Paul, an apostle of Jesus - "....Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners - of who I AM the worst." 1 Timothy 1:15
John Newton, former slave trader - "I AM a great sinner and
Christ is a great Savior."
Christ is a great Savior."
Do you notice the common word in both statements? Both of these men spoke of themselves as sinners in the present tense. Just like the Apostle Paul and John Newton, we are sinners in the present tense and to make progress in our spiritual life, we must realize we are practicing sinners. So now what do we do with that realization?
We need to take a good look at the gospel. The gospel is for sinners so that means it's for everyone. So what does the gospel do?
"All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work."
2 Timothy 3:16-17
The gospel
- opens our hearts so we can see our sin.
- frees us to face our sin. We can't deal with a particular sin until we first openly acknowledge its presence in our lives. To openly acknowledge sin, we must have the assurance that our sin is forgiven. The gospel gives us that assurance.
- motivates and energizes us to deal with our sin. We can know God is FOR us, not against us. We are not alone in the struggle against sin. We are cleansed, forgiven, and secure. These facts should bring about such extreme gratitude that we desire to deal with sin.
- provides instruction in righteousness. Personalize the gospel - apply specific Scriptures to our individual circumstances and specific Scriptures that assure us of God's forgiveness.
The only basis for God's forgiveness is the blood of Christ shed on the cross for us. This is the first part of the good news of the gospel. God has forgiven us all our sins through the death of His Son on the cross - we are cleansed of sin's guilt. Next week, we'll look at the second part of the good news of the gospel - cleansed from sin's power.
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