Jesus with Apostles

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How to Get to Heaven: Is being a Christian enough?

"I'm a Christian", is a phrase that is loosely said these days. Many people claim Christianity without really knowing what it involves to be a Christian. Many people think that as long as you believe in Jesus, you're a Christian and nothing else is necessary. Well folks, I'm here to expose the falsehood of this belief and how dangerous it actually is. 

"Is being a Christian enough"? This is a tough question that needs to be examined before I can answer. First of all, what is a Christian? Or shall I say, what is a REAL Christian? 

In wikipedia a Christian is defined as; "Noun: A person who has received Christian baptism or is a believer in Jesus Christ and his teachings.

Adjective: Of, relating to, or professing Christianity or its teachings."   


  I must say, this definition is very good actually! What about the bible? Although the bible doesn't exactly define a "Christian", it does tell us exactly what the requirements are to be saved.

In Acts 2:38 Paul tells us, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." 

So from this verse we can point out 2 requirements. 1. Repent, 2. Be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. So if you or someone you know claims to be a Christian, have they repented of their sins? See, repentance is actually misunderstood. Many people think repenting is simply asking for forgiveness of your sins, when in reality what it is is not only asking for forgiveness, but turning from sin!

The original Hebrew term for repentance was "Teshuvah".  Teshuvah means "turning". In scriptures and in ancient Israel the verb "shoov" , "turn", was used in the phrase, "Turn to God".  So when the bible tells us to repent, it's telling us to TURN from our ways, not only to ask for forgiveness. God requires us to turn to Him and to change our minds! The #2 requirement is to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, which is what completes our salvation, and is an outward expression of our commitment to Christ.

So, is believing enough? Nope. In James 2:19 it states that even demons believe...and shudder! To be saved we must repent, be baptized, and continually show obedience. Jesus said in John 14:15, "If you love me, keep my commands". So our obedience, which is linked with repentance, shows that our love for God is genuine! And being obedient is NOT a suggestion, but a requirement. 

Matthew 7:21 says, "Not every one that said to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that does the will of my Father which is in heaven." It's clear from this verse that in order to get to heaven, we must do the will of God. This means being obedient to His commands and to follow the Holy Spirit's instructions. When Jesus was teaching his disciples, someone came to Him and told Him that His mother and brother were asking for Him outside. Jesus said to them, "Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?....whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother."

So how does someone get to heaven? Being genuinely repentant (turning from your ways), being baptized, and being obedient to Christ! Being a Christian is not just a phrase, but a lifestyle. Here's a funny question to think about...If you were taken to court for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you? The way you live and your commitment to God should be something that everyone should be able to notice! :)

God bless!

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Why do People go to Hell?

Why People Go to Hell

Many people ask this question, "why do people go to hell?" and "will I go to hell?". To answer these questions, you have to dig into the bible to see why people go to hell. Before I state why some go to hell, it's important to keep in mind that no one can escape hell just for being "good". Romans 3:23 says, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God". So good works doesn't get you into heaven!

Anyone can do good works, but not have a real relationship with Jesus. There were Pharisees that "displayed" great works, but did not know God.



Gal 2:16; "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified."



So to go to heaven, we must believe in Jesus Christ. But real faith in Jesus will manifest into real love for Jesus, and love for Jesus will manifest into good works. James 2:26; "As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead."

Joh 12:48;  "He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day." So to escape hell we must accept Jesus and his words (the bible). Once we accept Jesus into our hearts we are saved from the devils grip!

We can conquer the grave by simply accepting the free gift of God--His Son Jesus Christ! 

