A Six-Point Summary of the Gospel

Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God. (1 Peter 3:18)

Here’s a summary of the gospel to help you understand it and enjoy it and share it!

1) God created us for his glory.

“Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the end of the earth, everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory” (Isaiah 43:6–7). God made all of us in his own image so that we would image forth, or reflect, his character and moral beauty.

2) Therefore every human should live for God’s glory.

“Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). The way to live for the glory of God is to love him (Matthew 22:37), trust him (Romans 4:20), be thankful to him (Psalm 50:23), obey him (Matthew 5:16), and treasure him above all things (Philippians 3:8; Matthew 10:37). When we do these things we image forth God’s glory.

3) Nevertheless, we have all sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.

“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). “Although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him . . . and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images” (Romans 1:21–23). None of us has loved or trusted or thanked or obeyed or treasured God as we ought.

4) Therefore we all deserve eternal punishment.

“The wages of sin is (eternal) death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). Those who did not obey the Lord Jesus “will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might” (2 Thessalonians 1:9). “These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life” (Matthew 25:46).

5) Yet, in his great mercy, God sent his only Son Jesus Christ into the world to provide for sinners the way of eternal life.

“God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us” (Galatians 3:13). “Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18).

6) Therefore eternal life is a free gift to all who will trust in Christ as Lord and Savior and supreme Treasure of their lives.

“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9). “By grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9). “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). “I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ” (Philippians 3:8).

John Piper 

 

A Six-Point Summary of the Gospel

Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God. (1 Peter 3:18)

Here’s a summary of the gospel to help you understand it and enjoy it and share it!

1) God created us for his glory.

“Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the end of the earth, everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory” (Isaiah 43:6–7). God made all of us in his own image so that we would image forth, or reflect, his character and moral beauty.

2) Therefore every human should live for God’s glory.

“Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). The way to live for the glory of God is to love him (Matthew 22:37), trust him (Romans 4:20), be thankful to him (Psalm 50:23), obey him (Matthew 5:16), and treasure him above all things (Philippians 3:8; Matthew 10:37). When we do these things we image forth God’s glory.

3) Nevertheless, we have all sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.

“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). “Although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him . . . and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images” (Romans 1:21–23). None of us has loved or trusted or thanked or obeyed or treasured God as we ought.

4) Therefore we all deserve eternal punishment.

“The wages of sin is (eternal) death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). Those who did not obey the Lord Jesus “will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might” (2 Thessalonians 1:9). “These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life” (Matthew 25:46).

5) Yet, in his great mercy, God sent his only Son Jesus Christ into the world to provide for sinners the way of eternal life.

“God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us” (Galatians 3:13). “Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18).

6) Therefore eternal life is a free gift to all who will trust in Christ as Lord and Savior and supreme Treasure of their lives.

“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9). “By grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9). “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). “I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ” (Philippians 3:8).

John Piper 

The Great Exchange

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed. (Romans 1:16–17)

We need righteousness to be acceptable to God. But we don’t have it. What we have is sin.

So, God has what we need and don’t deserve — righteousness; and we have what God hates and rejects — sin. What is God’s answer to this situation?

His answer is Jesus Christ, the Son of God who died in our place and bore our condemnation. “By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he [God] condemned sin in the flesh” (Romans 8:3). Whose flesh bore the condemnation? His. Whose sins were being condemned? Ours. This is the great exchange. Here it is again in 2 Corinthians 5:21: “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

God lays our sins on Christ and punishes them in him. And in Christ’s obedient death, God fulfills and vindicates his righteousness and imputes (credits) it to us. Our sin on Christ; his righteousness on us.

We can hardly stress too much that Christ is God’s answer to our greatest problem. It is all owing to Christ.

You can’t love Christ too much. You can’t think about him too much, or thank him too much, or depend upon him too much. All our forgiveness, all our justification, all our righteousness is in Christ.

