The Gospel

The Gospel of Jesus Christ has zero tolerance on the issue of salvation as a gift of grace. We are saved (from sin and it’s eternal consequences) by grace alone, through faith alone, through Christ alone, plus, NOTHING! Our good works are the result of our salvation never the cause of it. Grace is what distinguishes Christianity from all man-made religions.

Speaking the truth in love, when you want to share God’s plan of salvation, you must begin by gently telling the person you are sharing with, what the problem is before the solution will make sense. That is unless you are talking to a person who is already under condemnation (like the woman caught in the act of adultery). In a case like this, the only thing standing in between that person and everlasting life is a crystal-clear understanding of God’s grace and mercy. If they don’t see their need of God’s forgiveness they don’t understand what sin is. God is perfectly holy and perfectly just. That means He must punish sin or He would be unjust. God is also love which means He is merciful. So how does God reconcile justice and mercy without compromising one or the other? That is what the Gospel is all about. Keep reading.

Simply stated, it’s because we have broken God’s law (sinned against Him personally) that we need His forgiveness (grace). Every time someone dies, it establishes the fact that God’s law is still in force. Every death proves that the Law is still in effect. The Law says, “If you sin, you shall surely die (see Gen. 2:17; Rom. 6:23). All men die because all men sin.

Allowing a person to look into the mirror of God’s Law (defining sin) is the most: personal, powerful, politically incorrect, compelling, convicting, life-changing, most loving thing you can say and do for another human being! A person has to know they are condemned (by sin) before they can be converted (to Christ).

John 16:8 tells us,

“When the Holy Spirit comes, He will convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgment.”

The word, “convict” means to: “expose the hidden things and to chastise in a moral sense.” When you explain what sin is by gently and lovingly walking a person through the Ten Commandments, and explaining the spiritual application of each one, the Holy Spirit has maximum leverage to do what only He can.

Allowing a person to see himself in the mirror of God’s law allows them to see themselves as God sees them. Denying sin is no longer an option. Matthew 1:21 tells us that it is sin that Jesus came to save us from! According to the New Testament, God’s definition of sin has not changed. Sin is the transgression of God’s moral law as defined by the Ten Commandments: Matt. 5:17-19. Romans 2:15, 3:20, 3:31, 7:7, 7:12-14, 13:8-10, Gal. 3:24, 1 Tim. 1:8 and 1 John 3:4. It’s not the letter of the law but the spirit of the law (Romans 7:12-14) as Jesus revealed in Matthew 5:21-22, Matthew 5:27-28. Also see Matthew 19:16-22. The same principle is used by Jesus with Nicodemus in John 3 and the Woman at the well in John 4.

TRUE BIBLICAL EVANGELISM REQUIRES A COMPLETE PRESENTATION OF THE GOSPEL IN IT’S LITERAL, HISTORICAL, AND THEOLOGICAL CONTEXT

THE TRUE STORY OF THE WINDOW SALESMAN

Ideally, I like to build a rapport with someone before I drop this bomb in his or her life, but that is not always possible. One day I was expecting a window salesman to come by and give me an estimate on two new windows for my home.

The phone rang, and it was Bob from the window company. He said he was just around the corner and wanted to come by a little early. I was in the study, and my children were eagerly looking out the living room window in anticipation of his arrival. Shortly thereafter, I heard the children cry out, “He’s here, He’s here.”

We all watched as the man got out of his car. Like any good salesman, he began to “read” our house. He was looking for clues that might reveal something about us. Obviously, if a salesman can find a common denominator between himself and his client, he may be able to improve his chance of making the sale. Nothing wrong with that, just good salesmanship.

Well, our house is easy to read. There is a big cross in the living room window that lights up, and the bumper sticker on the car in the driveway said, “STUDY FOR YOUR FINAL EXAM; READ THE BIBLE!” As I said, our house is easy to read. Now, I’m not making this up. This is exactly how it went word for word.

I walked out to the side of the house and opened the gate. As my eyes met his, his first words were, “My dad was a Christian.” I asked, “Are you here from the window company?” He said, “And, my sister was a missionary!” I said, “You are from the window company!” He said, “Oh, yes. I’m from ___ Window Company, and I’m here to measure your windows.”