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THE BELOVED

There is something utterly pleasing to the Father when Christ is revealed. It actually goes far beyond not destroying the wicked; it touches His heart in the depths of His nature.
Thus, to satisfy God, we must perceive what the Son presents to the Father in terms of their relationship. Let us, therefore, consider first the weightiness of having Jesus Christ as our mediator with God.
Jesus Christ our mediator with God.
Jesus says that the Father has loved Him from before the foundation of the world (John 17:24). The love that exists between the Father and the Son transcends the boundaries of time. 
Before the ages began or the stars were young; 
before the earth, man or angels were created, the Father and Son have known only love.
Their union within the Trinity is so complete that, though they are two distinct personalities, the Scripture can state with perfect fidelity: The Lord our God is one God.
During His ministry, Jesus spoke frequently of this love between the Father and Himself.
He said, The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand (John 3:35).
Again we read, For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing (John 5:20).
And again, I love the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, even so I do (John 14:31).
In Jesus' first public appearance, this love between Father and Son engulfed the scene at the river Jordan. While Jesus was still in the water,heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came out of heaven, 'Thou art My beloved Son, in Thee I am well-pleased' (Luke 3:21-22).
Do not rush past this phrase, My beloved Son. Jesus is not just a son, or even the Son, He is the Father's beloved Son. 
There is no one like Him. Here, in this incredible, inaugural moment, the Father Himself draws near. Almighty God moves from His throne in the highest heaven until His face is at the edge of our physical world. From eternity the Father speaks to His Son: "In Thee I am well-pleased.
Then, the Almighty turns and repeats the identical thought to John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ: "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased (Matt 3:17).
Note: in both times that He spoke, the Father could not help but express His love for Jesus. In truth, the Father is consumed with love for His Son.
We do not have a human reference to understand the energy, the passion, and the unrestrained oneness that exists between the Father and the Son. We can only stand and watch in awe, and learn of it. It is the essence of heaven; it is the nectar of eternal life.
Beloved . . . in Thee I am well-pleased.
The deep, unfathomable perfection of God, the incomprehensible ethos of the divine nature, knows only pleasure in Jesus. 
The Almighty, who gives to all life, receives life from the Son and is fulfilled to the depth of His being. The Father gazes at His Son and harbors no slight shadow of regret, no lingering wish for someone or something to be done better. 
We behold God on earth satisfying God in heaven: perfect surrender in the embrace of perfect acceptance.
Their relationship is amazing. Yet, add to it the fact that, prior to this encounter, Jesus had not accomplished any miracles; there were no signs or wonders, no vast multitudes. Outwardly, a carpenter named Jesus came, like everyone else, to be baptized. Until that moment, Jesus' life was unremarkable. He was another woodworker.
How was it that, even in the common tasks of an ordinary life, Jesus drew the praise of heaven? At the core of His being, He only did those things which pleased the Father. In everything, He stayed true, heartbeat to heartbeat, with the Father's desires. Jesus lived for God alone; God was enough for Him. Thus, even in its simplicity and moment-to-moment faithfulness, Christ's life was an unending fragrance, a perfect offering of incomparable love to God.
Privately, the unfolding stream of divine passion from the Father for Jesus never abated; the Jordan was but the first public exchange. We see other references as we proceed through the Scriptures. Look at Matthew's account, chapter 12. Christ's public ministry has begun. Listen to how that which was written from eternity past again describes their holy relationship. Many are following and He is healing them all, yet He bids the multitudes to not make Him known.
In order that what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet, might be fulfilled, saying, Behold, My Servant whom I have chosen; My beloved in whom My soul is well-pleased; I will put My Spirit upon Him, and He shall proclaim justice to the Gentiles. -Matt 12:17-18
Listen to the sacred text, the prophetic word chosen to describe the Father and His beloved. God cannot speak of Christ, or even make reference to Him, without calling Him "My beloved in whom My soul is well-pleased."
One day, indeed, we will gaze upon the face of God's beloved and we will know that to see His face is the highest blessedness of heaven.
Again, look in Matthew 17. On the holy mountain Jesus was magnificently transfigured before three of His disciples. His face shone like the sun. His garments became white as light, flashing like lightning. Moses and Elijah appeared, talking with Christ. Into this splendor, Peter nervously presented an idea. While he was still speaking, a radiant cloud formed and then overshadowed the disciples. Out from this living splendor, again, the voice of God was heard:
This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him! -Matt 17:5
The all-knowing, all-wise God, the Creator of heaven and earth, in the only times He has ever spoken audibly to mankind, has said the same thing three times: This is My beloved Son. In all the unlimited creativity of the mind of God, there is nothing more profound, no greater revelation than to say, Listen to Him!
In each occasion that He speaks, the Father returns to glorifying His beloved. We hear this information, we write it down, we think we grasp God's truth; but we do not. We underline but do not understand. Too quickly we seek to move to another insight, but the voice of God brings us back. In the Father's eyes, there is no other truth. We have not genuinely understood who Jesus is, otherwise we would feel as the Father does.