This is the gospel — the good news that our sins are laid on Christ and his righteousness is laid on us, and that this great exchange becomes ours not by works but by faith alone. “By grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9).

Here is the good news that lifts burdens and gives joy and makes strong.

 

John Piper 

God Uses His Word to Speak to Us

PRAY OVER THIS

“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.” Ezekiel 36:26-27

 

PONDER THIS

I knew a man who had been a Russian paratrooper. In war, the Russians were told, “Don’t surrender—suicide rather than surrender.” But he surrendered. He put up his hands. He didn’t want to die. The Germans took him, put him on a tank, and he was put into a prison camp. One night he found himself in a little abandoned barracks building. It was very cold, and he was trying to start a fire. As he was looking around for scraps of paper, he picked up a Gospel tract. The Scripture included was Revelation 3:20, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” And he said, “This is about God.”

Then he bowed his head and prayed, “God, if you exist, if you are there, speak to my heart that this is Your Word.” And he said a warm feeling came over him and God whispered to his innermost being, “My child, I’m here. I’ve been here all the time. I am knocking at your heart’s door.” The Holy Spirit of God convicted him and changed him.

How did all that happen? It was God’s Word by the Spirit that spoke to his heart. And the same God that spoke to him is the God who is speaking to you right now.

How has God spoken to you through His Word?

Who is one person you are praying will come to know Jesus and follow Him?

PRACTICE THIS

Pray for the unreached people in the world. Ask that God may open doors for them to have access to the Gospel.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

A Six-Point Summary of the Gospel

Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God. (1 Peter 3:18)

Here’s a summary of the gospel to help you understand it and enjoy it and share it!

1) God created us for his glory.

“Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the end of the earth, everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory” (Isaiah 43:6–7). God made all of us in his own image so that we would image forth, or reflect, his character and moral beauty.

2) Therefore every human should live for God’s glory.

“Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). The way to live for the glory of God is to love him (Matthew 22:37), trust him (Romans 4:20), be thankful to him (Psalm 50:23), obey him (Matthew 5:16), and treasure him above all things (Philippians 3:8; Matthew 10:37). When we do these things we image forth God’s glory.

3) Nevertheless, we have all sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.

“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). “Although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him . . . and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images” (Romans 1:21–23). None of us has loved or trusted or thanked or obeyed or treasured God as we ought.

4) Therefore we all deserve eternal punishment.

“The wages of sin is (eternal) death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). Those who did not obey the Lord Jesus “will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might” (2 Thessalonians 1:9). “These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life” (Matthew 25:46).

5) Yet, in his great mercy, God sent his only Son Jesus Christ into the world to provide for sinners the way of eternal life.

“God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us” (Galatians 3:13). “Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18).

6) Therefore eternal life is a free gift to all who will trust in Christ as Lord and Savior and supreme Treasure of their lives.

“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9). “By grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9). “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). “I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ” (Philippians 3:8).

John Piper 

Are You Walking in the True Gospel?

PRAY OVER THIS

“…which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. Through Him we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name, among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ.”

Romans 1:2-6

 

PONDER THIS

The Gospel of God that Paul was dedicated to is not a so-called gospel that merely mentions Jesus or that only alludes to Jesus: Jesus is the Gospel.

Do you know why we have churches filled with moral worldlings? They have religion, but they’ve never met Jesus Christ. Christianity is not a creed, not a code, not a cause; it is Christ. But you cannot take Jesus Christ out of Christianity and still have Christianity. It’s like taking the water out of a well, notes out of music, numbers out of mathematics. So many people have had an encounter with religion. But religion is not the Gospel. The source of the Gospel is God. The subject of the Gospel is Jesus. The supply of the Gospel is grace. Poor, lost, ruined sinners like we are saved by the glorious Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

When have you mistaken the Gospel for something other than Jesus?

How can you tell when you are more focused on religion than you are on Jesus?