He then proceeded to tell me all about his dad and his sister. I enjoy a good sales presentation, so I decided to hear him out. After about five minutes I asked, “Bob, can we look at the windows now?”

When he came back with his estimate, he went right back to his dad and sister. After a couple of minutes, I asked, “Ah, excuse me, Bob, but, can I ask you a personal question?” He said, “Sure.” I said, “You’ve been telling me a lot about your dad and your sister, but where do you stand with God?” He said, “Oh, I’m fine.”

At this point, I got excited, because I knew I had a golden opportunity standing right in front of me in my own yard. I said,

“So, you believe in God?”

“Oh, yes,” he replied.

I followed with,

“If you died tonight, would you go to heaven or hell?”

“I’d go to heaven,” he said.

“On what basis?” I asked.

“Oh, I’ve been a good person,” was his reply.

I said, “Do you see your need of God’s forgiveness?”

He said, “No. I’ve never murdered anyone!”

I said, “I suppose if God compared you to Adolph Hitler, you’d probably compare very favorably. But, is that the standard God is going to use? Is He going to compare you to the worst person who ever lived and say, ‘Compared to him you look pretty good. Come on in?’”

Bob shrugged and said, “I don’t think so.”

“Well, what standard is God going to use?” I asked.

Bob’s reply was, “I don’t know; I don’t think anyone knows.”

Now, I really got excited!

I said, “Bob, I’m a chaplain at the Cook County Jail, and there are ten thousand men locked up there, and they’re all charged with a crime. If they’re found guilty, they’ll be judged according to the law. If you’re driving down the road going twenty-five miles an hour over the limit, and you run into the man who wears the star, you too will be judged by the law!

“Do you want to know how you can know that the Ten Commandments were written by God and not by man? If man wrote ’em, there’d be ten commandments and a thousand amendments!

THE FIRST COMMANDMENT IS:

YOU SHALL HAVE NO OTHER GODS BEFORE ME

Stated positively, that means you shall ‘Love the LORD your God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength.’ That means from the day you were born until the day you die, you will never put anything before God.

So, what does it mean to love God? Jesus said, ‘If you love Me you will obey My commands.’ But, God is perfect! Followed to its logical conclusion, to obey that commandment, according to God’s standard, would require perfect obedience, which is another way of saying sinless perfection. No mere man has ever loved God like that!

If the greatest commandment is to love God with all your heart, then the greatest sin cannot be murder. The greatest sin must be to not love the God who created you more than the things He created!

THE SECOND COMMANDMENT IS:

THOU SHALT NOT MAKE UNTO THEE ANY GRAVEN IMAGES

This inflatable elephant (Ganesh) is one of 330 million Hindu gods. Ganesh is the god of wisdom. When they’re done they deflate him and put him back in the box.

“You are not to make a god with your hands or with your mind. I have people tell me that my god is a god of love; he would never send anyone to hell. I agree with them. Their god would never send anyone to hell because their god doesn’t exist. He’s a god made in their own image. The Bible says that ‘God is a consuming fire,” who has a passion for justice, holiness, righteousness, and truth, who will by no means clear the guilty but will hold every man accountable for every idle word that he speaks.’” —Ray Comfort

The second commandment is referring to false religion. You can be wrong about a lot of things, but if you are wrong about who Jesus is, and what it means to believe in Him, you are wrong enough to spend eternity in hell (John. 8:24)!

THE THIRD COMMANDMENT IS:

YOU SHALL NOT TAKE THE NAME OF THE LORD IN VAIN

When a man stubs his toe, he usually takes the name God or the name Jesus; the name that is above every other name, the name which represents a blessing, and uses it as a curse!

The ancient Jew was so fearful of breaking this command that he dared not even speak the most holy name of God because the commandment goes on to say, ‘the LORD will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain.’

THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT IS:

REMEMBER THE SABBATH TO KEEP IT HOLY

The idea here is to take one day out of seven and to set aside all your worldly amusements, and any effort to better your position in this world and just rest. And in that rest, acknowledge the God who created you, the God who sustains you, and the God who purchased your salvation with His own blood (Acts 20:28). Our rest is in the finished work of Christ on the cross.

THE FIFTH COMMANDMENT IS:

HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER

Abraham Lincoln understood the value of the family

Abraham Lincoln once said,

The strength of a nation lies in the homes of its people. As go the families, so goes the nation.

