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The Really Good News About God

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25.01.2022 God's Unconditional Love Last weekend I attended a baby dedication service for the son of a lovely young couple who are Youth Ministers in Melbourne. It was the first time we have been to a gathering of so many people (suitably spaced and wearing masks) for many months....Continue reading

23.01.2022 What MUST Be While away on holiday and doing some fun-reading, I was intrigued by the number of times some of our little, yet powerful, English words occurred in the Scriptures. The words that got me thinking were "must" and "so". Today's post discusses "must". (I might discuss "so" in a future one)...Continue reading

21.01.2022 God's Unconditional Love - a bit more The previous post discussed the character and eventual result of God's unconditional love for us. Although the unconditional nature of God's love was mentioned and illustrated by verses like -... He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. [1 John 2 : 2 NIV] - it probably didn't get the attention it deserved. Hence this "a bit more". Unconditional means with no conditions or no strings attached. So it is safe to say that God loves His entire creation without imposing any limits or requiring anything in return. It is a choice He has made. Jesus, in His famous Sermon on the Mount, was teaching His disciples they should treat their enemies as God treats His. But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. [Matthew 5 : 44, 45 NIV] Similarly, St Paul reminds us of Christ's focus in His sacrifice on the cross. You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. [Romans 5 : 6 - 8 NIV] So it was the sin of the ungodly and sinners that Jesus paid for - that's mine and everyone else's that I know. And, of course, the entire world is also in focus when God's love is mentioned in the most famous verse in the Bible, although you might not easily recognise it from this literal translation. For God so loved the cosmos as to give the Son, the only one, so that everyone having faith in him might not perish, but have the life of the Age. For God sent the Son into the cosmos not that he might pass judgement on the cosmos, but that the cosmos might be saved through him. [John 3 : 16, 17 DBH] Let's finish with a reminder from St Paul about just how extensive and universal God's love is. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. [Romans 8 : 38, 39 NIV] Appreciating God's unconditional love for His creation is the backbone of my understanding of the achievement of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. Blessings, Barry PS. This post was shared from my BLOG https://barrysgracespace.blogspot.com

13.01.2022 Reconciliation of All I am sometimes asked if I am a universalist. I don't like this word because it has so many different meanings. Saying "yes" might mean I am agreeing to a meaning that is in the mind of the questioner, with which I might not agree. So I try not to give a straight "yes" or "no" answer without sounding evasive.... Instead I say something like: I believe God is the Saviour of the world (1 Timothy 4 : 10) through Jesus, who died for the sins of the world (1 John 2 : 2) meaning that God is no longer holding our sins against us (2 Corinthians 5 : 19) Jesus will return when it is time to restore everything (Acts 3 : 21) by drawing everyone to himself (John 12 : 32), destroying his enemies (1 Corinthians 15 : 25), including death (1 Corinthians 15 : 26), so that only life will remain (1 Corinthians 15 : 22). Everyone will eventually honour King Jesus (Philippians 2 : 9 - 11) who will then hand his kingdom over to God (1 Corinthians 15 : 24) God having brought unity to everything in heaven and earth (Ephesians 1 : 9 - 10), thus having established a new heaven and new earth (2 Peter 3 : 13), becomes everything to everyone (1 Corinthians 15 : 28). So, am I a universalist? Only if being a universalist means I believe the Bible teaches the universal reconciliation of all through Jesus. (Colossians 1 : 19 - 20) And in our current coronavirus-induced climate of uncertainty and fear, that's a comforting position to hold. Blessings, Barry PS. This post was shared from the BLOG https://barrysgracespace.blogspot.com

12.01.2022 The Christian Gospel The word "gospel" means good news so the Christian gospel is the good news concerning the Christ - the Jewish Messiah, God's Son and the Saviour of the world. So what is this good news?... A straight quote from Paul's letter to the Corinthians will provide a concise answer to this question. Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures He was entombed He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures [1 Cor 15 : 3 - 5 NIV] This is really Good News (Gospel) from God to mankind because of its awesome consequences, both personal and corporate. Personally, God no longer holds our sins against us God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people's sins against them. [2 Corinthians 5 : 19 NIV] because (Jesus) is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. [1 John 2 : 2 NIV] Corporately, God will remove death and sin from his creation and create a new heaven and earth. The Son of God appeared for this very reason, to destroy what the Devil had done. [1 John 3 : 8b GNB] Our dreaded enemy, death, which we inherited from Adam is to be removed from creation. For he (Jesus) must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. [1 Cor 15 : 25 - 26 NIV] God will have supreme control. But when all things have been placed under Christ's rule, then he himself, the Son, will place himself under God, who placed all things under him; and God will rule completely over all. [1 Cor 15: 28 GNB] Heaven and Earth will be in complete harmony God did what he had purposed, and made known to us the secret plan he had already decided to complete by means of Christ. This plan, which God will complete when the time is right, is to bring all creation together, everything in heaven and on earth, with Christ as head. [Eph 1: 9 - 10 GNB] and squeaky-clean But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells. [2 Peter 3 : 13 NIV] It's amazing how many people, even those belonging to the Christian religion, do not believe this awesome outcome, even though they sing songs that proclaim it most Sundays. For example, at a funeral I attended last week we sang a well-known hymn whose words included the death of death, the destruction of hell and God's "kingdom stands, and grows for ever, till all your creatures own your sway". Most of the nearly 300 people present heartily proclaimed these words describing God's promised future for his creation. Let's truly believe and endorse what the Scriptures teach about our God and his exciting plan for all mankind through the death and resurrection of his Son, Jesus Christ. Blessings, Barry PS. This post was shared from the BLOG https://barrysgracespace.blogspot.com

04.01.2022 God's Judgement and Restoration For All In a previous post, we dismissed the "hell of eternal torment" proposed by many people by first showing its absurdity, and then the Bible's declaration of God's intention to reconcile all of His creation to Himself. Since we are currently living in an age which is dominated by sin, death and hostility towards God, there is clearly a lot that must happen to get mankind from where it is now to that promised reconciliation and peaceful sta...Continue reading