To Encourage You

Colossians 1:5-6 “the word of the truth, the gospel, which has come to you . . . indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and increasing”

Do you realize that the gospel of Jesus Christ is meant for the whole world? The gospel of the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus is the only real spiritual “good news,” (for that’s what the word “gospel” means) in the entire world. And it indeed is good news for the whole world.  There isn’t one kind of spiritual good news for the United States, another one for Europe, another one for Asia, and another one for Africa. There isn’t one type of spiritual “good news” for the Buddhists of the world, another for Moslems, another for Mormons, another for Christian Scientists, and another for atheists.  There is only one gospel, and it’s the same for everyone on the face of the earth who either has lived, is alive today, or will live in the future.  It is this gospel of Jesus as specifically presented in the Bible that bears true spiritual fruit when it is presented around the world.  Indeed, there is not only one gospel, but also “one Lord, one faith, one baptism,one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Ephesians 4:5-6). 

Of course, there are other messages that some call “gospels.” There are some that are very close to the true gospel, but they are at odds with the Truth, and therefore they are not good news at all.  Paul was dealing with this in the Galatian church.  In Galatia, there were certain Jews who were trying to convince the new believers there that in order for them to be saved and have eternal life, they had to not only believe in Christ, but also follow all the Jewish ceremonial laws.  Regarding this form of the gospel Paul was very clear.  His words to the Galatian church were as follows: “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed” (Galatians 1:8). Very strong words about a very serious threat to the early church.  And if that’s true for a gospel that is so close to the real thing, what about other spiritual ideas propagated around the world that are much more divergent and not even close to what the Bible says. 

The Bible is clear. There is only one gospel that truly bears spiritual fruit across the entire world. It’s the gospel recorded for us in God’s word. No variations on this message will do. No other “gospel” will tell people how to be forgiven of their sin and accepted into heaven when they die.  Many other gospels may claim this for themselves, but they are all, each and every one of them, nothing more than lies. They have been introduced to the human race, sometimes very subtly but often not so subtly, not by our Savior, but rather by the enemy of our souls.

May any other message at odds with the true gospel of Jesus Christ and those who propagate these lies be cursed. That’s what the Bible says about them, the Bible that has given us the true gospel that alone contains the one and only true message of eternal life for the whole world.