Good News!

"Which do you want first  -  the good news, or the bad news?"  That common question highlights a fact in today's world  -  when it comes to news, it seems that the bad news is what sells!  So, the media, whether print or broadcast, often focuses on bad news.  But it's critical to realize that  THERE  IS  GOOD  NEWS!

But before we can get to the good news, there is some bad news that we need to share first.  The bad news is that we are all sinners.  We have said, done, and thought things that fall short of God's perfection.  "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God."  (Romans 3:23)

But that's just the beginning of the bad news.  To make matters worse, our sin has offended an infinitely holy God.  God created us, and when He did, He created us without sin.  But we failed Him and chose to rebel.  We broke His law.  We have not obeyed His commandments.  Therefore, because He is holy, God must judge us.  Because we have sinned, we deserve to die  -  both physically and spiritually.  That means that we deserve eternal separation from God in a place called Hell, or the Lake of Fire.  "For the wages of sin is death . . ."  (Romans 6:23)  "The soul that sinneth, it shall die . . ."  (Ezekiel 18:20)  "Then shall he (Jesus) say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels"  (Matthew 25:41)

To make the bad news even worse, there is nothing that we can do on our own to avoid God's righteous judgment.  Many people think that when we face God, He will balance our good works against our sins, and if we have done enough good works, He will reward us with Heaven.  But that's not how it works.  In fact, God says our good works are worthless in His sight.  He calls them "filthy rags" in Isaiah 64:6.  We cannot rewind our lives and undo the sins we have done.  We cannot even quit sinning in the present.  We cannot pay for our sins or make it up to God in any way.  We stand condemned!  That's the bad news!

BUT  THERE  IS  GOOD  NEWS!

God loved us so much that He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to this earth to live a sinless life and then to shed His blood and die on the cross of Calvary in our place!  Our sin means that we must be judged.  We deserve to die.  But Jesus paid our penalty for us!  He actually suffered our Hell for us!

The Good News is that our sin debt has been paid in full by Jesus Christ!  All we need to do is to accept that payment by faith.  Salvation and the forgiveness of sins is ours through faith in Jesus Christ.  It is a free gift of God's grace! 

"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."  (Romans 6:23)  "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.  (John 3:16) "And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house."  (Acts 16:31)

The good news is that God loves you.  He wants to forgive your sins and give you a home in Heaven, based on the payment that Jesus Christ made when He shed His blood and died on the cross.  Wouldn't you like to accept that free gift and place your faith in Jesus Christ today?

If you have any questions, please call us at the church (440-647-2477) or contact Pastor Alexander at pastor@firstbaptistwellington.org.