This love within the Godhead is the symphony of the universe. It is what makes heaven heavenly. Even as we are awed by such all-consuming oneness, Jesus asks that each of us, as His disciples, would be included in this holy hymn of heaven. He prays, O righteous Father . . . I have made Thy name known to them, and will make it known; that the love wherewith Thou didst love Me may be in them, and I in them (John 17:25-26).
Jesus prays that the same love, the same overwhelming fulfillment that the Father has in His Son, may also be manifested in us. In other words, God desires that we become as totally consumed with Jesus as is the Father!
What Christ Provides
But this is a book about intercession for America. How, then, does the love between the Father and the Son connect us to America and praying for its need?
To answer that, let me pose this question: What is it, uniquely, that the Father has found in the Son that so fulfills Him? I believe the Son's gift is this: Jesus presents to the Father the opportunity to satisfy His deepest passions and to reveal His highest glory, the nature of which is love.
We see this in Jesus' statement, For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life (John 10:17). The Son presents to the Father reconciliation between heaven and earth. He allows God to be revealed as He truly is: not a harsh judge but a loving Father.
Perhaps it is incomprehensible to us that God could suffer or feel pain, yet Scriptures reveal that the Spirit of God relates in interactive union with this world. In His eternal nature, the Father sees man's end from the beginning. However, in His relationship with mankind's journey through time, the Scriptures are plain, the heart of God is vulnerable to humanity.
In Noah's day, we read that the Lord was grieved in His heart (see Gen 6:3-6). The Psalms revealed that Israel grieved Him in the desert (Ps 78:40). The word grieved meant to worry, pain or anger. We know that, when a sinner repents, there is increased joy among angels (Luke 15:7), but what happens in heaven when God is grieved?
You see, the Lord participated vicariously in the suffering of His people. Indeed, in Judges we are told of a time when He could bear the misery of Israel no longer (Judges 10:16).
Consider: the Spirit of God was not aloof, separated from Israel's condition. Just as the Spirit hovered over the pre-creation world, so He brooded over Israel, being deeply involved, moved to the point of being unable to "bear the misery of Israel" any longer.
Since mankind's fall, there has been a restless longing in the heart of God toward man. Indeed, if we are unreconciled with someone whom we love, do we not also carry heartache until we are restored? By providing atonement for man's sins, Jesus heals the estrangement, the wound, in the Father's heart, and then He extends that healing to man.
Paul explains what Christ has done in his letter to the Colossians. He writes:
And when you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us and which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. -Col 2:13-14
Mankind's unpayable debt is paid; God's incurable wound, healed. Not only do we have peace with God through the sacrifice of Christ, God has peace with us. He is freed from the limitations of justice; now He can remove the penalty of sin through love.
Let us celebrate what Christ has done: The demands of divine wrath, which could not be settled by man, are fully settled by God Himself through Christ. God is longing for reconciliation and healing with humanity. Indeed, Jesus said, The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a certain king who wished to settle accounts (Matt 18:23). This is God's heart, through Christ: He desires to settle accounts with mankind!
As long as we ourselves abide in mercy, the full panorama of divine mercy will remain open and fully active toward mankind's need. When we pray, in Jesus' name, we are coming to the Father with the goal of mercy in mind. The announcement that we have come in Jesus' name signifies we are representatives of Jesus' purpose, which is mercy and not judgment.
Come boldly for mercy!
The Father has never taken pleasure in the death of the wicked. The idea that He has enjoyed destroying sinners is a satanic slander which Christ came to dispel. His attitude toward mankind is exactly the opposite: His joy increases when sinners repent. Because Christ's sacrifice for sin has led to millions who have repented, Jesus has increased inestimably the Father's joy.
Because judgment is now atoned for in Christ, the Father has full freedom to answer every prayer of mercy. He no longer is constrained to decide between judgment and mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment!
The church can come boldly into the throne of God's grace and stand before the mercy seat in prayer for the world around us. This is what Jesus gives to the Father: perfect fulfillment of God's love, perfect fulfillment of His compassion, perfect unveiling of the highest glory of God.
In fact, the very inspiration to intercede is the result of Christ working within us. Every time Christ is revealed through our intercession, wrath is delayed and divine mercy begins searching for the opportunity to triumph. When we pray, God be merciful, we are not merely delaying His wrath; in truth, we are delighting and fulfilling His heart for mercy!
Do you not also feel, increasing in you, the Father's love for Jesus? He brings heaven to earth and bids us to join Him in the redemptive purpose. To cover sin, to not condemn but rather to intercede, is to reveal the nature of Christ. Whenever Christ is revealed, mercy triumphs, and the Father is well-pleased.
Lord Jesus, I desire to join You in bringing pleasure to the Father. Forgive me for my shallowness and indifference. Help me to see in You the pattern of love that never ceased to bring pleasure to the Father. You are the fragrance that pleases God. Come forth in Your mercy, even through me, and make me a source of delight unto the Father. Thank You, Lord, for You are my beloved, too, and in You, I find the river of God's pleasure.

