The Way Matt Sees It

The Gospel literally means, “The Good News.”   So often The Gospel is reduced to a simple, overused and phrase: “Jesus loves you.”   Although this is wholly and completely true, it utterly falls short of all that The Gospel entails.   The Gospel is the story of how The Almighty Creator and Sustainer of the Universe not only loves us, but paints this incredible picture: The PENALTY The PROBLEM The INVITATION The ADOPTION The COMMISSION The INDWELLING THE PENALTY OF SIN Whether we choose to admit or acknowledge it, we are all rebels to God because we were born in sin (Romans 3:10-12, 23).   We are locked away in a prison cell with no way to escape.   Eventually the Enemy will come and destroy us – but Jesus stands in our place and takes the penalty for our sin and rebellion (Romans 5:8). THE PROBLEM OF SIN Not only does God save us from the PENALTY, but He saves us from the PROBLEM.   He didn’t save us so we can stay in the priso...

It’s easy for me to love God with my mind and with my deeds, but sometimes I forget to love God with all of my heart.  I can be so overly focused on doing things for God and reading about God, but not engaging with Him.  The REMIX Retreat helped renew that in my life this weekend.  The theme was “Climate Change,” and how we don’t have to be shaped by other people’s climates, but we can change the environment around us with “The Christ Climate.”  GET SOME GOD-TIME Whether or not you’re a nature person, there’s something majestic about being outside and taking in God’s creation.   This weekend at the REMIX Retreat at Tuscarora, I spent some quality time on the Delaware River, communing with God and being reminded of who I am in Him. The very first thing we did was watch this video on the Gospel that really set the tone for the whole event.   The Gospel includes:             The PENALTY ...

WHAT IS THE GOSPEL? While Jesus is very clear that Christians must spread the gospel message (Matthew 28:19; Mark 16:15), there isn’t a particular Bible verse that gives an explicit definition.   The Gospel literally means, “The Good News.”   But good news about what?   Doesn’t that entail bad news?   The Gospel can be understood in these terms: G – God O – Our S – Sins P – Paying E – Everyone L – Life G – GOD ( Colossians 1:16) God is at the start of it all.   He is the Author of Life, the Creator and Sustainer of the Universe.   God is the one who created us to know Him and to be known by Him.    Humanity lived in perfect paradise living in perfect harmony with God, until we used the same breath He graciously gave us to curse Him. O – OUR (Romans 3:10-12) Our sins separate us from God.   We have all participated in the mutiny.   There isn’t a religion in the world that doesn’t agree there’s something ...