PRACTICE THIS

Write down some areas in which you struggle to extend grace to others. Lift these burdens up to God, asking Him to help you stay fixed on Jesus, the subject of the Gospel.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Are You Separated To Christ?

PRAY OVER THIS

“Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God.” Romans 1:1

 

PONDER THIS

Paul was separated to the Gospel of God. Christians are to be separated. Christians are to be different. We are to stand out. Now the kind of separation Paul had already been practicing was the separation of a Pharisee. The very word Pharisee implies separation. Paul was separated. Some people say, “Well, I live a separated Christian life. I don’t smoke; I don’t chew; and I don’t go with the girls who do. I am separated.” Well, a fence post doesn’t smoke or chew or go with girls who do. So, you don’t have any more religion than a fence post if that’s what your separation is. And quitting those things will not make you more like the Lord Jesus Christ. You can walk the straight and narrow, and say, “I don’t do this. I don’t do this. I don’t do this,” and you’ll be a proud, bitter Pharisee. That’s what Paul was before he met the Lord Jesus Christ. He was already a Pharisee. He was already separated from, but he became separated to, and that is the difference.

The word separated here is the word in Greek from which we get our word horizon. Have you ever been up on a tall building and looked as far as you could see until the earth dips over? That is the horizon. And your horizon changes when your center changes. And when Jesus Christ is the center of your life, then your entire horizon has changed.

What has changed since Jesus became the center of your life?

What is the difference between being separated from the world and separated to Jesus?

PRACTICE THIS

Share with someone the testimony about how Jesus changed your horizon and perspective on life.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Are You Adding to the Gospel of Grace?

PRAY OVER THIS

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

 

PONDER THIS

I was on an airplane with a man who was a member of a denomination that believes you have to be baptized to be saved. I said, “What if I were a businessman on this plane with you, and we heard we were minutes away from a deadly crash? What would you do if I asked, ‘Sir, would you tell me how to be saved?’” He said, “I wouldn’t have a message for you.” Is that not sad? In that logic, you have to take the “whosoever” out of the Bible and say, “Whosoever would believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and be fortunate enough to be near water and have a preacher there to baptize him—and some would say, ‘and be of my denomination’—will be saved.” Do you see what that does? It emasculates the Gospel. It takes the good news out of the Gospel. I am so everlastingly glad that I can say to anybody, anyplace, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). It is totally, completely by grace. It extends to every person. It extends to every place, and it extends to every problem. There’s only one thing that ultimately matters, and that’s your relationship with God. There’s no other message that has an answer to sin, sorrow, and death, but the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

What are some conditions you feel tempted to add to the Gospel?

What’s a recent example of God’s grace in your life?

PRACTICE THIS

Practice sharing the Gospel with someone. Are you prone to make much of grace or works in sharing with others? Evaluate how you can grow in sharing the Gospel.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Are You Going with the Gospel?

PRAY OVER THIS

“Hurry and go up to my father, and say to him, ‘Thus says your son Joseph: “God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not tarry. You shall dwell in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near to me, you and your children, your children’s children, your flocks and your herds, and all that you have. There I will provide for you, lest you and your household, and all that you have, come to poverty; for there are still five years of famine.”’ And behold, your eyes and the eyes of my brother Benjamin see that it is my mouth that speaks to you. So you shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that you have seen; and you shall hurry and bring my father down here.”

Genesis 45:9-13

 

PONDER THIS

All of the Gospel can be summed up in these two phrases, “Come unto me; Go ye into all the world.” That’s it. Jesus says, “Come to Me.” They came. He said, “All right. Now, go and tell others.” What right do we have to call ourselves children of God if we fail to obey Him? Our Lord has given us a Great Commission. We’re to go into all the world and share the Lord Jesus Christ.

A little boy had a toy car he got at Christmas. It wouldn’t work. His dad said, “What’s wrong with it?” He said, “I think the ‘go’ is broke.” I think that’s what’s wrong with the Church. We’re to go. To say that all Christians are missionaries is just another way of saying all Christians are Christians.

