December 2 The Gospel

Luke 9:26 “If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.”
 
I have been reading a book called “Firefall 2.0: How God Has Shaped History Through Revivals”. The authors review world history though the many times God acted to revive his people from sin’s death into a true living relationship with God. The authors define revival is defined to be God’s act to suddenly infuse his divine life into our lives, to make us alive in Jesus’ atoning sacrifice on the cross. This book also reveals the one sure-”fire” method that ignites revival. That method is: “Preach the Gospel”.
   One of the great times of revival in history is what is called the Reformation. God used many preachers to re-form his church that had been broken under “religious rules” and false teachings. Note this reason for the reformation, which began in 1517: “The power of the spoken word was evidenced in all of the reformers. When the proclamation of the gospel was once again the focal point of worship, the Holy Spirit anointed their preaching and moved with power within the hearts of the people. Through preaching, (the gospel) changed the church in Europe and left a legacy for other preachers to follow.”
   The authors also write, “Christians believe in the Bible as the Word of God. The gospel –– the good news through the life, substitutionary death, and resurrection of Jesus –– is the point of all of life. We believe the Bible is not merely a book about morality; but is primarily about reality. The gospel is one great Story in all of Scripture, one all-encompassing story that makes sense of the entire Bible and all of life.”
   Do you believe this? Each recorded revival since Pentecost began with faithful preaching – not the right music, the right liturgy, the right sermon length, the right denomination, etc. In many times, the false church persecuted the true preachers. When the preaching died, the revivals died.
   Are you eager to preach – to share, to teach, to tell, to live – the gospel? Or are you ashamed of the gospel? Perhaps you feel bashful or judgmental, even ashamed to tell people, “You are sinning. Repent.” Do you believe in the gospel enough to say to your neighbor, “You need a Savior.” Are you possibly reluctant, even ashamed to say, “Call on the name of Jesus and you will be saved.”
   If so, we must pray for a revival in our hearts. These words are the gospel. Spoken with love, lived in grace, shared with integrity, the gospel is the only message that will revive souls to eternal life.
   Are your church pews empty? Then preach the gospel. Is your neighborhood broken? Then preach the gospel. Is your family wayward? Then preach the gospel. Families, culture and churches need to hear of sin and God’s amazing grace, love and mercy to redeem the sin through Jesus. Christians, we must say it. Otherwise, how can there be any hope to be saved? Why do we waste time to ask the culture, “What do you want?” so they “feel comfortable” in church? Guess what, feeling comfortable will never cause anyone to feel their need for a Savior. This is not God’s method of preaching salvation. How can it be ours?
   As Christ-followers, then, we are to love people with the good news. Jesus plainly said his judgment is on those who are ashamed of him. We in the church have been prone to ask, “What would Jesus do?” to focus on his love, forgiveness and mercy. But let’s stop and consider the first thing Jesus did do. He preached the gospel. (Go again to Luke 4:18-19.)
   The gospel is the message that transforms sinners to God. The gospel is also the message that draws the saved closer to God. The gospel is God’s love made personal and life-giving through Jesus to go into God’s glory: 2 Corinthians 3:18 And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
   Where else would we want to be?
 
Prayer: Open my mouth, Holy Spirit, to preach of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. Amen.