The Gospel of God’s Grace: Good News for Broken People
In a world that often seems broken and disconnected from God, the Gospel of God’s Grace offers hope and redemption. This Gospel is the good news of the free gift of eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ.
Who is this message for? It is for all people. It is “good news for a broken world.” Yet this raises riles up those who insist the world isn’t broken.
Maybe we should say it is “good news for sinful people.” But people don’t really consider themselves sinful anymore, so that’s a bit offensive and problematic.
To be completely honest, we could call it Good News for Those Who Realize They Have a Sin Problem and Want to be Close to God and Have Eternal Life. I mean, this is to whom Jesus gave eternal life. This is accurate, but too long.
The Gospel of God’s Grace: Good News for Those Who Realize They Have a Sin Problem and Want to be Close to God and Have Eternal Life.
But describing who the good news is for raises a problem. The good news isn’t perceived as “good” unless you accept the bad news: the universal reality that all people are born sinful and separated from God.
Anyone who’s ever intended to do the right thing, even simple things, like being more thoughtful or generous, not getting angry or worried, being a perfect mom, overcoming an addiction, or dieting without cheating, can attest to the Bible’s claim that there is a flaw in all of us. Our software is corrupted. Our emotions get the best of us. We hold grudges. We do certain things that we said we’d never ever do.
Jesus said human nature is so governed by sin that we need a new heart; we must be born again, born from above.
Jesus said human nature is so governed by sin that we need a new heart; we must be born again, born from above.
One might argue, “I don’t believe in a sinful nature. Humans are inherently good. I’m a good person.”
Oh yeah, then love your wife and kids—perfectly! Never let them down. Never withhold affection. And love your neighbor, the one with yard signs for the candidate you hate and the one in the car in front of you. Jesus described loving our neighbor as meeting every need. Love and do good always, simply because that’s who you are, without wanting credit, applause, or a reward.
Trying to be our perfect selves makes it easy to see we lack the willpower and righteousness to be the people we want others to think we are, let alone merit eternal life.
This brings us to the good news—the Gospel of God’s Grace: God News for a Broken World.
A good acronym for grace is God’s Riches at Christ’s Expense. A short definition is God’s unmerited favor.
I favor Joseph Cooke’s definition: “Grace is the face love wears when it meets imperfection, weakness, failure, and sin… Grace is what love is and does when it meets the sinful and undeserving… Grace is what God does when He reaches down in love for us—sinful as we are—and welcomes us into a relationship with Him.”
“Grace is what God does when He reaches down in love for us—sinful as we are—and welcomes us into a relationship with Him.”
Grace picks the ungodly out of the crowd and speaks directly to them. Grace makes a bee-line for those who feel the farthest from God. That’s what Jesus did. He always met the person in need, the guilty, the hurting.
Yes, Jesus spoke with proud Pharisees and gave them the Law, but He enjoyed the company of humble sinners, spoke with them of God’s grace, and offered forgiveness and eternal life.
Jesus spoke with proud Pharisees and gave them the Law, but He enjoyed the company of humble sinners, spoke with them of God’s grace, and offered forgiveness and eternal life.
Many are aware of the weight of their sins. They don’t need the law preached at them. They need the good news of God’s grace: the forgiveness of sins, restoration to God, and eternal life available in Jesus Christ.
But what must we do? How can we be saved?
Jesus was asked this very question,
John 6:28 Therefore, they said to Him, “What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?” 29 Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.”
The only thing one can do is trust Jesus for eternal life, God’s favor, and forgiveness. He offers this free of charge to those who trust in Him: God’s Riches at Christ’s Expense. It’s an amazing message and it’s got God’s promises, Christ’s miracles, an empty tomb, a resurrected Savior, and millions of changed lives to prove it. May you believe it.
John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever … believes in Him … shall not perish … but have eternal life.