What is the Gospel? Part 3
(Read Part 1 here; part 2 here)
What is the gospel? In short, it is the good news about who our heavenly Father really is. It is the truth about His character. And why do we need this good news? Because God's name has been slandered.
"And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him." (Rev 12:7-9)
This war in heaven was over whether our Creator could be trusted and the principles of God's government. Lucifer used his influence to spread lies about God and His intentions towards His creation. And the lies Lucifer started in heaven are the same lies that he has spread here on earth.
There is a saying: "You can't see the forest for the trees."
WikiAnswers describes this saying in this way: "You cannot see the big picture, as you are immersed in the details. You have to get out of the forest to see it, because while you are in the forest, you only see the trees that comprise the forest; but you cannot see the forest as a whole. When you are focusing on the details, it is more difficult to see the issue as a whole, as you can only see the details that comprise the issue."
Are we experiencing the same challenge today? Have we lost sight of the big picture? Jesus came to this earth to show us by example exactly what God is like. Jesus was kind, gentle, loving, forgiving, encouraging, uplifting, etc.
Satan wants us to believe that God is harsh, judgmental, arbitrary, vindictive, and someone to be feared.
As we share the gospel with the world, what do our lives and actions say about God? What is the focus of our message? Do we focus so much on the details of doctrine, commandment-keeping, prophecy and the health message that we forget the big picture?
My conviction is that the greatest contribution that Adventists can make to the world is the right picture of God in the light of the Great Controversy.
What is the picture of God that you are sharing with the world?
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Pastor Jimmy Kim has been the youth pastor at Atlanta Korean SDA Church since May 2001, is a licensed Chiropractor, and the general manager/owner of a Real Estate Investment Company that has been in business since 2006.