Our world is in trouble because our families are in trouble. Many fathers have failed to take the role of spiritual leaders in their homes, and train their children to love God and to love their neighbors as themselves. When you dishonor your father and mother you dishonor God, because He commanded us to honor our parents and all in authority.

THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT IS:

THOU SHALT NOT MURDER

Jesus said, ‘You have heard that it was said, “You shall not murder . . .” but I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother (or calls him empty-headed or a fool) will be in danger of judgment and the fires of hell’ (Matt. 5:21, 22). When someone does something wrong to you, and you ‘decide’ not to forgive that person, you have already crossed the line of sin. Jesus taught that we are to forgive even as we have been forgiven (Matt. 6:14,15).

Second, when you choose not to forgive someone, you are putting yourself in the judgment seat of Christ; you are judging that person unworthy of forgiveness, which only God has the right to do. God says, ‘Vengeance is mine; I will repay’ (Rom.12:19). Third, refusing to forgive someone makes you a hypocrite with an arrogance beyond belief, because the very things you refuse to forgive in others (sin), you are guilty of yourself!

THE SEVENTH COMMANDMENTS IS:

THOU SHALT NOT COMMIT ADULTERY

Jesus said, ‘You have heard that it was said, “You shall not commit adultery.” But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust after her has committed adultery already, in his heart’ (Matt. 5:28). Only man looks on the outer appearance; God looks on the heart (1 Sam. 16:7).

THE EIGHTH COMMANDMENT IS:

THOU SHALT NOT STEAL

People are not thieves because they steal; they steal because they are thieves. Do you know how much you have to steal to be a thief? Anything! It’s not the value of the thing, it’s the principle of the thing. Jesus said, “Whatever you do to the least of these my brethren you do to Me” (Matt. 25:40). The Bible says, “Thieves will not inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Cor. 6:9,10).

THE NINTH COMMANDMENT IS :

THOU SHALT NOT LIE

How many lies do you have to tell to be a liar? The same number of times Adam and Eve had to eat the forbidden fruit to be found in rebellion against God and worthy of death – just once. God means what He says, and, He says what He means. Revelation 21:8 says, “All liars, their part {will be} in the lake of fire and brimstone which is the second death.”

THE TENTH COMMANDMENT IS:

THOU SHALT NOT COVET

Covetousness is idolatry

Stated positively, it means: “Be content with what you have” (Heb. 13:5). That is, be content with what you can make with your own hands and your own mind. You are not supposed to desire what already belongs to your neighbor; including his house, his car, his wife, his title, his position, or his bank account.

At this point, I asked, “Bob, do you see your need of God’s forgiveness?” He hung his head and said, “Yes!” I went on to say . . .

THE GOSPEL OF GRACE

“In the Old Testament, an animal was offered as a sacrifice for sin. The animal had to be perfect, that is, without spot or blemish; symbolic of moral purity. The spot was inherited, and the blemish was acquired.

“When the Virgin Mary was impregnated, not by the seed of man but by the Holy Spirit, what was begotten nine months later was God in a human body. Because Jesus was not born of the seed of Adam, He had no inherited sin (spot). And, because He kept the Law I just described, He had no acquired sin (blemish). That is why the Bible refers to Him as ‘The Lamb of God without spot or blemish” (1 Pet. 1:19).

“When Jesus died on the cross because He had no sin of His own, His death satisfied the righteous penalty of the Law. God can legally declare sinners not only not guilty, but righteous, by virtue of the fact that an innocent substitute was provided on our behalf.

HOW DOES CHRIST’S DEATH APPLY TO YOU?

“While living in the Chicago area, I became engaged to the young lady who is now my wife, Susan. While it was the Lord’s idea in the first place, I still wanted the blessing of my future in-laws who lived in Nevada. My fiancé flew out a few weeks before I did. When I arrived, they were expecting me. I knocked on the door, and without hesitation, they invited me in. Later that night we had a wonderful dinner together. A few hours later, I was escorted to my own private bedroom, and was told to, ‘Make myself at home.’ The next day, my future in-laws said, ‘You’re going to need to get around, so here are the keys to the car!’

