I have some really good news that I would like to share – and this good news is for you!
It seems like we are constantly facing bad news, in the world and in our own personal lives - whether it’s fears, questions, wounds that need healing, emptiness, guilt, the need for love or hope or something else. Bad news is everywhere.
The good news is that there is a Person, Jesus, who can do for us what nothing else can do and what we can’t even do for ourselves. When Jesus was born, an angel announced that he was bringing “good news of great joy which will be to all people” (Luke 2:10).
In Romans 6:23, the Bible, God’s Word, has a simple summary of this good news. It begins with some bad news - “The wages of sin is death.” The good news is really good because the bad news is really bad. “The wages of sin is death.” Sin is any failure to live as God commands. And we all choose to sin – everyone, going back to the very first humans. So, it is in our nature to sin, passed on to us since the first humans. So, it is actually in our nature. There are no exceptions. In Romans 3:23, the Bible says, “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
God is just and holy. He doesn’t tolerate sin, and He must punish it. Just like this verse says, He will pay the wages – which means that there is a penalty for our sins. That penalty is death. The Bible describes 3 kinds of death – physical death, when our life on earth ends; spiritual death, which means that our relationship with God is broken; and eternal death, which means separation from God forever in a place of torment. Because we sin, we will face physical death, spiritual death, and eternal death.
If we’re honest with ourselves, we will admit that we are guilty of sin. If we’re honest with what God says about our sin, we will understand how serious it is to God and that we have punishment coming – judgment we deserve. This leaves us sober, and if it stopped there, we would be hopeless.
But the good news comes next: “But the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” I like the word “but” - The bad news is really bad, but that’s not the end of the story. The good news is really good. God is offering us a gift – something we can’t earn or deserve, because in addition to being just and holy, He is also loving and gracious.
The gift is eternal life – instead of death that we deserve, life that He gives as a gift – the forgiveness of our sins, the restoration of our relationship with God, the privilege of being His children. It begins in life and lasts forever, even after we die physically. He offers this in Christ Jesus our Lord – the Person that the angel so joyfully announced. Eternal life is not available through our good works, religion, any other person, or any other source. It is available only in Jesus.
The name Jesus means Savior, deliverer. That’s what He came to earth to do - to save us from our sin. He died in our place, took the punishment we deserve for our sin. But after He died, He rose from the dead, demonstrating that He has power over sin and death and that His sacrifice was acceptable to God. He is alive and able to save those trust His death to pay for their sin. Either we must pay for our sin, or we can trust that Jesus already paid for it.
Turn from your sin. That just means admitting that you are wrong and that your sin is serious. Then turn to Jesus. Seek His forgiveness, and trust that what He did on the cross was for you and He will forgive you completely and forever. This is what is called repentance. If you believe this, tell Him. The Bible says, “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Romans 10:13).
The good news is that you can do this, even right now. You can know that you have an eternal life with God. It is the beginning of a new life. Won’t you receive this free gift by faith right now? If you have questions or we can be of help to you at all, please reach out to us.
Click HERE for the stories of people who have received this wonderful gift and how the good news has affected their lives. They have come from different places in life, with different needs, but they have found the good news about Jesus to be the best news they have ever heard.