A Gospel that Saves

A Gospel that Saves 2021 10 17

John 3:3 – 19  

I knew a man who used to ask everyone he me, “Are you saved?”  I won’t say that’s the very best way to start a conversation with someone you just meet, but it certainly isn’t the worst!  In many cases, that might be the beginning and the end of the conversation.  But it is a very important question.  Are you saved?  What does that mean?  A better question that more people would understand might be, “If you died in the next moment, would you go to heaven?”  Now there’s a conversation starter!  Nearly everybody, if they are honest, wants to go to heaven.  But most have the wrong idea about how to get to heaven, so they reject it with great prejudice.

John 3:3 – 19

Notice what the Word of God says.  It doesn’t say, “Whosoever goes to church on Sunday,” or “Whosoever never has any fun and goes about with a long face all the time”, or even “Whosoever stops sinning.” In fact, Jesus in his discourse doesn’t even mention sin. That is because the whole issue of who goes to heaven and who does not is not about whether someone is a sinner or not.  Everyone is!  The Bible says, “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23. The truth, that everyone needs to know, is that Jesus Christ took care of our sin problem 100%.  He didn’t just die for a select few.  He dies to pay for the sins of the whole world, for all time.  “And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.” 1 John 2:2.  Jesus truly paid it all.  Everyone can go to heaven.  The problem is not in how to get into heaven.  The problem is that so many are looking for another way in.

I. The Ignorance of Religion

  1. So many are practicing some form of religion in the hopes of one day ending up in some kind of paradise or heaven.
  2. Many teachers and even so-called Christian preachers are teaching some way of performance that is necessary.
    1. Much is taught about the need to turn away from sin in order to go to heaven.
    2. But Jesus chided the religious teachers for not even knowing what they were talking about.

II. You Must be Born Again

  1. I’ve heard a lot of people joke about what they call “those born-agains.” But it really is no joke.  Jesus said you must be born again to enter the kingdom of God, or heaven.
    1. Jesus did not say you must not sin if you want to go to heaven.
    2. He didn’t say you have to pray a prayer or go to church to go to heaven.
    3. Jesus said you must be born again.
    4. Moreover, He said you cannot enter heaven unless you have been born again!

III. It’s Not All About Sin

  1. Sin IS a problem. The Bible says that all have sinned.  It goes on to say in Romans 6:23 that the wages, or penalty, for sin is death.  That means eternal separation from God and that IS in a place called hell and hell is thrown into the lake of fire along with everyone in it at the end of time.  All who are in hell will suffer in total darkness for eternity.
    1. You simply cannot pay for your own sins, not even for one. The monstrous offence against your loving and eternal Creator is too great.
      1. Sin is not simply doing something wrong.
      2. Sin is a rejection of God, which is like pushing off away from Him into an infinite, dark, and gravity-free vacuum, like some of the science fiction movies you may have seen. There is no way back by yourself.  You just keep on moving away from God from the moment you first sin.  That is the very definition of death.
    2. But it’s not all about sin. It’s about whether you’ve been born again or not.
        1. Those are not my words. Those are the words of our Saviour, Himself.  “Ye must be born again.”

IV. Spiritually Dead

  1. Every human being is a spiritual creature. That is what makes us different from all other creatures.
    1. But because of our sin nature, which we are all born with, we naturally sin. The moment we first sin, our spirit dies.  It does not cease to exist.  It, we, are separated from God, which is the definition of death.
      1. That is a huge problem, because we are created in the image of God. That means we cannot cease to exist.  We will exist forever – somewhere.  If it is not in the presence of God, it is a perpetual horror that we cannot escape from.

V. It’s All About Jesus

  1. Jesus said you must be born again to enter the kingdom of God, or heaven.
    1. That makes it all about Jesus, because no human being has the power to be born again.
    2. But Jesus never said you must stop sinning to enter the kingdom of Heaven.
      1. In fact, no one would ever make it if we were required to stop sinning.
  2. But Jesus, who is both fully God our Creator, and the man Jesus Christ, died in our place to take away the sins of the whole world.
    1. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23. Jesus paid it all.

VI. Tragedy

  1. It is the greatest tragedy of all when people die and go to hell, there to spend eternity paying for something that was already paid on their behalf by Someone else. Jesus paid it all.
    1. Salvation is a gift.“But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”  John 1:12, 13
    2. But many reject that greatest of gifts and end up in Hell.
    3. Hell was not made for human beings! It was made for the devil and his angels.
      1. But all those who reject God’s gift commit the same unforgivable sin as the devil and his angels and thus end up there with him.  “Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:” Matthew 25:41
  2. The moment you die without turning to Jesus Christ as your Saviour, God’s mercy for you ends.Salvation is the gift of God, but you must accept it for it to be yours!
    1. God’s mercies are new every morning, the Bible tells us (Lamentations 3:22,23).But there will not be one drop of mercy in Hell.
    2. Jesus paid the sin debt for all human beings.Every sin committed by man was paid for on the cross.  When Jesus cried, “It is finished” (John 19:30), that debt was fully paid.
    3. No one goes to hell today because they have committed too many sins.All their sins have been paid already. “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.” Psalm 103:12
      1. There is only one reason people go to Hell, today, and that is a terrible tragedy. It is because they have rejected the gift.
  3. Imagine a very wealthy person gave you a cheque for a million dollars and you decided not to cash it and threw it in the trash declaring you had no need for it.
    1. A short time later you lose your job, your pension, and everything you have. If you were able to dig through the dump for the rest of your life, you would not be able to find that cheque!
  4. Jesus has given everyone something much greater than a cheque for a million dollars. He has given everyone the gift of redemption.  All our sins are paid for and with that comes eternal life!  But if we reject that gift, we forfeit everything and will spend eternity in Hell, “Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.”  Mark 9:44, 46, 48. What a tragedy!  No one has to go to Hell!  Salvation is free and complete for all!

Conclusion

The gospel of salvation is the very power of God unto the salvation of all who believe (Romans 1:6).  It is also so plain and simple.  “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 Corinthians 15:3,4. It is that simple.  Jesus Christ, the Son of God, died to pay for all of our sins, just as prophesied in the Old Testament scriptures, was buried and rose from the dead on the third day, just as prophesied in the Old Testament.

It is finished!  It is all done!  Your sins and mine have ALL been paid for and our Saviour who died on our behalf has risen from the dead and is alive.  It is a gift.  We receive it when we put our faith in Jesus Christ for what He has already done for us.  “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”  Acts 4:12. Be sure you have put your faith in Jesus Christ. This is the Gospel that SAVES!