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Jesus with Angels

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Lazy Christians-Is it a Sin to be Lazy?

Newton’s first law of motion states that an object in motion tends to remain in motion, and an object at rest tends to remain at rest. This law applies to people. While some are naturally driven to complete projects, others are apathetic, requiring motivation to overcome inertia! Laziness, a lifestyle for some, is a temptation for all.

The lazy mind thinks, “Just five more minutes on this computer game, and then I’ll do those dishes”, “My boss won’t notice whether or not I do my best work”, “Someone else will do it.” Lazy people spend more time making up excuses than the time it would take to complete a project. Because their greatest concern is their own comfort, they are energy-stealers and time-wasters. After all, being entertained is more exciting than showing hospitality; being in debt is easier than paying the bills; and being overweight is more acceptable than exercising and dieting. They have an aversion to work.

Is work a punishment for sin? No. Although sin’s curse made man’s labor difficult (Genesis 3:23), God designed work for man before the fall (Genesis 2:15). Because the Lord, who is a working God, ordained work for man, laziness is sin.
 

Laziness Described in Proverbs:

A lazy person hates work.

(Proverbs 21:25) “The desire of the lazy man kills him, for his hands refuse to labor.”

A lazy person loves sleep.

(Proverbs 26:14) “As a door turns on its hinges, so does the lazy man on his bed.”

A lazy person gives excuses.

(Proverbs 26:13) “The lazy man says, ‘There is a lion in the road! A fierce lion is in the streets!’”

A lazy person becomes a servant (or debtor).

(Proverbs 12:24) “The hand of the diligent will rule, but the lazy man will be put to forced labor.”

A lazy person strains relationships.

(Proverbs 10:26) “As vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, so is the lazy man to those who send him.”

A lazy person wastes time and energy.

(Proverbs 18:9) “He who is slothful in his work is a brother to him who is a great waster.”

A lazy person overlooks creation’s example.

(Proverbs 6:6) “Go to the ant, you sluggard! Consider her ways and be wise.”

A lazy person believes he is wise.

(Proverbs 26:16) “The lazy man is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who can answer sensibly.”

A lazy person seeks comfort.

(Proverbs 20:4) “The lazy man will not plow because of winter; he will beg during harvest and have nothing.”

A lazy person may come to poverty.

(Proverbs 13:4) “The soul of the lazy man desires and has nothing; but the soul of the diligent shall be made rich.”

Laziness and the Christian:

A new believer is truthfully taught that “by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9). But a believer can become idle if he erroneously believes that God expects no fruit from a transformed life. “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10). Slothfulness violates God’s purpose – good works. The Lord, however, empowers Christians to overcome the flesh’s propensity to laziness.

Christians are a new creation.

(Ephesians 4:28) “Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need.”

Christians show their faith by their works.

(James 2:18, 26) “. . . I will show you my faith by my works. . . . For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.”

Christians are workers with God.

(1 Corinthians 3:9a) “For we are God’s fellow workers.”

Christians will reap reward for well-doing.

(Galatians 6:9-10) “And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.”

(Colossians 3:23-24) “And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.”

Christians’ labors of love are remembered by God.

(Hebrews 6:10) “For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name. . . .”

Christians should discipline the lazy.

(2 Thessalonians 3:10-15) “. . . If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat. For we hear that there are some who walk among you in a disorderly manner, not working at all, but are busybodies. Now those who are such we command and exhort through our Lord Jesus Christ that they work in quietness and eat their own bread. But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary in doing good. And if anyone does not obey our word in this epistle, note that person and do not keep company with him, that he may be ashamed. Yet do not count him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.”

