own strength (Gal. 3:1-3). But self-effort puts us back into self-centredness. The Christian life is all by faith and all by grace. The Gospel is a "from first to last" experience.
"...All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth" (Col. 1:6).
The Gospel is the salvation of God in action. It describes how we enter into God's salvation and how that salvation continues to work in our lives.
"For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: 'The righteous will live by faith'" (Rom. 1:17).
This verse reveals three things about the Gospel:
It is from God
The Gospel reveals a righteousness which is "from God." These two words summarize the whole orientation of the Gospel. It is a God-to-you direction, not the other way around. The Gospel sets the compass-needle of our lives to a "from-God" bearing, not a "from-me" bearing. The Gospel returns our lives to the orientation that God created us for.
"...yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live" (1 Cor. 8:6).
It is by faith
The Gospel reveals the way we receive this gift of righteousness - "by faith" (Phil. 3:8-9). God has designed the Christian life in such a way that as we release our faith toward God, He releases His power to work in our lives. It is faith that reverses the original rebellion and returns our life to God-centeredness, God-consciousness and God-dependence. This faith sets the pace for the rest of our life in Christ.
"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him" (Heb. 11:6).
It is from first to last
The Gospel embraces the whole Christian life from start to finish. We begin as a Christian by faith in the saving power of God and we live as a Christian by faith in that same saving power. The Gospel does two things:
It introduces us to Christ (Eph. 1:13) - "from first"
It establishes us in Christ (Rom.16:25) - "to last"
Satan works hard to deceive Christians into thinking that after receiving the Lord, we must try to live the Christian life in our own strength (Gal. 3:1-3). But self-effort puts us back into self-centredness. The Christian life is all by faith and all by grace. The Gospel is a "from first to last" experience.
"...All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth" (Col. 1:6).