What are we to share? Number one, we once rejected Jesus. Number two, God has raised Him up on high. Number three, He has a name that is above every name. Number four, the world is now at His feet. Number five, He is the fairest of ten thousand. Number six, He has forgiven all of our sins. Number seven, He wants us to be with Him and to share His glory. That’s what they were to tell about Joseph, and that’s what we’re to tell about Jesus.

Do you know how to share the Gospel? When was the last opportunity that you had to share it?

Who are some people in your life that need the hope of the Gospel?

PRACTICE THIS

Practice sharing the Gospel with a fellow Christian and then share that hope with someone else you know.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

The End of the Gospel

Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. (Romans 5:9–11)

What do we need to be saved from? Verse 9 states it clearly: the wrath of God. “Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.” But is that the highest, best, fullest, most satisfying prize of the gospel?

No. Verse 10 says “much more . . . shall we be saved by his life.” Then verse 11 takes it all the way up to the ultimate end and goal of the gospel: “more than that, we also rejoice in God.”

That is the final and highest good of the good news. There is not another “more than that” after that. There is only Paul’s saying how we got there, “through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.”

The end of the gospel is “we rejoice in God.” The highest, fullest, deepest, sweetest good of the gospel is God himself, enjoyed by his redeemed people.

God in Christ became the price (Romans 5:6–8), and God in Christ became the prize (Romans 5:11).

The gospel is the good news that God bought for us the everlasting enjoyment of God.

John Piper 

A Six-Point Summary of the Gospel

Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God. (1 Peter 3:18)

Here’s a summary of the gospel to help you understand it and enjoy it and share it!

1) God created us for his glory.

“Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the end of the earth, everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory” (Isaiah 43:6–7). God made all of us in his own image so that we would image forth, or reflect, his character and moral beauty.

2) Therefore every human should live for God’s glory.

“Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). The way to live for the glory of God is to love him (Matthew 22:37), trust him (Romans 4:20), be thankful to him (Psalm 50:23), obey him (Matthew 5:16), and treasure him above all things (Philippians 3:8; Matthew 10:37). When we do these things we image forth God’s glory.

3) Nevertheless, we have all sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.

“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). “Although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him . . . and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images” (Romans 1:21–23). None of us has loved or trusted or thanked or obeyed or treasured God as we ought.

4) Therefore we all deserve eternal punishment.

“The wages of sin is (eternal) death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). Those who did not obey the Lord Jesus “will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might” (2 Thessalonians 1:9). “These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life” (Matthew 25:46).

5) Yet, in his great mercy, God sent his only Son Jesus Christ into the world to provide for sinners the way of eternal life.

“God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us” (Galatians 3:13). “Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18).

6) Therefore eternal life is a free gift to all who will trust in Christ as Lord and Savior and supreme Treasure of their lives.

“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9). “By grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9). “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). “I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ” (Philippians 3:8).

John Piper 

The End of the Gospel

Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. (Romans 5:9–11)

What do we need to be saved from? Verse 9 states it clearly: the wrath of God. “Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.” But is that the highest, best, fullest, most satisfying prize of the gospel?

No. Verse 10 says “much more . . . shall we be saved by his life.” Then verse 11 takes it all the way up to the ultimate end and goal of the gospel: “more than that, we also rejoice in God.”

That is the final and highest good of the good news. There is not another “more than that” after that. There is only Paul’s saying how we got there, “through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.”

The end of the gospel is “we rejoice in God.” The highest, fullest, deepest, sweetest good of the gospel is God himself, enjoyed by his redeemed people.

God in Christ became the price (Romans 5:6–8), and God in Christ became the prize (Romans 5:11).

The gospel is the good news that God bought for us the everlasting enjoyment of God.

John Piper 

A Six-Point Summary of the Gospel

Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God. (1 Peter 3:18)

Here’s a summary of the gospel to help you understand it and enjoy it and share it!