Christians should work to meet basic needs.

(Acts 20:34-35) “Yes, you yourselves know that these hands have provided for my necessities, and for those who were with me. I have shown you in every way, by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”

Christians should provide for their own household.

(1 Timothy 5:8) “But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”

Christians should labor in God’s strength to evangelize and disciple.

(Colossians 1:28-29) “[Christ] we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. To this end I also labor, striving according to His working which works in me mightily.”

Because God ordained work for man, laziness is sin. Even in heaven, Christians’ service to Him will continue, although no longer encumbered by the curse (Revelation 22:3). Free from sickness, sorrow, and sin – even laziness – the saints will glorify the Lord forever. “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 15:58).

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What Is The Gospel?

"Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the Gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; by which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures" (1 Cor.15:1-4) 
It might seem almost a work of supererogation to answer a question like this. We hear the word, "Gospel" used so many times. People talk of this and of that as being "as true as the Gospel," and I often wonder what they really mean by it.
First I should like to indicate what it is not.
THE GOSPEL IS: Not The Bible
In the first place, the Gospel is not the Bible. Often when I inquire, "What do you think the Gospel is?" people reply, "Why, it is the Bible, and the Bible is the Word of God." Undoubtedly the Bible is the Word of God, but there is a great deal in that Book that is not Gospel. 
"The wicked shall be turned into Hell with all the nations that forget God." That is in the Bible, and it is terribly true; but it is not Gospel. 
"It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." That is in the Bible, but it is not the Gospel. 
Our English word, "gospel" just means the "good spell," and the word "spell," is the old Anglo-Saxon word for, "tidings", the good tidings, the good news. The original word translated. "Gospel," which we have taken over into the English with little alteration is the word, "evangel," and it has the same meaning, the good news. The Gospel is God's good news for sinners. The Bible contains the Gospel, but there is a great deal in the Bible which is not Gospel.
THE GOSPEL IS: Not The Commandments
The Gospel is not just any message from God telling man how he should behave. "What is the Gospel?" I asked a man this question some time ago, and he answered, "Why I should say it is the Ten Commandments and the Sermon on the Mount, and I think if a man lives up to them he is all right." Well, I fancy he would be; but did you ever know anybody who lived up to them? The Sermon on the Mount demands a righteousness which no unregenerate man has been able to produce. The law is not the Gospel; it is the very antitheses of the Gospel. In fact, the law was given by God to show men their need of the Gospel . 
"The law," says the Apostle Paul, speaking as a Jewish convert, "was our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ. But after that Christ is come we are no longer under the schoolmaster." 
Not Repentance
The Gospel is not a call to repentance, or to amendment of our ways, to make restitution for past sins, or to promise to do better in the future. These things are proper in their place, but they do not constitute the Gospel; for the Gospel is not good advice to be obeyed, it is good news to be believed. Do not make the mistake then of thinking that the Gospel is a call to duty or a call to reformation, a call to better your condition, to behave yourself in a more perfect way than you have been doing in the past.
THE GOSPEL IS: Not Giving Up The World
Nor is the Gospel a demand that you give up the world, that you give up your sins, that you break off bad habits, and try to cultivate good ones. You may do all these things, and yet never believe the Gospel and consequently never be saved at all. 
THERE ARE SEVEN DESIGNATIONS OF THE GOSPEL in the New Testament, but over and above all these, let me draw your attention to the fact that when this blessed message is mentioned, it is invariably accompanied by the definite article. Over and over and over again in the New Testament we read of the Gospel. It is the Gospel not a Gospel. People tell us there are a great many different Gospels; but there is only ONE. When certain teachers came to the Galatians and tried to turn them away from the simplicity that was in Christ Jesus by teaching "another Gospel, "the apostle said that it was a different gospel, but not another; for there is none other than the Gospel. It is downright exclusive; it is God's revelation to sinful man. 
Not Comparative Religion
The scholars of this world talk of the Science of Comparative Religions, and it is very popular now-a-days to say, "We cannot any longer go to heathen nations and preach to them as in the days gone by, because we are learning that their religions are just as good as ours, and the thing to do now is to share with them, to study the different religions, take the good out of them all, and in this way lead the world into a sense of brotherhood and unity." 
So in our great universities and colleges men study this Science of Comparative Religions, and they compare all these different religious systems one with another. There is a Science of Comparative Religions, but the Gospel is not one of them. All the different religions in the world may well be studied comparatively, for at rock bottom they are all alike; they all set men at trying to earn his own salvation. They may be called by different names, and the things that men are called to do maybe different in each case, but they all set men trying to save their own souls and earn their way into the favour of God. In this they stand in vivid contrast with the Gospel, for the Gospel is that glorious message that tells us what God has done for us in order that guilty sinners maybe saved.
THE SEVEN DESIGNATIONS OF THIS GOSPEL ARE CALLED
1. The Gospel Of The Kingdom,
