Daily Devotions
July 19th, 2016 by Pastor SolleyNum 2:1-2 And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,
2 Every man of the children of Israel shall pitch by his own standard, with the ensign of their father’s house: far off about the tabernacle of the congregation shall they pitch.
KJV
Another standard that needs protecting is the gospel message. The word gospel means good news and the gospel message is the good news about salvation, about a way being made for sinful man to enter into heaven and the presence of our holy God. But what is the gospel message, what is that way to heaven? Is there one way, or many to have our sin forgiven? The Bible proclaims one way to heaven, one way to have our sins forgiven.
(John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.) And the Bible proclaims one way to come to Jesus Christ. (Acts 20:21 Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.) Man, sinful man, must acknowledge his or her sin to God, confess and repent, turn from that sin and to Jesus Christ for the free pardon of sin and eternal life. That life is granted to all who repent and call out to Jesus and that invitation is open to all. (2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.) Man has perverted this simple gospel message just as he ahs the Word of God. Today people think they can hope their way to heaven, work their way to heaven, that a church can take them there, and even that all go to heaven because God loves all. None of those things are true. Neither is the notion that God doesn’t want some to be saved. It is a simple message, believe, confess, repent, come to Jesus Christ. But ask people today if they know for sure they are going to heaven and when they say yes ask them why and you will see how the gospel has been perverted. We need the simple message, unchanged, to be proclaimed in this world of sin.