BranchinVINE
Feb 3, 2018
Many people would just say Christ died for us so that we won't go to hell.
What do you say?
Many people would just say Christ died for us so that we won't go to hell.
What do you say?
If there was no hell would we still have to be saved?
Rhetorical question”” of course we would.
Christ is risen:)
15Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves
full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world
to save sinners””of whom I am the worst...
Fabulous thread topic!
Jesus said:
"But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.” Matt. 9:13
It is impossible to explain or understand the Good News or to appreciate the need until one is utterly abhorred by the sin nature - not just in the "other", but in themselves.
To the extent that we perceive some degree of self- righteousness in ourselves, we will mock the Good News - or mutate it into a religious prop for our self-righteousness.
lost now found
far off now near
cut off now grafted in
guilty now innocent
rejected now accepted
blind now seeing
mourning now rejoicing
bound now free !
just off the top of my head!
The half has not been told!
Rusty
From God's perspective, He gains what He had lost-- fellowship again with His beloved creature man. Only the Cross of Christ could restore that.
DL Moody replied to a college student when asked about salvation, that he was saved, he is saved and he will be saved. The good news is that God offers to redeem man from a lot of really bad stuff. Once redeemed its a lot of work to clean us up and make us ready for our eternal home in Heaven. The good news would have to be the free gift/offer from God to redeem us through the complete sacrifice of Jesus Christ and make us to become His sons and daughters.
That is a really loaded question and one can really write a pretty extensive letter on that subject. I look forward to reading what others say.
The Bible tells us that the gospel is:
‘Christ died for our Sins according to the scriptures,
And that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day’.... (1 Corinthiians 15:3-4).
So why is this good news and what does it mean to us?
‘He died for our sins’.
ALL have sinned, and broken God’s law.
The payment of Sin is death (eternal punishment).
Jesus came into the world to save sinners. By dying on the cross, he took our punishment on Himself.
‘He was buried’.
Jesus bore our sins on Himself and took them to the grave.
Our sinful life cannot be improved, it must be taken away and buried.
‘He rose again’.
Jesus defeated death and was resurrected to a new immortal life.
Jesus gives this new life to all who receive Him as their Lord and saviour.
This seems a pretty straightforward presentation by Paul:
1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
5 And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve:
6 After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep.
7 After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles.
8 And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.
9 For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.
10 But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.
11 Therefore whether it were I or they, so we preach, and so ye believed.
12 Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead?
13 But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen:
14 And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.
15 Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not.
16 For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised:
17 And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.
18 Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.
19 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.
20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.
Fletcher, Ain't that neat, we posted the same scripture within 1 minute of each other!
Someone got there before me with 1 Corinthians 15
I normally say on the street that we all have sinned and fallen short of gods glory and that Jesus has died in our place for our sins like a judge convict a man of murder and that man has to take the death penalty.
The man cannot say that he has done a lot of good works as that will not get him into heaven. If a man has committed murder, he cannot say to the judge I have done many good things, he would be crazy.
Instead the judge takes his place and dies for our sin and saves us from going to Eternal Hell which is eternal torment
John 3:16 King James Version (KJV)
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life
When I am witnessing I tend to just quote Scriptures !
Ha!
Think that’s a first for me on SI;)
I was in a hurry and threw some stuff off the top of my head, went and did what I had to came back and read your post and was like,”what a knuckle head it was right there in scripture all neat with a bow tie and all” Some how I missed it. Good job Dave.
Picking up on the OP, I understand that Christ dying for our sins so we can be forgiven and enter heaven is only one aspect of the gospel. The co-burial and co-resurection are both essential parts of the gospel, i.e. good news.
Unfortunately too often just this first part is preached and thereby we end up with an incomplete message and either premature spiritual births or miscarriages!
The scripture says that "if Christ is not risen, then our faith is in vain." I believe also that if the resurrection life is not a part of our believing then our faith is in vain.
Amen brother Dave!
I’ve been stuck on the nessity of water baptism in the salvation process, preaching on the streets it seems that getting people to move from the streets to water baptism is key to keeping them plugged in to a local body of believers. I was reading The Exodus of Israel and how God called them His Son, Israel my Son, and it just made sense how He used the water to bury them in death and separate them from Egypt’s hold on them and thier coming out the other side as the entering into the resurrection so to speak. It was one of those things that stuck with me for months and my mind couldn’t seem to get past it.
The Good News is Jesus died for me, took the punishment for my sins on the cross, and saved me from a never ending hell. He lives in me and I get to experience what heaven will be like (in a small measure), an incredible, all consuming love for my Savior and my fellow man. I am no longer a slave to sin, I no longer run my own life (that's a relief!) I can see clearly, like the blind man Jesus healed. And I get the incredible privilege of telling others about my Savior.
Sounds like good news to me!
John 1:29 King James Version (KJV)
29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
This sums it up for me. I needed salvation from-not in- my sins. I needed a new heart. I praise God for salvation! Hallelujah!
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