“Can you imagine what might have happened if I had knocked on the wrong door, a perfect stranger, and asked for food, a place to stay for the night, the keys to their car, and their daughter’s hand in marriage? The sandwich may have been achievable, but the rest would have been out of the question! However, I was accepted and treated like their own son, because I knocked on the right door, I came in the right name, and I had the right motive which was love! That is precisely, how it works with God.”

Therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God. Rom. 5:1-2

“In the same way, when you come to God the Father (in repentance and faith) in the name of His Son, Jesus, you are ‘accepted in the beloved” (Ephesians 1:6). We are called ‘children of God’ now (Phil. 2:15, 1 Jn. 3:1, 2, 10; 5:2), and are one of the family! We become ‘co-heirs with Christ’ (Rom. 8:16-17)!

In Revelation 3:20, Jesus said,

Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him, and will dine with him, and he with Me.

The door that Jesus is referring to is the door to your heart. How do you open the door of your heart? In Matthew 4:17, the Bible says,

From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Repent means to change your mind, turn around and go the other way. Stop living as if God does not exist. Repent and believe the good news that Jesus died for your sins and rose again. If you truly believe with all of your heart, sin will no longer hold you in its power. You will want to follow Christ because you love Him. You love Him because He first loved you!

That is the Gospel, and the results speak for themselves. I cannot tell you how many people have broken down in tears after hearing God’s Law presented in love, and how many others have said, “I have been in church all my life, and never understood the Gospel until today. Thank You!”

If you would like to expand your explanation of the Gospel, consider the three revelations of God.

No man will stand before God with any excuse for ignoring or denying Him!

When it comes to sharing the Gospel (evangelism), the Bible is clear. God did not leave us to fend for ourselves. Within the pages of Holy Scripture, the Almighty reveals a perfect systematic theology of evangelism that cannot be improved upon by any man or man-made organization. Just as mathematics is a perfect science, so is presenting the Gospel. Psalms 19:7 says,

“The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul.”

These three divine revelations correlate to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. If you learn these three arguments, you will be well on your way to becoming a master evangelist!

They are as follows:

Creation

Psalms 19:1-3.
Ps 14:1.
Rom 1:18-20.

The Word of God

The Living Word of God — Jesus Christ (John 1:14).
The Written Word of God — the Bible (2 Tim 3:16).

Conscience

Rom. 2:15.
Rom. 1:18-19

Revelation Number One is: Creation

“The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork. Day unto day utters speech, And night unto night reveals knowledge. There is no speech nor language Where their voice is not heard.” (Ps 19:1-3).

Try to imagine nothing exists. There is no sun, no moon, no stars, and no galaxies. There are no elements such as carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, or oxygen. There are no such things as time, space, matter or energy. There is no universe, no God, nothing!

If there ever was a time when nothing existed, then nothing would exist now. Therefore something must be eternal!

You only have two choices: either God is eternal and uncreated, or matter is eternal and uncreated. There is no third option.

It was 1910 when Albert Einstein’s Theory of Relativity was first published. His mathematical equation provided a basis for proof that time, space, and matter had a beginning. The implications of this mathematical formula (math being a perfect science) were enormous; it left Einstein (and all the rest of us) starring in the face of God!

Interestingly, Einstein’s discovery fit the Biblical model (written thousands of years earlier) perfectly. The very first verse in the Bible says:

“In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the earth.”

In the beginning (that’s time), God created (that’s energy), the heavens (that’s space), and the earth (that’s matter).

“Our limited minds cannot grasp the mysterious force that moves the constellations.” -Albert Einstein

Consider the Wonders of God’s Creation

The Milky Way Galaxy is 100,000 light-years wide and 10,000 light-years deep. To get from one end of the galaxy to the other, you would have to travel at the speed of light (186,000 miles every second) for 100,000 years!

The earth is 26,000 light-years from the center of the galaxy. If you were to take a commercial airliner from earth to the center of our own galaxy, traveling at 550 miles an hour, it would take you billions of years to get there.

Not only do all the planets in our solar system revolve around the sun, but the entire Milky Way Galaxy is revolving (along with an estimated 100,000,000,000 stars) and makes one complete revolution every 250,000,000 years!

The earth revolves at a constant speed of 1,000 miles an hour at the equator while simultaneously orbiting the sun at a cruising speed of 67,000 miles an hour. It makes the 584 million mile journey once every 365.25 days. It’s “on time” arrival record is better than any airline in history!

