There is Good News! Here are four biblical truths that explain God’s Good News.1. God is the holy and loving Creator.

Psalm 100:3 – “Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.”God is the Sovereign Creator. Out of His pleasure and freedom God created and sustains us. Therefore, we are utterly dependent upon Him for everything. He is the One who gives us life.We must recognize and submit to God’s complete authority over our lives.

2. We are sinful creatures.

Romans 3:23 – “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”Definition of “sin” – Willful rebellion by refusing to do what God commands and determining to do what He forbids.Because we are sinners, we find ourselves playing God by running our lives as if God did not matter, ignoring God, and trying to be self-sufficient and self-made people. We fight God by violating and disregarding His Law for living. We want to decide for ourselves what is right and wrong.Consequences of sin – Death (separation). Both physical and spiritual death due to the wrath of God.

• Living death: Separation now from God resulting in misery, suffering, guilt, loss of identity, purposelessness, distorted relationships, etc.
• Eternal death: Separation from God forever in hell.

Our prideful independence has brought God’s just wrath upon us. God has passed a sentence of condemnation upon the human race.We must recognize that we are utterly helpless to escape the condemnation and wrath of God.

3. Christ is the merciful Redeemer.

Ephes. 1:7 – “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace”Isaiah 53:5 – “But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed.”God did not leave man without hope. The words and life of Jesus Christ reveal the nature of God. Jesus Christ came to the world to redeem it by becoming the once-for-all sacrifice for sin. He offered Himself as the innocent, substitutionary sacrifice for sin on behalf of all who turn from their sin.We must humbly recognize that Jesus Christ is the only way to peace with God and eternal life and that there is no other way to become a Christian.

4. We must respond to God in repentant faith.

John 1:12 – “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”God invites and commands us to repent and believe. It is vitally important that we understand the meaning of these terms.Repent – Repentance begins with agreeing with a holy God that we have wronged Him and deserve His judgment. We must despise our sins and our sinful nature. We must turn from our rebellion and everything previously trusted to please God. Repentance is not an attempt to clean up the life in order to earn acceptance with God, for no amount of good works performed by a sinner could ever please Him.Believe (Faith) – When we recognize that we have nothing to contribute to our redemption but the sin that made it necessary, we are moved to trust in Christ alone for salvation. We must recognize Christ as the necessary and sufficient payment for our sin. We must cast ourselves upon the mercy of God as our only hope for reconciliation with God. We must transfer our trust from ourselves to Christ. We must ask God for forgiveness and mercy. Faith reaches out to God with empty hands to receive the gift of eternal life.We must repent and believe so that all of our sins can be forgiven through Jesus Christ alone.

Only through repentance and faith is a person able to find cleansing from all their sin and enter into a new relationship of peace with God that will last forever.What should you do?God sent His Son for one grand purpose: “The Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). In the Bible, God calls to those who are lost, offering reconciliation and eternal life. God calls to those He has made with an intense love to turn – to come – and be cleansed. Whoever hears the call of God and comes will find forgiveness and peace.

• Isaiah 1:18 – “Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.”
• John 6:35 – “Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”
• John 11:25-26 – “Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?’”

I want to know God, what now?  If you recognize your need for Christ I encourage you to receive Him today.  The Bible states it this way, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name:  who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:12).  Simply receive Christ by placing your trust in Him.  If you have placed your trust in Jesus or need more information please contact us here at Heartland Church. Let us rejoice with you and help you find your next steps of faith in Christ!