and when I use that term I am not thinking particularly of any dispensational application, but of this blessed truth that it is only through believing the Gospel that men are born into the Kingdom of God; We sing: "A ruler once came to Jesus by night, To ask Him the way of salvation and light; The Master made answer in words true and plain, 'ye must be born again.' " But neither Nicodemus , nor you, nor I, could ever bring this about ourselves. We had nothing to with our first birth, and can have nothing to do with our second birth. It must be the work of God, and it is wrought through the Gospel. That is why the Gospel is called the Gospel of the Kingdom, for, "Except a man be born again he cannot see the Kingdom of God" (John 3:3,7). "Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth forever. . . And this is the word which by the Gospel is preached unto you" (1 Peter 1:23-25. Every where that Paul and his companion apostles went they preached the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, and they showed that the only way to get into that Kingdom was by a second birth, and that the only way whereby the second birth could be brought about was through believing the Gospel. It is the Gospel of the Kingdom.
It also called
2. The Gospel Of God,
because God is the source of it, and it is altogether of Himself. No man ever thought of a Gospel like this. The very fact that all the religions of the world set man to try to work for his own salvation indicates the fact that no man would ever have dreamed of such a Gospel as that which is revealed in this Book. It came from the heart of God; it was God who "so loved the world that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." "In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He first loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins" (1 John 4:9,10). And because it is the Gospel of God, God is very jealous of it. He wants it kept pure. He does not want it mixed with any of man's theories or laws; He does not want it mixed up with religious ordinances or anything of that kind. The Gospel is God's own pure message to sinful man. God grant that you and I may receive it as in very truth the Gospel of God.
And then it is called
3. The Gospel Of His Son
Not merely because the Son went everywhere preaching the Gospel, but because He is the theme of it. "When it pleased God," says the apostle, "who called me by His grace, to reveal His Son in me that I might preach Him among the nations; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood" (Gal. 1:15,16). "We preach Christ crucified . . . the power of God, and the wisdom of God" (1 Cor. 1:23,24). No man preaches the Gospel who is not exalting the Lord Jesus. It is God's wonderful message about His Son. How often I have gone to meetings where they told me I would hear the Gospel, and instead of that I have heard some bewildered preacher talk to a bewildered audience about everything and anything, but the Lord Jesus Christ. The Gospel has to do with nothing else but Christ. It is the Gospel of God's Son. And so, linked with this it is called 
4. The Gospel Of Christ 
The Apostle Peter preaching on the day of Pentecost of the risen Saviour, says, "God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ." And He speaks of Him as the anointed One, exalted at God's right hand. The Gospel is the Gospel of the Risen Christ. There would be no Gospel for sinners if Christ had not been raised. So the apostle says, "If Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins" (1 Cor. 15:17). A great New York preacher, great in his impertinence, at least, said some years ago, preaching a so-called Easter sermon, "The body of Jesus still sleeps in a Syrian tomb, but His soul goes marching on.: That is not the Gospel of Christ. We are not preaching the Gospel of a dead Christ, but of a living Christ who sits exalted at the Father's right hand, and is living to save all who put their trust in Him. That is why those of us who really know the Gospel never have any crucifixes around our churches or in our homes. The crucifix represents a dead Christ hanging languid on a cross of shame. But we are not pointing men to a dead Christ; we are preaching a living Christ. He lives exalted at God's right had, and He "saves to the uttermost all who come to God by Him."
The Gospel is also called
5. The Gospel Of The Grace Of God,
because it leaves no room whatever for human merit. It just brushes away all man's pretension to any goodness, to any desert excepting judgment. It is the Gospel of grace, and grace is God's free unmerited favour to those who have merited the very opposite. It is as opposite to works as oil is to water." If by grace," says the Spirit of God, "then it is no more works. . . but if it be of works, then is it no more grace" (Rom.11:6). People say, :But you must have both." I have heard it put like this: there was a boatman and two theologians in a boat, and one was arguing that salvation was by faith and the other by works. The boatman listened, and then said, "Let me tell you how it looks to me. Suppose I call this oar Faith and this one Works. If I pull on this one, the boat goes around; if I pull on this other one, it goes around the other way, but if I pull on both oars, I get you across the river." I have heard many preachers use that illustration to prove that we are saved by faith and works. That might do if we were going to Heaven in a rowboat, but we are not. We are carried on the shoulders of the Shepherd, who came seeking lost sheep When He finds them He carries them home on His shoulders. But there are some other names used. It is called 
6. The Gospel Of The Glory Of God 
I love that name. It is the Gospel of the Glory of God because it comes from the place where our Lord Jesus has entered. The veil has been rent, and now the glory shines out; and whenever this Gospel is proclaimed, it tells of a way into the glory for sinful man, a way to come before the Mercy Seat purged from every stain. It is the Gospel of the Glory of God, because, until Christ had entered into the Glory, it could not be preached in its fullness, but, after the glory received Him, then the message went out to a lost world.
It is also called 
7. The Everlasting Gospel
because it will never be superseded by another. No other ever went before it, and no other shall ever come after it. One of the professors of the University of Chicago wrote a book a few years ago in which he tried to point out that some of these days Jesus would be superseded by a greater teacher; then He and the Gospel that He taught would have to give way to a message which would be more suited to the intelligence of the cultivated men of the later centuries. No, no, were it possible for this world to go on a million years, it would never need any other Gospel than this preached by the Apostle Paul and confirmed with signs following; the Gospel which, throughout the centuries has been saving guilty sinners.

