Last week I was able to listen to someone talk about his faith and it was just what I needed to hear. His faith was not from a book, it was not handed down or passed along. He did not simply hear about it and accept it as true. He EXPERIENCED Jesus, and developed his faith. It was his own. That's the only kind of faith that makes sense.
When I seek God, I find Him!
I find the King of Kings, the all powerful, true, loving Father. The real, true and available Jesus. He came so that I could have fullness of life. He came not to condemn, but to love. His kingdom promises peace, love, joy and goodness. His love encompasses ALL.
THAT IS GOOD NEWS.
If I do not personally grasp why the gospel (the message of Jesus) is GOOD NEWS, I will never understand how to share it with others, nor will I ever believe that it's worth sharing.
Is it "good news" that there is God and He wants us all to belong to a certain "club" and if we don't join that club, He will personally use his infinite power to throw us into a physical lake of fire and watch us burn in torment for all eternity? Um, what is good about that?
I guess it's good for those who have joined the club and have agreed to the membership criteria (comprehend and agree with enough of the theology to be considered "in" and not "out").
What if the good news is that Jesus is the light of the world (John 1;4-5) and that He came so that we could have life to the full (John 10:10) and that He wants us to come to him like children - full of wonder and questions, embracing mystery instead of demanding intellectual understanding (Mark 10:15).
What if Jesus offers the kingdom of heaven to all of us right now, not after we die (Matthew 4:17)? And what if he promises blessings for the poor in spirit, the grieving, the meek, the persecuted (Matthew 5:3-10)?
And what if His love can't be earned because it's a free gift he wants us to simply accept (Eph 1;6-10)?
And what if he gets angry with those who claim to earn his free gift, accusing them of being hypocrites and of seeking honor among men (Matthew 6)?
And what if Jesus is the full revelation of God (John 14:6-9, John 10:30, Col 1;15) which means that all revelations of God (scripture, holy spirit, spoken words) could be viewed through the lens of Jesus and his character and truth?
And what if many things remain a mystery to us, because we are not God and our minds and imaginations remain limited (Col 4:3)
What if, when we are questioned about our faith in Jesus, we could confidently answer "I don't know" when we Don't Know!?
And what if our true measure of faith is not certainty that we have access to absolute truth and can win any argument, and answer any question, but that we are sure of what we hope for (Heb 11:1)?
Jesus is GOOD NEWS.
Jesus asked that his disciples would make more disciples by sharing the good news.
We can only share something if we have it to share.
If we walk around thinking we need to have all of the answers, then we fear we may not be able to share because someone else might out wit or out question us.
That's true.
Because Jesus didn't ask us to go out and make converts to our way of thinking. He did ask us to go and make disciples. And Peter did suggest that we always be prepared to give an account for the reason for the hope that we have (1Peter 3:15).
How can we give the reason for our hope?
We need to HAVE it to SHARE it.
Jesus is GOOD NEWS and I have no shame in sharing that! He is the reason for the hope that I have, and why would I ever shy away from sharing the reason for my hope?
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