1) God created us for his glory.

“Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the end of the earth, everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory” (Isaiah 43:6–7). God made all of us in his own image so that we would image forth, or reflect, his character and moral beauty.

2) Therefore every human should live for God’s glory.

“Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). The way to live for the glory of God is to love him (Matthew 22:37), trust him (Romans 4:20), be thankful to him (Psalm 50:23), obey him (Matthew 5:16), and treasure him above all things (Philippians 3:8; Matthew 10:37). When we do these things we image forth God’s glory.

3) Nevertheless, we have all sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.

“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). “Although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him . . . and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images” (Romans 1:21–23). None of us has loved or trusted or thanked or obeyed or treasured God as we ought.

4) Therefore we all deserve eternal punishment.

“The wages of sin is (eternal) death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). Those who did not obey the Lord Jesus “will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might” (2 Thessalonians 1:9). “These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life” (Matthew 25:46).

5) Yet, in his great mercy, God sent his only Son Jesus Christ into the world to provide for sinners the way of eternal life.

“God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us” (Galatians 3:13). “Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18).

6) Therefore eternal life is a free gift to all who will trust in Christ as Lord and Savior and supreme Treasure of their lives.

“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9). “By grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9). “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). “I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ” (Philippians 3:8).

John Piper 

Does the Mission Seem Impossible?

PRAY OVER THIS

“‘But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.’” Acts 1:8

 

PONDER THIS

The mission Jesus gave to the disciples must have seemed impossible. Look at them—a little group of ragtag apostles, some of them fishermen. Most of them didn’t have any education. They had no seminaries. They had no finances. They had no prestige. They had no political pull. And yet they were commanded to go into all the world and tell the message of a Galilean peasant who died on a cross, crucified by the Roman government. This was mission impossible.

Not only did they not have the credentials, but they were also up against impossible foes. There was the imperial might of the iron legions of Rome. There was the intellectual sophistry of the Greeks. There was the religious bigotry of the Jewish religion. And here they were. This reads like a magnificent novel, but it is absolutely true. It is the story of the Church triumphant.

What feels impossible in your life right now?

How is the story of the Early Church an encouragement in this regard?

PRACTICE THIS

Write down the things you are facing that seem impossible. Pray over these things, confessing that all things are possible with God.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Share What You DO Know!

PRAY OVER THIS

“Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall Him as He is.”

1 John 3:2

 

PONDER THIS

One way to give a good witness for the Lord Jesus Christ is to tell what you know, not what you don’t know. So many of us are afraid to witness because we’re afraid somebody’s going to ask us a question we don’t know the answer to. Don’t worry about it! Let me give you the perfect answer. Just say, “I don’t know.” Isn’t that a good answer? If you tell people that you don’t know, maybe they’ll believe you when you tell them what you do know.

There are a lot of things about the future that we don’t know. But these things have been kept from us on purpose. When the apostle Paul was caught up into the third Heaven, he saw things not lawful for a man to utter. (See 2 Corinthians 12:4.) Jesus said: “I have many things to tell you, but you’re not able to bear them” (John 16:12). Daniel was told to seal up the prophecy; it’s for the time at the end. (See Daniel 12:4.) There are a lot of things we don’t know! What are we going to be like when we get to Heaven? What are we going to look like? What age will we be? What will we eat? We don’t have to know these things; we can trust God as the One who does know and we can be faithful to share what we do know through Him.

What are some questions about God or the world that you don’t know and are prone to get hung up on?

What are some things about God you can say you know with certainty?

PRACTICE THIS

Write out some questions you don’t know and are afraid of being asked about. Make a separate list of the things you do know about God for sure and are able to share confidently with others. 

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Are You Sowing the Seed?