THE GOSPEL DECLARED
What then is the content of this Gospel? We are told right here, "I declare unto you the Gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; by which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain." There is such a thing as merely believing with the intelligence and crediting some doctrine with the mind when the heart has not been reached. But wherever men believe this Gospel in real faith, they are saved through the message. What is it that brings this wonderful result? It is a simple story, and yet how rich, how full. "I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received." I think his heart must have been stirred as he wrote those words, for he went back in memory to nearly thirty years before, and thought of that day when hurrying down the Damascus turnpike, with his heart filled with hatred toward the Lord Jesus Christ and His people, he was thrown to the ground, and a light shone, and he heard a voice saying, "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?" And he cried, "Who art thou Lord?" And the voice said, "I am Jesus whom thou persecutest." And that day Saul learned the Gospel; he learned that He who died on the Cross had been raised from the dead, and that He was living in the Glory. At that moment his soul was saved, and Saul of Tarsus was changed to Paul the Apostle. And now he says, "I am going to tell you what I have received; it is a real thing with me, and I know it will work the same wonderful change in you. If you will believe it. "First of all, "That Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures." Then, "that He was buried." Then, "that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures." The Gospel was no new thing in God's mind. It had been predicted throughout the Old Testament times. Every time the coming Saviour was mentioned, there was proclamation of the Gospel. It began in Eden when the Lord said, "The seed of the woman shall bruise thy head." It was typified in every sacrifice that was offered. It was portrayed in the wonderful Tabernacle, and later in the Temple. We have it in the proclamation of Isaiah, "He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement of our peace was upon Him: and with His stripes we are healed." It was preached by Jeremiah when he said, "This is His Name whereby He shall be called, the Lord our Righteousness" (Jer.23:6). It was declared by Zechariah when he exclaimed, "Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones: (Zech.13:7) All through those Old Testament dispensations, the Gospel was predicted, and when Jesus came, the Gospel came with Him. When He died, when He was buried, and when He rose again, the Gospel could be fully told out to a poor lost world. Observe, it says, "that Christ died for our sins." No man preaches the Gospel, no matter what nice things he may say about Jesus, if he leaves out His vicarious death on Calvary's cross.
CHRIST'S DEATH - NOT HIS LIFE
I was preaching in a church in Virginia, and a minister prayed, "Lord, grant Thy blessing as the Word is preached tonight. May it be the means of causing people to fall in love with the Christ-life, that they may begin to live the Christ-life." I felt like saying, "Brother, sit down; don't insult God like that;" but then I felt I had to be courteous, and I knew that my turn would come, when I could get up and give them the truth. The Gospel is not asking men to live the Christ-life. If your salvation depends upon your doing that, your are just as good as checked for Hell, for you never can live it in yourself. It is utterly impossible. But the very first message of the Gospel is the story of the vicarious atonement of Christ. He did not come to tell men how to live in order that they might save themselves; He did not come to save men by living His beautiful life. That, apart from His death, would never have saved one poor sinner. He came to die; He "was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death." Christ Jesus gave Himself a ransom for all. When He instituted the Lord's Supper He said, "Take, eat: this is My body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of Me. . . This cup is the new covenant in My Blood" (1 Cor. 11:24,25) There is no Gospel if the vicarious death of Jesus is left out, and there is no other way whereby you can be saved than through the death of the blessed spotless Son of God. 
