A Summary of the Gospel

The gospel is the “good news” about who Jesus Christ is and what He has done.  It is the announcement of the events that God had planned since before His creation of mankind.

Although mankind was created to glorify God and enjoy Him forever, the Bible says that mankind has a problem and that problem is called “sin”.  We have a sin nature, which is to say that we are motivated and ruled by pride and rebellion against God.  Sin shows itself in any attitude or action that violates of God's perfect standard.  Every one of us, without exception, has the problem of sin.  There’s more.

The Bible also teaches us that there is a consequence to sin.  First, it separates us from a Holy God.  Because God is perfect in every way, He cannot have any sin near Him at all.  Second, the Bible tells us that the just punishment for our sin by a Holy God is death, spiritual and physical death.  Third, sin messes our lives up real bad.  Shame, violence, hostility, anger, depression, sickness, theft, and countless other expressions of our pride and rebellion torment both society and our own personal lives.  It gets worse.

The Bible also tells us that there is nothing that we ourselves can do to solve the problem of sin.  Zip, zilch, nada, nothing.  We are completely incapable of achieving God’s perfect standards, even though in our pride and rebellion we try to convince ourselves that we can.  Not only are we incapable of obeying but we are already condemned.  All it takes is one sin to deserve a Holy God’s just punishment of death.  And there is no just way of getting out of it without the death penalty being satisfied.  As sinners, we are eternally stuck in an abyss of poop.

That’s the “bad news”.  Now here’s the “good news”.

Even before any of this mess happened, God had a rescue plan for the problem of sin and to provide a way for people to get into a right relationship with Him.  God did not, and does not, wait for us to get our own act together.  God demonstrates His redeeming love for us in this, while we were still sinners Christ died for us.  That is the good news. 

God orchestrated the events of history so as to provide the only possible means that mankind could be freed from the penalty and bondage of sin.  Jesus, who is God, became a man, so as to perfectly identify with sinful mankind.  However, Jesus lived a perfect and sinless life here on earth.  But Jesus did more.  A whole lot more.

Jesus was crucified (nailed to a cross of wood until dead).  He was innocent but He died as a substitutionary sacrifice to pay the penalty for sin.  In so doing Jesus satisfied the demands of God’s holy justice and absorbed God’s holy wrath (punishment).  Jesus lived the life we should have lived and He died the death we justly deserved.

But death did not keep Him down.  Jesus physically arose from the dead. He was resurrected by the power of God.  In so doing, He gained victory of the power of death and defeated the forces of evil in the world.  In Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection, the barrier of our sin is removed so that we can be reconciled to God; the power of the bondage of sin is broken; and the healing power of God can be active in our lives now. 

In His love and grace, God offers the gift of salvation to everyone who turns from their sin in repentance and faith.  The acts of repentance and faith do not earn us anything, they are the means by which we acknowledge God’s saving provision in Jesus Christ and express our trust in Christ’s substitutionary work on our behalf. 
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How do I accept this "gift of salvation"?
You can accept God's free gift of salvation by putting your trust in Jesus Christ . Connecting to Christ is the greatest decision you can make. The Bible says that God chooses you so that you will not spend eternity seperated from Him in hell. You could try to put off the decision to a more convenient time. The Bible does say that God is patient, wanting everyone to come to the point of accepting His gift of salvation (2 Peter 3.9), but none of us is promised that we will be here tomorrow. But that - the promise of not going to hell isn't a great reason to accept the work done on your behalf. You have a God who loves you, and wants you to know Him. He desire to have a relationship with you, one that isn't just accessed once i na while, but an on-going, life long relationship
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There is no better time to hook up with God (2 Corinthians 6.2). If you would like to say yes to Christ, you can do it right now, where ever you are, whatever you are doing. It is an open invitation - accept the gift of salvation and get rid of the sin in your life. It doesn't matter what you're doing right now or what you've done. The offer is open to everyone. You can start living the abundant life with Christ today, free from the fears of sin and death.
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Ask and your will receive
If you've come this far, you probably realize you're about to make the most important decision of you life. Jesus said, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burndend, and I will give you rest." (Matthew 11.28) So if you ask Him, you will be accepted.
At Seaside Church we talk to God through prayer. Your prayer should be your own, from your own heart to His. If you have never prayed, no worries. Here is an idea of what to say to God:

- God, I've sinned against you. I'm sorry.
- I realize You are the only one with the power to forgive
- I understand that Your Son's death on the cross is my way to forgiveness
- By faith I accept You, Jesus, as my Lord and Savior

The Bible says, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." (Romans 10.13; Joel 2.32)

So, if you ask Him into your life, and believe He died to save you, you are a Christian, bound for heaven.

Need more info - give us a call - 360-373-1483 or email us - kauai@seasidechurch.com
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