God is perfect and everything He created (when He created it) was perfect. Consider the atomic structure of the elements in the Periodic Table. Every element is perfect to the atom.

Take water as an example. One molecule of water is made up of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. You cannot change the atomic structure of water by even one atom without completely changing the element itself.

Interestingly, if you separate the hydrogen from the oxygen, pure hydrogen is highly flammable. Pure oxygen is also highly flammable. Amazingly, if you put the 2 together in a 2 to 1 ratio you have a 3rd substance with which you can use to extinguish a fire!

Can you rationally understand that? Shake your head from side to side. No. You can’t. Don’t feel too badly. There’s not a scientist in the world who can tell you how a brown cow can eat green grass and turn it into white milk!

My point is, God is far more interested in the souls of men then He is in chemistry or biology. His Gospel is no less perfect than the atomic structure of His universe!

This sculpture of Moses was created by Michelangelo (1475 – 1564) You can click this picture!

The Sistine Chapel is positive proof there was a Michelangelo. The Mona Lisa proves beyond the shadow of a doubt there was a Leonardo da Vinci. And the 5th Symphony is empirical proof there was a Ludwig van Beethoven. These marvels of talent and ingenuity don’t happen by accident.

The Mona-Lisa (1507)

Even though none of us has ever actually seen these men, no judge or jury in the world would disagree that these great artistic works prove their creators existed.

Which is more complex, the worlds fastest super-computer, the most advanced robotic system, the Space Shuttle or an earthworm? You guessed it-the earthworm.

YOU ARE GOD’S GREATEST MIRACLE

Consider how Psalms 139:14-16 describes God’s glory,

“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”

On that glorious day of conception, amazing things began to happen. Two cells became one and then, miraculously, the one became two. Beginning as a single cell, you began to divide exponentially and on the day you were born your completed body was made up of more than 100 trillion extremely complex little machines called cells.

Your heart began to beat when you were only 22 days old. At three weeks we could see your eyes and ears. At six weeks we could see your fingers and toes. At 11 weeks you could smile, frown and suck your thumb. On the day you were born, you were nine months old.

THE HUMAN BRAIN

Can you think? You have a lot to be grateful for. Your brain is the most complex system known to science. The human brain is made up of 12 trillion cells. Each cell connects to 10,000 other cells, making 120 trillion connections; that is more than all the communications systems in the world combined.

Everything you have ever experienced is stored in the memory banks of your brain. Your earliest childhood memories—playing with a friend, a birthday party, a kind word, a walk in the park, or a gift.

By contrast, the fastest supercomputer in the world cost 100 million dollars, is as large as a 6,000 square foot house, it won’t work if you don’t plug it in, and it still cannot produce one original thought.

Have you seen the awesome beauty of the stars, the wonderful colors of a rainbow, the majesty of the Grand Canyon, children playing in a park, or the look of love? Your eye has 137 million light-sensitive cells which translate everything you see through your nervous system, instantaneously, and your brain sees!

Revelation Number Two is: the Word of God

The Living Word of God — Jesus Christ (John 1:14).
The Written Word of God —The Bible ( 2 Tim 3:16).

There is no possible term of comparison between the Bible and Jesus Christ and any other so-called “holy book” or religious leader in history. Keep reading and you’ll see why…

The possible burial cloth of Jesus

CONSIDER THESE AMAZING FACTS ABOUT JESUS CHRIST

We live in the 21^st Century. As of this writing, it’s 2012 A.D. The A.D. is an abbreviation for the Latin words, “Anno Domini.” Literally translated it means, “In the year of the Lord.” i.e., the Lord Jesus Christ!

If you wanted to refer to a date 4,000 years ago, you would say, it was 2000 B.C. The B.C. stands for, “Before Christ.” In other words, the world marks time by Jesus Christ.

And why do we do that? Because 2,000 years ago a real historical person by the name of Jesus had such a profound impact on the world by what He said and what He did that we mark time by His life, death, and resurrection from the dead.

No other person in history can claim that his life was the fulfillment of dozens of stunningly detailed prophecies written hundreds and even thousands of years before they appeared.

HOW MIRACULOUS IS BIBLE PROPHECY?

