why I love the gospel

Tell me the story of Jesus, Write on my heart every word; Tell me the story most precious, sweetest that ever was heard.

It seems like everything I have read, studied, attended, and pondered this summer has come back to this one theme: the beauty of the gospel. Whether exploring the meaningless of life lived without God as shared by Solomon in Ecclesiastes, the "problem" of postmodernism, or hearing the gospel simply told to children, the cry of my heart has echoed over and over with the words to the song above. God's message to us in Christ is the best news man has ever heard. Here are a few quick reasons I love the gospel.

1. It is true.
This goes beyond what I learned and accepted as a child at the knees of my parents and Sunday School teachers. I can believe the gospel not only because I trust those who passed it on to me, but because all of the evidence points to its truth. What an exciting adventure it is to discover the accuracy of the words of the Bible as it has been passed down to us, the evidence of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection, and the testimony of the saints through the ages since. Archeological evidence always upholds the historical events of both the Old and New Testament. (Even when something seems to point to the contrary, the evidence bears out in the end.)

2. It meets our deepest need.
Man was utterly broken at the fall. Sin resulted in our separation from God, leading to loss of signficance, meaning, purpose, and hope. Nothing that is worthwhile in this life can be experienced apart from Him. There was no way out of this mess for man, he was hopeless to rescue himself. But God provided the rescue in Jesus!! Through Him we are restored to the relationship we were created to experience; that of God's fellowship with man. Man's true significance and purpose are found only when this relationship has been reconciled. The greater our understanding and application of this reconciliation, the greater our purpose and hope in Him grows.

3. It is the power of God.
What man is unable to do on his own, God does for us in Christ. We have salvation, forgiveness, and power to be transformed. We are no longer what we were, but we begin to recognize and become who we were created to be. He gives healing and deliverance from the strongholds of sin. We have power given by His Spirit to follow His commands.

4. It raises our eyes to heaven.
And gets them off ourselves. We begin to ascribe to God the greatness and glory He is due. We see the greatest thing in this world is not ourselves, but the God who created us. Who can begin to speak of His worth? Yet we see glimpses of how great He is. We stand on the edge of grandeur and stop thinking about ourselves as we take in all God is and does.

5. It helps us see others.
How can a heart touched by the love and kindnesses of God fail to pass that love on to others just as needy and broken as we are? We begin to love not for what we can gain from our acts love, but out of what we have gained from the love of God.

Tell of the cross where they nailed Him, writhing in anguish and pain; Tell of the grave where they laid Him, Tell how He liveth again. Love in the story so tender, clearer than ever I see: stay, let me weep while you whisper, Love paid the ransom for me.