The good news of the gospel… you’re condemned!
Add comment October 2nd, 2009
One thing that stands out crystal clear in Paul’s articulation of the gospel in his epistle to the Roman church is that the gospel that he preaches begins, and is founded on, a very complete and careful explanation of condemnation – the righteousness of God and the unrighteousness of mankind. Not only does he say in the early chapters of Romans that great masses of people will face the judgment of God and be condemned for their sin, he says that each individual will stand utterly alone in rendering an account for their life and their sin, and that each individual will face, alone, the full brunt of God’s personal offense and anger at their sin and rebellion.
The clearest statement of this and the fact that condemnation and judgment are fundamental to the gospel, see Romans 2: 16, “…on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge the secrets of men through Christ Jesus.”
The questions one should ponder are these: What gospel do I believe and trust in? What gospel is being preached nowadays? Is it a complete gospel? Is it the gospel of Paul? Is it a gospel that can save? Or is a gospel of therapeutic help that just helps people to stop feeling bad?
The true gospel cuts and it hurts, long before it offers redemption and hope. It must do so to scrape away and remove the blinders of self-deception we all maintain with loving care and attention. Don’t rush it. Don’t rush to show the beauty of salvation to a person still blind. The beauty won’t be seen and it won’t be appreciated.
