Resource Manager Posted December 30, 2012 Report Share Posted December 30, 2012 Now for the Good News “Here is the News...” We have been so long accustomed to hearing of strife, disaster, violence and war, that when we hear the news reader announce that he is about to read out details of the latest happenings on Earth we almost instinctively expect to receive some more bad news. And we are not usually disappointed. Even allowing for the fact that the mass media tend to concentrate on the more sensational aspects of men’s affairs (bombings, hi-jackings, murders, industrial strife, and the like) it is still true to say that, generally speaking, the news is gloomy and foreboding, rather than inspiring and joyous. There are still a lot of good and beautiful things being done in the world, passing almost unnoticed, but on the massive screen of world affairs the news is bad, and one can laugh wryly at the small boy who is said to have told his friend, “Mum’s given up reading horror stories—she looks at the news on television instead.” According to the Bible, this state of affairs is to be expected before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ to the Earth. Indeed, he himself predicted it, and said that there would be a time of unprecedented trouble before his advent (Matthew 24:21-22). So it may well be that matters will get worse before they get better; but the assurance we have as Christians is that one day the bad news will end, and GOOD will prevail on Earth. The Gospel is “GOOD NEWS” This is the very meaning of the word “gospel”, and it is what the Christian message is all about. When Jesus Christ was born at Bethlehem, the announcement made by angels from heaven was that it was GOOD NEWS FOR THE HUMAN RACE Luke 2:10-14). “For to you is born this day, in the city of David, a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord.” The Bible never plays down the sorry plight into which the human race has fallen, because of man’s disobedience to God’s laws. It paints in clear pictures the hollowness and heartbreak which have resulted from sin; the cruelty, vice and violence which defile men’s relationships with one another; the selfishness, greed and thoughtlessness which have turned them away from God. And because it is the Word of God the Bible expresses the divine hatred of these evil things. Yet it still brings GOOD NEWS. It proclaims Christ as the answer to man’s need, whether we look at that need in the personal lives of each individual; or on the national, international, or global scale. There is no other way out of the present impasse. There is no other answer to our individual problems and fears. Christ is the answer, and he alone. When he is in the Earth again, things will be different. The Bible speaks of a time when “ the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea,” (Isaiah 11:3) and it says that all the heartache of the present will one day give place to such happiness that it could almost be said that all creation is to be reborn (Romans 8:18-25). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted December 30, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 30, 2012 GOOD NEWS for men who are tired of politicians Let’s be fair to the politicians. Many of them are sincere and able men who genuinely desire to work for the improvement of the human condition. Others may be more concerned with the promotion of their own image, their own party, or even their own prosperity. But, generally speaking, the public are a little tired of their political jugglery with the great issues facing mankind, and it cannot be said that, viewed world-wide, the politicians have been very successful in solving the world’s problems. Many people, of all shades of political opinion, have seen a Central World Government of all nations as the only long term solution. But efforts to initiate such a Utopian idea have proved the truth of what the Bible said long ago, that men are not capable of directing their affairs on their own, without God (Jeremiah 10:23). The well-meaning endeavours of the League of Nations exploded in the face of the Nazi war in 1939; and the peacekeeping role of the “United Nations” which succeeded it has in the main been ineffective. The GOOD NEWS which Christians have to offer men who are tired of politicians is that the Almighty has already set out in the Bible His own plans for a future World Government, ruled by Jesus Christ, assisted in the work by his loyal servants of all the ages past (Acts 17:31). This means that the Lord Jesus Christ will return to the earth at last, with “power and great glory,” as he himself declared, and will raise up from death those who are “asleep in him,” to give them eternal life and an inheritance in his everlasting Kingdom. This “Kingdom of God,” as it is called in the Bible, will be a universal empire, with the government centred in Jerusalem, from which city the Lord Jesus Christ himself will reign over all nations (Matthew 5:35). This is God’s eternal purpose, to end the reign of sin in the world and to bring the blessings of goodness and truth to all nations of the earth. It was foretold throughout Old Testament times that the day would come when “the God of heaven shall set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed,” (Daniel 2:44) and for it Jesus taught us to pray “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in Heaven.” When this takes place it will spell the end for all human politics and nationalistic policies, and the dream of “World Government” for the good of all peoples will become a reality. The GOOD NEWS which the Bible brings is that this World Empire will belong to Jesus Christ, and not to the politicians. It will therefore be administered in justice and love, and it will endure for ever... (Psalm 72:17). GOOD NEWS for men who are weary of war If you asked the man in the street what is the biggest threat to our civilization today, he would probably name “inflation.” Or he might say “over-population,” or “pollution.” And, of course, all these are certainly causes of anxiety to those who are able to assess their potential dangers. But the greatest threat of all must certainly be WAR. Quite apart from the danger of ultimate extinction by any future atomic war, the threat of war and the fear of war are largely responsible for the other problems facing mankind. Since the last world war of 1939-45 there has scarcely been any period without a war going on somewhere in the world. Korea, Vietnam, the Middle East, Cyprus, have all been arenas of bloody combat lasting in some cases for many years, with tens of thousands killed and wounded; and draining away the resources not only of the direct combatants but of the great powers behind them. What a waste of manpower! What a waste of wealth and resources! But that is only part of the picture. To all this diabolical wastage of earth’s riches and manpower must be added the constant drain caused by the maintenance of huge armies all over the world, with the technical equipment and material resources needed to support them. If only the threat of war could be banished for ever, and the mood of suspicion and fear replaced by mutual understanding and confidence between the nations of the world; if only the invisible “iron curtain” could be torn down, and East and West could abandon their defence systems and disband their armies; if only all that expertise, all that massive annual expenditure of money and materials, could be put to the peaceful pursuits of industry and agricultural development, for the betterment of the lot of the poorer peoples of the earth, what a different world it would be! The GOOD NEWS of the Bible is that this is going to happen—in the Kingdom of God on earth. There will be no more war, ever again. The wealth and resources now used up fruitlessly on wholesale destruction, inflicting pain and suffering and death on fellow human beings, will be transmuted into the peaceful and productive tools of a new society, intent now on serving the Lord and helping one another. In the graphic words of the Old Testament prophet: “they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruninghooks. Nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more” (Micah 4:3). Perhaps in these last words is the clue to the tremendous change which will take place. “They will not learn war...” Under the leadership and instruction of the Lord Jesus Christ men will lose the desire to harm their fellows. The spirit of his Sermon on the Mount will be the law of life in his Kingdom, and violence of all kinds, hatred and animosity, will be banished from the world. That is GOOD NEWS indeed for men who are weary of war. 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Resource Manager Posted December 30, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 30, 2012 GOOD NEWS for the neglected and hungry peoples of the world It has already been suggested that if war were to be outlawed from the earth it would go a long way to meeting the other needs of mankind, by releasing energy and wealth for the development of the “poor relations” in the so-called Third World. And this is exactly what the Bible foretells. In a beautiful prophetic Psalm (Psalm 72), on which is based a very famous hymn (“Jesus shall reign where’er the sun, doth his successive journeys run”) we find that immediately following the description of an “abundance of peace” in the earth is the solemn promise that “he shall deliver the needy when he crieth, the poor also and him that hath no helper.” How could it be otherwise, when Jesus is King! He always was on the side of the poor and oppressed, and when he takes control of earth’s affairs we may be sure he will see that the wealth of nations is fairly distributed. Moreover, the earth itself will be made to bring forth more abundantly (Psalm 72:16; Amos 9:13), and the vast desert regions will be cultivated and become productive and beautiful (Isaiah 35:1 etcetera), contributing their full quota to the needs and happiness of mankind. If any should be inclined to laugh this off as a fantasy, let him remember that we have seen it happen already, in our own times, in the Land of Israel. There, a land which was largely sand and scrub and infectious marshes has already been made to “blossom as the rose.” And this Land of Israel is but a pale prototype of what can happen, and will happen, in the Kingdom of God. There will be a rich supply of Earth’s produce for all the population of the world, and it will be distributed by an administration that will care for all mankind with equal love. Isn’t that GOOD NEWS? GOOD NEWS for the sick and dying Death is not a subject for polite conversation—it is deadly serious. “Good News” about sickness and death is almost a contradiction in terms. Yet the Bible speaks hopefully of a time when “there shall be no more death” (Revelation 21:4), and when all the heartbreak of mankind will be healed, because Christ the Life-giver will be in the earth again. This does not mean that by a wave of the wand he will make everybody immortal, for it is clear that the peoples of the earth during the period of his Kingdom will still be subject to death, though human life will be prolonged, so that a person dying at 100 years of age will be considered a child by comparison with his much older contemporaries (Isaiah 65:20). The health-giving effects of the presence of Jesus in the earth, and the beneficial influence of his laws, will undoubtedly result in human life being lived in the most perfect conditions possible, and disease and physical affliction will be reduced to an absolute minimum (Isaiah 35:5,6). At the end of the reign of Christ over the nations, death itself will be finally and for ever abolished (1 Corinthians 24-26), and all those who have lived obediently and faithfully will swell the company of the redeemed in sharing the divine nature, being made equal to the angels and consequently not subject to death (Luke 20:36). Now you may well think that though this sounds very good news for some future generation, it is cold comfort to those who are sick and dying at the present time. But the truth is that we are all in this condition from God’s point of view (Ephesians 2:1-5), and all equally in need of the life-giving power of Christ. Whether we are physically suffering from some disastrous illness or walking around in abounding good health, the fact is that we all need to repent and turn to God, and believe His Word; to be baptized into the name of His Son our Saviour, and to walk in the steps of the Master, if we wish to be able to face death with any degree of confidence and hope. For he only is “The Resurrection and the Life,” (John 11:25) and deliverance from our mortal state can only come by faith in him (John 3:16). Christian men and women still experience disease and death, the same as their non-Christian neighbours; but they have the assurance of resurrection and eternal life to be enjoyed at the coming of the Lord in his Kingdom. So they “do not grieve as others do, who have no hope” (1 Thessalonians 4:13). They are enabled, by their faith in Christ, to look beyond the present time of evil to the conquest of death, which was made possible by his own resurrection on the third day after his crucifixion. The Lord, who shed tears over the death of his friend Lazarus, understands the sadness and heartbreak of suffering and death, and offers this GOOD NEWS to all who will become his followers: “Your brother shall rise again” (John 11:23). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted December 30, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 30, 2012 GOOD NEWS for those who can’t cope with life The gospel of Jesus Christ is not something related only to a future life; to a time still distant when the Kingdom is established on earth. That is the day when Christians receive their final reward. But the gospel is good news for the present life, too. The apostle Paul wrote to believers to tell them that following Christ was intended to be a blessing to men in this life, as well as that which is to come (1 Timothy 4:8). And this is perhaps especially true in this day and age, when so many people are going under in the struggle to survive the pressures and anxieties of a materialistic society. Never before in man’s history have the common people of the earth shared so largely in its riches. The “blessings” of earthly possessions are more widely distributed than ever, with television, radio, washing machines, motor cars, holidays abroad etc. being enjoyed by the masses. Speed of transport and communication has resulted in Mr. and Mrs. Everyman being able to sit over their tea and watch the day’s happenings taking place before their eyes. All this is very wonderful, of course, but it does bring its human problems, and there has been inevitably an increase in the number of those who crack. Nervous breakdowns, mental ill-health and the inability to cope with the demands of modern living have shown a dramatic increase. Deep down in the hearts of millions of people, apparently enjoying such high standards of living, is a cry for help. In many cases this cry becomes loud and clear, and the growth of numbers employed in the Social Services emphasises the failure of modern life to satisfy men’s real needs. The GOOD NEWS of Christ is that if men and women will only listen to his teaching, and try to put it into practice, they will find the answer to their need. “For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and love, and of a sound mind,” was the confident assertion of Paul (2 Timothy 1:7) who knew more about “pressure” than most men. Jesus Christ never pretended that life for his disciples would be easy. He never made light of the temptations and pressures to which they would be subject. But what he promised them, and promises us, is peace inside ourselves (John 1:33). He himself had this total inward calm, even when he was about to be crucified, because he had got life sorted out and knew where he was going and why; and he had learned to rest himself wholly in his Heavenly Father. This “peace” he offers to all believers— “My peace I give unto you,” he said. What GOOD NEWS is this, for a generation that, for all its material progress and prosperity, seems to have lost the secret of being able to live with itself. What GOOD NEWS for those who find it difficult to cope with life in this speed-crazy, sex-crazy, sport-crazy, money-crazy world! “Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Here is the recipe for truly successful living, and for a peace of mind which cannot be bought with money, and which the world today, with all its allurements and electronic gadgets, has missed out on. It is the GOOD NEWS that in Christ you can find “rest for your souls.” Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted December 30, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 30, 2012 GOOD NEWS for the lonely An elderly lady once said that she liked a coal fire because it was “company” for her in her lonely one-room flat. This remark highlights one of the greatest sadnesses of our world—loneliness. That human beings, needing, and often crying out for love should have to find companionship in an inarticulate coal fire, is a tragedy. (If they can’t afford the coal to make the fire, or are deprived of it by industrial action on the part of others, it is an even greater tragedy!). Yet there must be thousands of people in every country who are afflicted, not by any physical or mental disability, nor by oppressive penury, but by a deep sense of loneliness—a feeling that the world is going about its own business, and nobody cares about them. The Bible has GOOD NEWS for such people. It is that God cares for them, and is willing to become their friend—if they want Him to. Jesus Christ promised all those who follow him that he would be with them always— “even to the close of the age” (Matthew 26:20). One of the great saints of the New Testament wrote that when all other men seemed to have forsaken him, still the Lord stood by him and strengthened him (2 Timothy 4:16-17). Although we may not aspire to the same heights as Paul, yet it is still true today as ever, that the Lord will be “a father of the fatherless and protector of widows” (Psalm 68:5) and if we really put our trust in Him we shall never walk alone. But there is another way in which his companionship can be enjoyed by the lonely. It is through the fellowship of his men and women on earth. We in the Christadelphian Church like to think that our meetings are welcoming and homely places to be in. We try to give a welcome to lonely people who seek in our company the warmth and friendliness of Christ. Our services are simple and happy occasions, when we meet around God’s word and worship together with those “of like precious faith”; and many a lonely person has found in the fellowship of believers a love and companionship not experienced in the world. It was the Lord Jesus himself who said that anybody willing to give up anything to become his disciple would find himself amply repaid, even now, in this life, with (among other blessings) “brothers and sisters, mothers and children” (Mark 10:30); that is to say, friendships and loved ones in Christ which would far exceed any loss caused by obeying the call of Christ. All this is promised in the present life, while in the eternal life of the Kingdom there will be opportunity to meet and converse with “the great multitude which no man could number” of redeemed and immortal men and women from all the ages past. Nobody will ever again be lonely then. GOOD NEWS for sinners That’s an old-fashioned evangelistic word— sinners! Perhaps men don’t talk about “sin” today so much as they used to, but it is still there, even if they prefer to use phrases like “guilt complexes,” or “psychological maladjustment,” and blame it all on their parents, or the older generation or the government. The Bible says that all disobedience to God’s laws is sin (1 John 3:4), and any failure to do what we know to be right is also sin (James 4:16-17). Most normal men and women have some consciousness of right and wrong, and are aware of their failure to live up to what they know to be right. In some people this creates a deep sense of inadequacy or even guilt, which if not dealt with can have adverse effects on mental health. But most people prefer to sweep it under the carpet or pretend it’s not there. The Bible, however, brings it out into the open, and teaches us that this sin, which is in every one of us, is the cause of all our human troubles. Death itself, and all that goes to make up our mortal state (sickness, pain, sorrow and suffering etc.) are directly the result of human transgression of God’s laws, in the beginning and ever since (Romans 5:12). Nor is it possible for men to redeem themselves from this state, however much they try, because every one of us is a sinner and therefore “guilty before God.” The GOOD NEWS proclaimed in the gospel is that Jesus Christ “came into the world to save sinners.” His perfect life of obedience to God, and his death on the Cross as a “sacrifice” for sins, demonstrated the love of God, and his own love, for fallen humanity, and offered to sinful men a way of escape, and a means of becoming acceptable to God. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16). For people who are not aware of sin, and have no interest in eternal life, this is no news at all. “Let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die” is a philosophy of hopelessness. But for those who long to feel at peace with God, and consequently with themselves and their fellow-men, the message of Christ is the answer to their greatest need. By faith in his message and baptism into his name, a man or woman can begin a new life and enter into a new relationship with God. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). This is the GOOD NEWS that can enable us to live with ourselves—and with God. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted December 30, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 30, 2012 BAD NEWS, too! Most good news has a bad side to it, for somebody. “It’s a good wind that blows nobody any harm” is as true as the other way round. If somebody discovered a way of running motor cars on water instead of petrol, most of us would think it to be excellent news; but if I were a petrol station owner I should think it disastrous. When the German High Command surrendered unconditionally after the last war there were unprecedented celebrations all over the world —but gloom in Germany. So the good news of the gospel is bad news for the wicked, for it means the end of their evil reign. The message of the Bible, that Jesus Christ is to come back to earth, and take over the government of the world, is a splendid piece of GOOD NEWS to all those who desire to see God’s will established in the earth, but must sound like the crack of doom to those whose only desire is to perpetuate their own rule. Jesus made it clear that the present world-order is doomed. He said that the time of his advent would be like the days of the Great Flood, when the whole race of men was caught unprepared, and destroyed; or like the time of God’s judgment on Sodom, which was overwhelmed in a sudden cataclysm. “So it will be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed,” he said (Luke 17:26-30). Is that GOOD NEWS, or bad? The answer to that question will reveal where we personally stand in relation to the divine purpose. If all we want to see is the continuation of man’s rule of folly and wickedness it will be bad news for us. But if we really and truly wish to see the world cleansed from violence and pollution of all kinds, and inhabited by a race of men and women giving grateful praise to God, then although we may shrink from the awful judgments that must inevitably precede it, we shall welcome the promised outcome as the best news we could possibly receive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted December 30, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 30, 2012 Even some of the bad news may be GOOD NEWS This may sound like a contradiction, but it’s true. If somebody you knew had an operation, you might think it to be bad news —until it was explained to you that the operation had been totally successful in saving his life. In the same way, a lot of what is going on now in the world, while it is dark and foreboding in itself, can be seen in a good light when the Bible is understood, for it is an indication that the events described in this booklet are near at hand. Jesus Christ himself spoke of the days before his Second Coming as a time of unrest and international turbulence, “men fainting with fear and foreboding of what is coming on the world” (Luke 21:26). If we see this taking place we need not be depressed but should rather look up and raise our heads because our redemption is drawing near (Luke 21:28). Here are some other signs given in the Bible which indicate the approach of the New Age— The world-wide increase in violence (Genesis 6:11; Luke 17:26).The spread of sexual irresponsibility (2 Timothy 3:1-6). The decline in religious observance (Luke 18:8).Israel’s re-establishment as a nation (Luke 21:24).Russia’s emergence as a great military power (Ezekiel 38:1-9).Strife in the Middle East (Zechariah 12:2). So when you hear of these things in the news broadcasts or read of them in your newspapers, don’t be too distressed. Jesus said that such things “must needs be” before the end should come. But if we keep our eyes turned, and our ears tuned, to the wonderful things promised in the future, when he returns “in power and great glory,” it will help us to keep our sanity and not despair of mankind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted December 30, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 30, 2012 What are you going to do about it? The Kingdom of God will come, whatever we do or think about it. It is the determined purpose of the Almighty. All the GOOD NEWS of the gospel is there in the Bible for us to take, both for our present and our future satisfaction. But there is no compulsion, and God has given us the freewill to choose what we want out of life. This is the essential challenge of Christ to us individually Do we really want the salvation for which he died on the cross? Do we really want to live in his fellowship in this life, and enjoy his presence in the life to come? Do we really want to see God’s will done on earth as in heaven? Do we really want to live in the Kingdom Christ will establish at his return? Are we prepared to take the steps which will make these things a reality for us? If we can say “Yes” to these questions, and mean it, then the gospel is GOOD NEWS to us, and we shall really be able to face the present and the future unafraid. LEN RICHARDSON A number of passages are quoted from the R.S.V. Christadelphian Auxiliary Lecturing Society http://www.godsaves.co.uk NowForTheGoodNewsRichardsonCBMR.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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