The Gospel According to . . .
“At that time Jesus said,
(The Gospel According to Matthew 11: 25-27 NASB)
“I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent
[Jesus refers to those people living in Capernaum who could not SEE JESUS
even through the miracles He did within their city]
and have revealed them to the infants.
[Jesus refers to those people who SEE JESUS & become a child of God]
Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight.
[truly, there is only ONE WAY to receive God’s Amazing Grace!]
All things have been handed over to Me by My Father;
and no one knows the Son except the Father;
nor does anyone know the Father except the Son,
and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.”
When a person SEES JESUS & receives JESUS as his SAVIOR, then that person comes to know the FATHER, to know GOD through GOD’S SON!
To know JESUS as our SAVIOR is to come to know ALMIGHTY GOD!
Pause to think of the magnitude of what JESUS CHRIST has revealed to those who know HIM as their SAVIOR!
- This blessing can only come through God Himself!
- This blessing represents the summit of one’s life!
Once we receive JESUS as our SAVIOR, we are changed forever!
- Our name becomes CHRISTIAN!
- Our being, our soul is changed from the INSIDE OUT as GOD HIMSELF PLACES HIS HOLY SPIRIT WITHIN US, CHANGING US COMPLETELY, MAKING US NEW!
- We are forevermore changed & we are forevermore never the same!
- We are now gifted with God’s Promise of our future in heaven with Him forever!
TAYA sings a melody we should pause to listen to—”Gonna Be Good”—as we ponder JUST EXACTLY WHAT GOD HAS DONE FOR US!
Numerous times, I have found myself typing these words: The Gospel According to . . . . As I read The Gospel According to Matthew this morning, I am struck by the enormity of these four words:
The Gospel According to . . .
To understand where my heart resides this morning, return to read (The Gospel According to Matthew 11: 25-27 NASB). I will wait as you re-read this passage.
Each Gospel is recorded by a person who knew God personally, who was inspired to record what God led that person to write. The Bible is the inspired, inerrant WORD of GOD!
Are you an infant who has received God’s revelation? Praise God if you can answer, “Yes! Yes, I am a child of Almighty God!”
- Receiving Christ as your Savior—remains the epitome of one’s life here on earth!
- Receiving Jesus as your Savior—exists as the ultimate blessing of one’s life here on earth!
- Knowing God as your Father through the only way possible—JESUS—Life rests upon this one gift—God’s Amazing Grace of Salvation!
In order to receive God’s Salvation, a person must have child-like faith to realize that he desperately needs JESUS. The lost person needs to see his hopelessness in all its voidness, to understand how he so needs the LORD’S BLESSING!
At that moment in time when someone—
1ST—ADMITS HE IS ENSLAVED TO SIN & BELIEVES JESUS AT HIS WORD!
2ND—ASKS JESUS TO REMOVE THE HEAVY LOAD OF GUILT! & THEN
3RD—CONFESSES HIS DESPERATE NEED TO RECEIVE JESUS AS SAVIOR & LORD!
“And you were dead in your trespasses and sins,
[Once because of your disobedience and many sins.]
in which you formerly walked
- according to the course of this world,
- according to the prince of the power of the air,
- of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.”
[You used to live in sin just as the rest of the word,
- obeying the devil, the power of the unseen world, following Satan,
- who is at work in all of those who refuse to Accept, Believe, & Confess their sins.]
[BUT JESUS invites us to know HIM, to Receive HIM, to allow HIM to become LORD of our lives!]
“Among them we too all formerly lived
- in the lusts of our flesh,
- indulging the desires of the flesh
- and of the mind,
- and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.
But God,
- being rich in mercy,
- because of His great love with which He loved us,
even when we were dead in our transgressions,
- made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),
- and raised us up with Him,
- and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,
so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
For by grace you have been saved through faith;
and that not of yourselves,
it is the gift of God;
not as a result of works,
so that no one may boast.
For we are His workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus for good works,
which God prepared beforehand
so that we would walk in them.”
(The Letter of Paul to the Ephesians 2: 1-10 NASB)
We Have Been Made Alive in Christ!
At the moment of SALVATION, each person reaches the pinnacle of the purpose of one’s life—to know God through the saving grace found through His Only Son Jesus!
At the second a person becomes God’s child, we receive a testimony.
The Gospel According to . . .
This does not mean the Gospel message changes with each person!
NO! NEVER!
What this means is that our personal testimony is just that—PERSONAL!
The Gospel According to Nancy, personal to me—my testimony to tell, my story of how Jesus came into my heart and changed me from the inside out!
If you too have received the precious, free gift of God’s Salvation, then you, too, have a story to tell, a testimony, a witness, and you too have The Gospel According to ___________ (fill in your first name).
At the very second of our acceptance of God’s Salvation, Jesus’ prayer becomes our own personal praise we can lift to our Father God.
YES, at that moment in time, Jesus’ words become our words!
- The “I” takes on a whole new significance as we lift our praise to our Father!
- The “I” becomes “Thank You, God, for sending Your Son Jesus so that we can be saved!”
“At that time Jesus said,
(The Gospel According to Matthew 11: 25-26 NASB)
“I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent
and have revealed them to the infants.
Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight.
At the moment we become God’s child, we receive God’s Promises—ALL of them!
Only at the moment a person gives his heart to JESUS can this happen.
Pause to read with me the words of the SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST.
“At that time Jesus said,
(The Gospel According to Matthew 11: 25-30 NASB)
“I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent
and have revealed them to the infants.
Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight.
All things have been handed over to Me by My Father;
and no one knows the Son except the Father;
nor does anyone know the Father except the Son,
and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.
[REALIZE THE PROMISE JESUS REVEALS TO THE ONE WHO DESIRES TO BECOME CHRIST’S]
Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.
Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me,
for I am gentle and humble in heart,
and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.
For My yoke is easy and
My burden is light.”