The news is going to get out...

I have met church-goers who seem to treat their 'religious life' as though it was something they could hold so close to the cuff that no one else could actually know the God they serve. It is as though they think they have some 'inside track' with this God-thing, but in reality no one really has found a 'more right' way to heaven than to believe in the finished work of the cross accomplished by Christ himself. No one who really serves Christ whole-heartedly is able to 'shut-off' their 'religious life' just because it a workday and not the sabbath. In truth, our life isn't 'religious' if we are followers of Christ - it is a genuine relationship that carries into all the days and hours of our week.

He wants not only us but everyone saved, you know, everyone to get to know the truth we’ve learned: that there’s one God and only one, and one Priest-Mediator between God and us—Jesus, who offered himself in exchange for everyone held captive by sin, to set them all free. Eventually the news is going to get out. This and this only has been my appointed work: getting this news to those who have never heard of God, and explaining how it works by simple faith and plain truth. (I Timothy 2:5-6)

The news is going to get out - God wants everyone saved - not just some, not just the 'special' or 'elite' - but everyone. That means the dead-beat dad, the street person begging for a few dollars on the side of the roadway, and the single mom struggling to work two jobs and raise three snotty-nosed kiddos on her own. Truth be told - the dead-beat dad just didn't know how to take his responsibility seriously, but God can set that straight in his life. The down and out street dweller may not have chosen his lot in life, but circumstances just stacked up against his favor - God can set him in a place of honor once again. That mom desires only good for her kiddos - God can bless her life fully. 

The 'news' isn't super-secret - it is that there is ONE God and ONLY ONE. That may seem like it isn't the main part of this message - if you thought that, you are right! There are two messages here - the first being the one I just told you. The second being that Christ is our means of access to this ONE TRUE GOD. Simple faith and plain truth - they go hand in hand. We make 'religion' about all the complicated 'rules' or 'means' by which we may approach a holy God. Jesus sets us straight on that one - there are no complicated rules and there is only ONE means by which we access this holy God - HIM.

The message is clear - get to know him - through the good news God shared with us - his Word. No one gets to heaven on his own merit - there is a way made for each of us by the blood of Jesus. There is only way into that 'way' - simple faith and plain truth. We place our faith in this finished work of the cross and then we trust the truth we are given in his Word. In turn, his Word begins to do the work the cross began - taking that initial 'grace infusion' and building upon it each and every day of our lives. Christianity isn't about a one-time work, it is about a continual renewal of that 'grace infusion' accomplished at the cross those many years ago. As we celebrate Easter today, let's never forget the news that was shared that day and every day since - God, the ONE TRUE GOD - desires relationship with ALL of us. Just sayin!