PRAY OVER THIS

“Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it. Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away. And some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop. But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.” Mark 4:3-8

 

READ THIS

In the Gospel of Mark, Jesus gave a parable of a sower. And as he scattered the seed out of his basket, some fell by the wayside; that is, the soil was hard, and the seed couldn’t get in. Other seed fell on stony ground. It got in but it couldn’t get down because beneath the soil in the subsurface was a rocky ledge. Other seed fell among thorns and it sprouted, but then the weeds and the briars came and choked it out. But some seed fell on good ground and brought forth fruit. It’s not our job to analyze the soil; it’s our job to sow the seed. In this parable, the sower was Jesus Christ Himself. And He didn’t say, “Well, that’s bad soil. I won’t put any seed on it,” or, “that’s rocky soil,” or, “there are thorns.” He just sowed the seed.

Likewise, we are called to just sow the seed. Everywhere we go, just sow the seed. It is God that gives the increase. We can’t make the seed grow, but we can sow the seed.

CONSIDER THIS

How faithful are you to sow the seed of the Gospel?

What are some ways you are prone to judge whether a person will receive the seed or not? How does today’s passage challenge that idea?

DO THIS

Sow the seed of the Gospel by sharing about Jesus with one person this week.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

The Priority of Evangelism

PRAY OVER THIS

Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy. He who continually goes forth weeping, bearing seed for sowing, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him. Psalm 126:5-6

 

READ THIS

The wisest thing we could do in the eyes of God is to remain faithful in evangelism. The soul is of great worth; Jesus died upon the cross, paying the price with His blood and agony to show how much He desired our souls.

Our souls are also valuable because of their durability. When God made the human soul, He made it in His own image, therefore, it is endless, timeless, dateless, and measureless.

Every soul has the potential to be transformed into the likeness of Jesus Christ or to spend eternity in the pits of Hell.

We would be wise to evangelize because it is the command of Christ. We remember that we are programmed to go forth (Psalm 126:6); nothing takes the place of going. It’s not enough to “live good lives,” because our lives are not what save souls—salvation through Jesus’s death and resurrection is what saves souls.

CONSIDER THIS

What stops you from going to others with the good news of the Gospel?

How does it change your perspective on evangelism to remember that every person is made in the image of God and will spend eternity either with God or in Hell?

DO THIS

Ask God who He is calling to you to go to this week. How will you live out that call?

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

Are We Sleeping Giants?

BIBLE MEDITATION

“And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.” Romans 13:11

 

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

Do you know what Napoleon said about China? “There lies a sleeping giant, and let him sleep, because if he awakens, he will shake the world.”

I believe the devil says that about the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. And I believe the Church is just that: a sleeping giant. We’re asleep because we have been chloroformed by the “spirit of this age.”

We’re bombarded on every side by all kinds of amusement. Do you know what amuse means? It’s a combination of two words. Muse means to think, and the alpha prefix in front of it means “not to.” We are a generation that is amusing (not thinking) ourselves into oblivion. And it’s time to wake up!

ACTION POINT

Are you taking the Christian life seriously? If this were your last day on earth, how would you spend it? In amusement? Or in telling others about Jesus?

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers 

You Can"t Argue With the Bible

BIBLE MEDITATION

“All flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, and its flower falls away, but the word of the LORD endures forever.”

(1 Peter 1:24-25)

 

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

The Bible is the incontestable, incorruptible, indestructible, and indispensable Word of God. No one can argue with it. Nothing can corrupt it. Nothing can destroy it. Nothing can replace it as the source and wellspring of life.

The late Dr. Robert G. Lee, a great preacher of the previous generation, said this about the Bible:

“All of its enemies have not torn one hole in its holy vesture, or stolen one flower from its wonderful garden, nor diluted one drop of honey from its abundant hive, nor broken one string of its thousand-stringed harp, nor drowned one sweet word in infidel ink.”

ACTION POINT

Tell God how much your life has changed because of His Word. Next time you’re together with friends or your family, share the ways God has ministered to you through His Word.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers