We could tell you a lot about our church. We have children’s programs, classes for all ages, worship music, opportunities to be involved, etc. But none of that really matters if we don’t understand and believe one thing: the Gospel. The good news of Jesus Christ.
Whether or not you plan on stopping by our church for services (and we hope you do!), we sincerely ask you to carefully read an explanation of the Gospel below.
To understand the good news, we have to make something very clear: God made everything. Sure, not everyone wants to agree with that statement. But it’s a fact. “...God created the heaven and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). Creation requires a Creator. A maker. Someone responsible for everything that came to exist at some point in the distant past.
God not only created everything (earth and sky, sun and moon, flowers, mountains, lady bugs and elephants); he created human beings. “...God created man in his own image,… male and female...” (Genesis 1:27). We have a creator, you and I. That means we don’t own ourselves. We are responsible to someone else.
Humanity was created, along with the rest of the universe. But we were not only part of creation, we were made the pinnacle of creation – made in the very “image” of the Maker himself.
That all sounds good, right? And it was! “Everything... was very good” (Genesis 1:31). Nothing in the original creation was bad. It was all as it should be. But that is definitely not the way things are now! So what went wrong?
God gave his humans one prohibition. Of all that he made for them to enjoy, there was one thing they were not to eat: the fruit of one particular tree. Nothing else was off limits. But God kept one thing from them, which reminded humans of an all-important fact: they were not God. Every time they passed that tree and left it alone, they were living in obedience to His one law.
But one day, they ate of that fruit. Deciding that God must be wrong (and they knew better), they put themselves in the place of God and decided for themselves what was right and wrong. Ever since that day, things have been less than good. Often, down-right awful. Sometimes, sickeningly catastrophic. People hate one another, hurt one another, prioritize themselves over each other. Most importantly, we refuse to honor the Creator. Its inherent in us all from birth: we are born with sin. And we keep sinning. Sure, not everyone is as bad as the worst, and we can always find someone that’s worse off. But the fact is, deep down, we all know that we are not OK. The thoughts we think, the desires we have, the hurt we both experience and dish out: all of it points to something terribly wrong at the core of who we are. And, at the end of it all, when we pass from this life, we face an eternity of suffering for the sins we have both inherited and continue to commit.
That all sounds like pretty crumby news. What about the “good news”?
Thankfully, God had a plan. At the very beginning of this whole mess, when humans “fell” into sin, He promised them a rescuer (Genesis 3:15). A “seed”, or descendant, who would one day defeat sin forever. Who would this be? How could a descendant of these sinful humans rescue the human race from total destruction?
It all comes down to a man named Jesus. Yes, Jesus was a man. He was the firstborn son of a young woman named Mary. But he wasn’t just a man. He was the Son of God. Jesus, born of the virgin Mary, lived a sinless life, with no sin to inherit from a human father (Matt. 1:24-25). At the age of 30 (Luke 3:23), he began to preach the good news that God’s rescue plan was coming to pass. God would make things right with mankind! He told people to believe in this rescue plan, and “repent” of (or turn from) their sins. Turn from your sinful life to God, believing that he will save you from your sins and the judgment you deserve, and you can be saved! But Jesus was taken by the religious leaders and government officials and crucified. The only perfect man, the God-Man, was murdered, nailed to a Roman cross. Did God’s plan fail? Not at all. God’s plan was working perfectly.
After Jesus was buried, the next Sunday Morning Jesus rose bodily from the dead! (Mark 16:1ff, Acts 2:32) Many witnesses saw him; and they were so convinced of the truth of the resurrection that many of them were willing to die for their faith in the Savior who died and came back to life. Jesus was alive!
You see, this was God’s plan all along. God sent his Son to die in our place. An infinite being taking the infinite punishment meant for sinners. “...God so love the world, that He gave his only begotten son...”. (John 3:16) And he didn’t just pay for our sins. He conquered death itself for us, the penalty of sin, so that we can have eternal life and reinstated fellowship with God!
So the sins of humanity were paid for! How can we be part of this rescue plan? How can you be saved?
The holy, all-powerful God took action to pay for the sins of imperfect mankind. And He did it through the death and resurrection of His own Son. So how can that payment for sin apply to us?
The solution is in Jesus’ message that He preached: “...The Kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the Gospel (Mark 1:15). Repent and believe. How does that work?
REPENT – That means to turn. Turn from your sin. As men and women, we are criminals before the righteousness and justice of God, outlaws banished from His kingdom. And we need to turn to Him. Renounce our sin and self-worship, and turn to the true God. We wave the white flag, and surrender to His Authority over our life.
BELIEVE – Believe in what? Believe in the Savior, Jesus! Believe that He died for your sins, that He paid for them, and that he rose from the dead. Believe that he can save you, and that he will save you.
Repent and Believe. That is the response we must have toward this good news. When a man, woman, or child hears the good news of Christ, repents of their sin, and believes in Christ’s saving death and resurrection, they are saved. They are given new life. Jesus said they are “born again”, never to be who they once were.
Salvation can be obtained by the nicest person, or the meanest person. The person who follows the rules, and the person who is a menace to society. Salvation is for anybody that will repent and believe on Jesus. God makes believers into new people! Believers don’t stop sinning completely, but they live a life of repentance and belief, trusting in the Savior who has saved them, and living their lives for Him, their new King.
The message of the Gospel leaves you with a question: How will you respond? Surely, the easiest way to respond to this message is to refuse. “I make my own rules, I don’t need forgiveness, I can do what I want.” But there will be a reckoning. Jesus put it this way: “...Whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.” (Luke 9:24). You can go ahead and reject the message of Jesus, but you, along with everyone else, will die someday. And those who haven’t trusted in Jesus as their Savior and King will face the consequences of their sin.
What will you decide?
If you understand the Gospel, repent of your sin, and truly trust in the Savior, that is the most wonderful happening of your life! We would love for you to reach out to our church so that we can help you learn how to live as a follower of Jesus! If you don’t live near our church, we would love to help you find another gospel-teaching church close to you. Please reach out in one of the ways listed below:
EMAIL: pastor@swbctulsa.net
PHONE: (918)446-7593
ADDRESS:
5304 S 33rd W Ave, Tulsa, OK 74107
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