Imagine I predicted 1,000 years in advance the exact city the President of the United States would be born in, his exact birth date, what nationality he would be, what family he would come from, what kind of car he would drive, where he would go to school, what his name would be, what his father and mother’s names would be, how old he would be when he died, when he would die, how he would die, plus dozens of his most significant accomplishments all in specific detail, and I was 100% accurate on every count. Would that be a miracle? That is exactly what the Bible did in reference to Jesus!

According to Ph.D. astrophysicists and other qualified American scientists, the odds of the Bible’s more than 3,000 predictions being fulfilled by chance is one out of a number expressed as 1 with 2,000 zeros after it. Even if they are only 10% correct, that’s still only one chance out of 1 followed by 200 zeros!

According to the mathematical science of probability, if a number has more than 50 zeros after it, the odds of that happening by chance make it virtually impossible. To put this in perspective, the number of atoms in the known universe is believed to be 10 to the 80^th power. And one occurrence out of 10 to the 80^th power amounts to zero.

If GOD CAME TO EARTH AS A MAN…

If God did come to earth as a man you would expect Him to say and do things that would distinguish Him from all other men. Jesus provides us with the greatest demonstration of wisdom, power and love the world has ever seen.

THE GREATEST DEMONSTRATION OF LOVE THE WORLD HAS EVER SEEN

The teaching of Jesus could not have been more antithetical to the Roman Empire’s idea of justice. In Matthew 5:44 Jesus said,

“I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you. If you only love those who love you, what reward do you have?”

JESUS DIDN’T JUST SAY LOVE YOUR ENEMIES

It is said that the Mafia love their family members but they kill their enemies. Jesus is saying, “If you only love those who love you how are you any different from the Mafia?”

When His enemies nailed Him to the cross, He was naked and in unimaginable pain from head to toe. His accusers laughed, mocked, ridiculed, and spat at Him. The Roman soldiers were throwing dice at the foot of the cross to see who would keep His clothes. It was in that horrible humiliation and searing pain that Jesus prayed,

“Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”

This concern for other people in a moment like that was so profound, so completely antithetical to human nature, the thief on his right (also being crucified) had a revelation— Jesus truly was divine. This dying man then cried out to Jesus,

“Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

And Jesus replied,

“This day you shall be with Me in Paradise.”

Who could make up such a story and expect anyone to believe it? Where else can you find a more compelling or authoritative demonstration of love in all of history?

No ordinary man could have expressed such selfless love and concern for the eternal destiny of the very people who were responsible for His suffering. You will not find this kind of love in any other religion, philosophy or system of thought. Jesus stands alone.

JESUS CLAIMED HE WAS GOD

There are seven “I am” sayings of Jesus in the New Testament. Each one is a clear reference to Exodus 3:14 when God revealed His name to Moses: “I am, that I am, tell them I am hath sent you.”

So, when Jesus said, “Before Abraham was I am,” the Pharisees knew exactly what He meant, and they wanted to stone Him for claiming to be God (Jn 8:58,59 & 10:30,31).

But, Jesus did not say He was God since anyone can say that! Jesus said and did things that only God could do!

Jesus did not just say, “I am the light of the world,” He said, “I am the light of the world,” and He gave sight to a man born blind!
He did not just say, “I am the bread of life,” He said, “I am the bread of life,” and He fed five thousand people!
He did not just say, “I am the resurrection and the life.” He said, “I am the resurrection and the life,” and He called forth Lazarus from the dead!

Each of the “I am” sayings, were accompanied by a miracle which in turn revealed attributes that belong to God alone. For example, the one miracle that Jesus performed more than any other was giving sight to the blind. Compare that to what God said in Exodus 4:11:

And the LORD said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes {him} dumb or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the LORD?

These three “I am,” sayings show Jesus to be the Creator, the Sustainer, and the Redeemer of mankind.

How about when He said,

“Peace be still,” and the winds and the sea obeyed Him?
How about, “Destroy this temple and in three days, I will raise it?” He was speaking of raising Himself from the dead! Only God can do that!

There are hundreds of examples of Christ’s divinity in the New Testament:

Jesus forgave sin.
Jesus said, “If you have seen Me you have seen the father.”
In John 10:30, Jesus said, “I and the father are one.”

