The Good News of Jesus Christ

The Gospel Is the Power of God to Save.

Romans 1:16 says,

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

Later on in Romans 10:13–17, Paul writes,

For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, "Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?" So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

It is in the preaching, hearing, and believing of the gospel of Jesus Christ that the lives of men, women, boys, and girls are changed. Belief in the gospel gifts a person eternal life with God (John 3:16). Belief in the gospel plants a seed that is able to subvert the most evil of social ills in any era (Philemon). Belief in the gospel produces a supernatural community (Ephesians 2:11–22). Belief in the gospel frees the soul from the penalty, power, and presence of sin (Romans). There is no other power like it on the earth. Matt Chandler recently preached at the Moody Church's Founders Week. He told the story of how he toured the ruins of the Roman Coliseum. It was a place where the once powerful empire tortured and martyred Christians. However today, it is the Coliseum that is in ruins, and the gospel keeps thriving and changing the lives of people who believe.

Know the Gospel.

There are videos, audio messages, and summary verses from the Bible that describe God's work through Jesus Christ to save souls from sin and death. Here are some of those resources:

The Story Film by Spread Truth

The StoryMaker Short Film for Children by Spread Truth

The Gospel of the Kingdom by The Bible Project

Steps to Peace with God from The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association

The Romans Road

The Romans Road are a selection of Bible verses from the book of Romans that many have used to understand God's plan of salvation. Rom. 3:10 — "As it is written: 'None is righteous, no, not one.'" Rom. 3:23 — "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (See also Isaiah 53:6; 59:1–2; 64:6.) Rom. 5:12  — "Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned." Rom. 6:23 — "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Rom. 5:8 — "But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (See also John 3:16.) Rom. 10:9–13 — "Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. ¹¹ For the Scripture says, 'Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.' ¹² For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. ¹³ For 'everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.'” (See also John 1:11–13; Ephesians 2:8–10.)

Obey the Gospel.

The first step to obey the gospel is to believe it. Believe it for the forgiveness of your sins; believe it for a new, abundant, and eternal life with God. The second step to obey the gospel is to begin a life of prayer by confessing to God your belief in the good news of Jesus Christ. Continue learning to pray by reading the prayers of the New Testament: Matthew 6:9–13; Ephesians 3:14–21; Philippians 1:9–11; 2 Thessalonians 1:11–12. The third step to obey the gospel is to expand your knowledge of the good news of Jesus Christ by becoming more familiar with the Bible, which is God's revealed word and story. You can learn a lot about the Bible by visiting The Bible Project, which offers short videos about every book in the Bible and other videos about special topics in the Bible. The fourth step to obey the gospel is to connect yourself with a local, believing community. Belief in the gospel calls you to become a part of God's church. In the local church, you will be part of a community of believers who worship God, are learning to pray, who are learning more about the gospel in God's word, and who are working to tell others about the good news of Jesus Christ. In your local church, you should publicly declare your faith in Jesus Christ through water baptism and by regular participation in the Lord's Supper. May God lead you to the local church where you can grow in your faith, hope, and love. If you are in the Kendall or Grundy County area of Illinois, we at West Lisbon Church would love to be your local church.

Don't Wait.

As Billy Graham says in the video above, indecision is a decision. Don't wait for some imaginary opportune moment.  Trust that God is moving in your life now, and believe in the good news of Jesus Christ's death and resurrection today.