Tuesday, July 31, 2007

The Full Gospel

So, I woke up the other morning (Friday) with hymns of mercy in my head and focusing on mercy and grace (what a great thing to wake up to). so, I got ready for my day and then spent some time in the Word studying mercy. Really limited it to the NT that morning. The last verse I read that morning was Titus 3.3-7:
For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
How had I never focused on these verses before? Its like I had never read them (but of course I had), but God just opened my eyes to them that morning. Here is the full gospel in 5 verses:
Our state before Christ - slaves, foolish (saying there is no God), hated, doing evil
God's action (again the more reformed model of salvation) - only according to God's great mercy did Christ appear
Regeneration through the Holy Spirit
Justified (as if I had never sinned) by grace
Heirs to eternal life! That is our HOPE!
But, the thinking of it didn't end there. I text it to some of my girls. Then I got to church on Sunday morning (the Summit) and Chris allowed us to read it as a congregation. So, see, God just made me dwell on it all weekend. What a powerful way to tell your testimony. And its all because of God's goodness and kindness (Rom 2.4)

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