If you’re still not sure, Col. 1:15 says, “He (Jesus) is the physical manifestation of the invisible God.”

This is a real problem for anyone who teaches that Jesus was a prophet and a great moral teacher. Jesus claimed He was God!

As C.S. Lewis so eloquently pointed out, that only leaves you three options. Jesus was either a liar, a lunatic, or He was who He claimed to be! You cannot say He was a great moral teacher, He has not left that alternative open to us, He did not intend to.

All of the major world religions say, “Jesus was a prophet and a great moral leader…”

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Jesus said He was God. If Jesus was right, the other religions are wrong. And if Jesus was wrong, the other religions are still wrong because they say Jesus was right!

Buddha said, “I am a teacher in search of truth.”

Jesus said, “I am the truth.”

Confucius said, “I never claimed to be holy.”

Jesus said, “Which one of you convicts Me of sin?”

Mohammed speaking of the after-life said, “Unless God covers me with a cloak of mercy I have no hope.”

Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life, He who believes in Me though he die yet shall He live.”

None of these other men ever claimed to be God, they all said, “God is this way, go this way.”

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the father but by Me.”

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The point is, unless you believe that Jesus is who He said He was, you will die in your sin!

I said therefore to you, that you shall die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am {He} you shall die in your sins.” John 8:24

The name of Jesus can clear out a room faster than any other name in the world. Conversely, more people come together every week to learn more about Him than anyone else in history. No sword will ever produce that kind of power!

Read His words in Mat 5-7. No man ever spoke like Jesus did!

Here is the Gospel from 1 Cor. 15:3-4,

“For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.”

The Roman Empire

Christianity still thrives 1,500 after the Roman Empire fell.

It was 2,000 years ago when the Roman Empire ruled the world with an iron fist. They won all their arguments by killing their enemies.

It is a well-established historical fact that the Roman Empire killed Christians by feeding them to lions. Today we have the incredible perspective of being able to look back over 2,000 years of recorded history and what do we see? There are more Christians alive at this moment than the total number of people who made up the Roman Empire over its entire 500-year history and the lions and tigers are on the endangered species list.

With more than two billion followers right now, Jesus Christ is the most famous person in history!

The Bible is the written Word of God

The Bible is God’s Word

The Bible is utterly unique among all other books for several reasons. It not only claims to be “The Word of God,” but offers many infallible proofs that it is:

It’s content.
It’s unparalleled circulation.
It’s impact on the world.
Prophecy.

Just to make certain no one could ever claim the Bible was a man-made conspiracy, it was written over the course of 1,500 years, on three continents—Europe, Asia, and Africa.

It was written in three languages—Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek—by 40 different writers. Although the writers were separated by more than 1,500 years, the Bible has a beginning, middle, and an end. The main theme is redemption (that is how God can legally forgive someone without compromising His justice). And the main character, from Genesis to Revelation, is Jesus Christ.

The Bible tells us how the world began and how the world will end. God’s Word deals with the absolute issues of good and evil, justice and mercy, truth and love and how to know God.

Astronomy and the Bible

The ancient Egyptians believed that the earth was suspended on five pillars.
The Greeks believed Atlas held the earth on his shoulders.
The Hindus believed that the earth was held up by an elephant, the elephant was on a tortoise, the tortoise was on a serpent, and the serpent was swimming on a cosmic sea.
The Koran says that the sun sets in a puddle of mud (Surah 18:84)!
Until about 400 years ago, most people thought the earth was flat. In fact, the Flat Earth Society still does!

The wonders of God’s creation (Click the picture)

Yet in chapter 26 of Job, one of the oldest books in the Bible, we read,

“God hangs the earth upon nothing.”

In 750 B.C., the 40th chapter of Isaiah told us that,

“God sits above the circle of the earth.”

One word proves the Bible is true — prophecy!

Bible prophecy proves beyond the shadow of a doubt that the Scriptures are divinely inspired—positive proof God is the author. “How,” you might ask? The answer is that no human being can predict the future with 100 percent accuracy. Only a Person with omniscience can do that!

Jerusalem is a central theme in Bible Prophecy (Click this picture)

One recurring theme of biblical prophecy concerns the state of Israel. Ezekiel 36-39 (written 2,500 years ago) speaks of the birth, death, and the rebirth of the nation of Israel.