Someone says, "But I do not understand it." That is a terrible confession to make, for "If our Gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: (2 Cor. 4:3). If you do not see that there is no other way of salvation for you, save through the death of the Lord Jesus, then that just tells the sad story that you are among the lost. You are not merely in danger of being lost in the Day of Judgment; but you are lost now. But, thank God, "the Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost," and seeking the lost He went to the cross. "None of the ransomed ever know How deep were the waters crossed; Nor how dark was the night that the Lord passed through, Ere He found the sheep that was lost."
THE NECESSITY OF DEATH
HE HAD TO DIE, to go down into the dark waters of death, that you might be saved. Can you think of any ingratitude more base than that of a man or woman who passes by the life offered by the Saviour who died on the Cross for them? Jesus died for you, and can it be that you have never even trusted Him, never even come to Him and told Him you were a poor, lost, ruined, guilty sinner; but since He died for you, you would take Him as your Saviour? HIS DEATH WAS REAL. He was buried three days in the tomb. He died, He was buried, and that was God's witness that it was not a merely pretended death, but He, the Lord of life, had to go down into death. He was held by the bars of death for those three days and nights, until God's appointed time had come. Then, "Death could not keep its prey, He tore the bars away." And so the third point of the Gospel is this, "He was raised again the third day according to the Scriptures. "That is the Gospel, and nothing can be added to that. Some people say, "Well, but must I repent?" Yes, you may well repent, but that is not the Gospel. "Must I not be baptised?" If you are a Christian, you ought to be baptised, but baptism is not the Gospel. Paul said, "Christ sent me not to baptise, but to preach the Gospel" (1 Cor. !:17) He did baptise people, but he did not consider that was the Gospel, and the Gospel was the great message that he was sent to carry to the world. This is all there is to it. "Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and was buried, and rose again the third day according to the Scriptures."
THE GOSPEL ACCEPTED
Look at the result of believing the Gospel. Go back to verse two, "By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain." That is, if you believe the Gospel, you are saved; if you believe that Christ died for your sins, that He was buried, and that He rose again, God says you are saved. Do you believe it? No man ever believed that except by the Holy Ghost. It is the Spirit of God that overcomes the natural unbelief of the human heart and enables a man to put his trust in that message. And this is not mere intellectual credence, but it is that one comes to the place where he is ready to stake his whole eternity on the fact that Christ died, and was buried, and rose again. When Jesus said, "IT IS FINISHED" the work of salvation was completed. A dear saint was dying, and looking up he said, "It is finished; on that I can cast my eternity." Upon a life I did not live, Upon a death I did not die; Another's life, another's death, Is take my whole eternity." Can you say that, and say it in faith?
THE GOSPEL ACCEPTED
What about the man who does not believe the Gospel? The Lord Jesus said to His disciples, "Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptised shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned" (Mark 16:15,16). He that believeth not shall be devoted to judgment, condemned, lost. So you see, God has shut us up to the Gospel. Have you believed it? Have you put your trust in it; is it the confidence of your soul? Or have you been trusting in something else? If you have been resting in anything short of the Christ who died, who was buried, who rose again, I plead with you, turn from every other fancied refuge, and flee to Christ today. Repent ye, and believe the Gospel. 
"O, do not let the word depart, And close thine eyes against the light; Poor sinner, harden not thy heart, Be saved, O tonight."
by Dr. Harry Ironside.

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