Post by disciple on Dec 3, 2011 14:23:15 GMT -5
What is the Gospel?
c. 2—God the Righteous Creator
Assumptions about God
o In the USA, it used to be that even if people weren’t Christians, they still had a basic understanding of the Bible’s teaching about God and His character. That’s often not true anymore.
o If we are going to proclaim the gospel today, we have to start at the very beginning—God Himself
o You don’t have to know everything about God to faithfully present the gospel, but there are a few basic truths a person must understand in order to grasp the good news
God the Creator
o The beginning and starting point of the Christian message: “God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1).
- Made through His spoken word
- Made from nothing
- Testifies to God’s glory and power (Psa. 19:1, Rom. 1:20)
- Creation story expands in scope and importance with each day (Gen. 1:26-27)
o The truth that the world itself is not ultimate but was created by Someone Else is a revolutionary idea
- Means that everything in the universe has a purpose, including us
- Means that human life has both meaning and responsibility
- Means that God has the right to tell us how to live (Gen. 2:16-17)—God is good and knows what’s best for us, gives us laws that increase our happiness and well-being
o The gospel is God’s response to sin, and sin is a person’s rejection of God’s rights over him/her as Creator. The fundamental truth of human existence is that God created us and therefore owns us.
God the Holy and Righteous One
o Ex. 34:6-7: When God wants to tell us His Name and show us His glory, He says that He loves and is compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. Also, He does not leave the guilty unpunished.
o Many people think that God would never judge sin or punish wickedness, but God’s love does not cancel out His justice and righteousness (Hab. 1:13)
- Scriptures: Psa. 11:7, 33:5, 89:14, 97:2
- No one truly wants a God who hides from sin rather than confronting and destroying it. We all want a God who deals with “horrific evil,” but we don’t want a God who deals with OUR evil.
o To understand how glorious and life-giving the gospel is, we have to understand that this loving and compassionate God is also holy and righteous and that He is determined to never overlook sin—including our own
c. 2—God the Righteous Creator
Assumptions about God
o In the USA, it used to be that even if people weren’t Christians, they still had a basic understanding of the Bible’s teaching about God and His character. That’s often not true anymore.
o If we are going to proclaim the gospel today, we have to start at the very beginning—God Himself
o You don’t have to know everything about God to faithfully present the gospel, but there are a few basic truths a person must understand in order to grasp the good news
God the Creator
o The beginning and starting point of the Christian message: “God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1).
- Made through His spoken word
- Made from nothing
- Testifies to God’s glory and power (Psa. 19:1, Rom. 1:20)
- Creation story expands in scope and importance with each day (Gen. 1:26-27)
o The truth that the world itself is not ultimate but was created by Someone Else is a revolutionary idea
- Means that everything in the universe has a purpose, including us
- Means that human life has both meaning and responsibility
- Means that God has the right to tell us how to live (Gen. 2:16-17)—God is good and knows what’s best for us, gives us laws that increase our happiness and well-being
o The gospel is God’s response to sin, and sin is a person’s rejection of God’s rights over him/her as Creator. The fundamental truth of human existence is that God created us and therefore owns us.
God the Holy and Righteous One
o Ex. 34:6-7: When God wants to tell us His Name and show us His glory, He says that He loves and is compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. Also, He does not leave the guilty unpunished.
o Many people think that God would never judge sin or punish wickedness, but God’s love does not cancel out His justice and righteousness (Hab. 1:13)
- Scriptures: Psa. 11:7, 33:5, 89:14, 97:2
- No one truly wants a God who hides from sin rather than confronting and destroying it. We all want a God who deals with “horrific evil,” but we don’t want a God who deals with OUR evil.
o To understand how glorious and life-giving the gospel is, we have to understand that this loving and compassionate God is also holy and righteous and that He is determined to never overlook sin—including our own