Let’s Not Forget the Gospel in Its Simplest Form
Hey New Hope Family!
My wife Kara is really smart, but I don’t think people realize just how smart she is. She was an honor roll student throughout high school, and in college she was on the dean’s list, graduating with all As. At one point, she even tutored students in calculus because she said it was “fun.”
It is safe to say I "married up." In school, I was not like that. I always struggled and my faithful C-grades got me through high school and college. The question I would often ask my teachers or professors was, “Can you simplify this for me? I’m confused.”
Value the Simplicity of the Gospel
In the Christian life, I believe God wants us to value the simplicity of the gospel. When we get anxious in how to share our faith with someone, let’s not forget the gospel in its simplest form. Pastor Jeff Singletary gave us a great message Jan 7 and challenged us with the question, "How many people will we lead to Christ this year?" A simple question, but also a convicting one. I believe if we’re going to be able to do that well, we need to remember the gospel in its simplest form.
Lucky for you and me Paul thought the Church in Corinth needed this reminder too. He writes in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4:
“For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.”
These two verses really simplify the gospel. Jesus died for our sins, rose on the third day and by doing that fulfilled everything that was said about Him in the Old Testament. It can’t get much simpler than that.
When engaging in conversations with others about the gospel, my prayer for you is to do these three things:
Be simple.
Stay faithful to the Word.
Allow the Holy Spirit to work on the person’s life.
If you do those things, God will move in mighty ways.
In Christ,
~Pastor Matt