God said the Jewish people would be exiled from Israel (because of their sin), and the land would remain desolate for a long period of time. Then in the “latter days” they would return and become a nation once again.

In A.D. 70, the Roman Empire destroyed Jerusalem. The surviving Jews ran for their lives to the four corners of the Earth. Miraculously, they remained a distinct race even though they had no homeland for nearly 1,900 years. After World War II, they began to trickle back into the land that God promised them. Then on May 14, 1948, a second Jewish state was established, precisely as predicted in the Bible!

Israel is God’s prophetic time-clock. Again and again, the Scriptures tell us that the war to end all wars will be fought over Israel. The Bible calls it, “the war of Armageddon.”

World War III

Zechariah 12:1, 14:2, Matthew 24, Mark 13, Luke 21, and many other passages in the Bible spell out what the conditions will be just prior to the return of Christ. Jesus Himself said,

“When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near and I am at the very door.”

That is precisely what we see happening right now. The Middle East is the most strategic and volatile region in the world today.

Revelation Number Three is: Conscience

None of us are free from sin

Romans 2:15 says God’s Moral law is written on every man’s heart!

Here is how you share the Gospel “…not in the wisdom of man’s words but in the demonstration of the Spirit’s power.”

You can get more where this came from at God the Final Frontier

The Ten Commandments

You can be certain that the Ten Commandments were written by God and not by man, because if man wrote them, there would be ten commandments and a thousand amendments.
You can be sure they are divine, because every man from the beginning of time until the end of the world, whether or not he has ever read a Bible or ever heard of Jesus Christ, knows in his heart it’s wrong to murder, it’s wrong to steal, it’s wrong to lie, and it’s wrong to have another man’s wife! How else can you explain the fact that this moral standard is universally accepted as true and right? Only a fool would not agree.
You can believe that the Ten Commandments are divinely inspired because between them and every other religion, philosophy, or system of thought, there is no possible term of comparison.
Galatians 5:14 (which is a distillation of the Ten Commandments), says: “For all the Law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” If we all cared about each other as much as we cared about ourselves, we would live in a perfect world!

Our evangelism training course is appropriately titled, How To Present the Gospel the Way Jesus Did. Can anyone ever know more about evangelism than the Lord Jesus Christ Himself?

This course can be formatted to fit a Sunday morning service, expanded to a 4 week series for Sunday School, mid-week services, or a Saturday seminar.

You do not have to become a philosopher, an attorney, or a scientist, in order to present the Gospel with the demonstration of the Spirits power (1 Co 2:4). Any true believer can learn how by following in the footsteps of Jesus. When you do God’s work God’s way (God willing) you get God’s results!

We have been privileged to teach on this subject at the Moody Bible Institute, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Trinity International University, Bethel College and many other venues across the country and around the world.

Here is what Ray Comfort said about our book, Jesus Christ the Master Evangelist–How to Present the Gospel the Way Jesus Did,

“Philip DelRe has excelled in bringing together powerful thoughts on a most important theme.”

Many churches are not interested in a course on evangelism, unless…

This is a true story. The elder of one of our local churches asked me if I would present a four-week Sunday School series on evangelism. I said,

“I’d be happy to, but let me tell you what will happen. If you just make an announcement about it on Sunday morning or put a blurb in the bulletin, we will get about 10 to 15 people (this is a church of 800) and half of them will only be curious. But if you give me a Sunday morning and let me show them how I share the Gospel, the vast majority of the adults will show up for Sunday School and stay the whole 4 weeks.”

Then I gave them a number of examples of how this has worked in the past. So, they agreed. The Sunday I was scheduled to preach finally arrived. I shared the Gospel by explaining how the Old Testament relates to the New Testament and how Jesus used those principles in His ministry of evangelism. The following Tuesday the associate pastor called and said,

“We are giving you the sanctuary for your Sunday School class. So many people signed up for it none of the classrooms will hold them. In fact, we had to cancel all the other classes (except one) because they all signed up for yours!”

That is what happens when a church hears the Gospel the way Jesus presented it! All of them stayed for the 4-week series. Many are now excited about sharing their faith, others are handing out tracts and still, others are boldly engaging cultists. These people are empowered by God to do what He called us to do, and armed to the teeth with the Sword of the Spirit!

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