“Almost all unbelievers believe that, if they can change their behavior, they will be in good shape with God”

Jesus, Our Savior, passionately and tenderly, declared His heartbeat, in the gospel, written by John:

“I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me – I have other sheep that do not come from this sheepfold. I must bring them too, and they will listen to my voice, so that there will be one flock and one shepherd. (John 10:14, 16 NET

Jesus had a different attitude towards the unsaved, and the despicable in society. Jesus called the unsaved “other sheep”…I don’t have to delve too much into this. Wow! He is a shepherd to a detached sheep, wandering in the wilderness. This is so good to be true…it changes my perception towards the unsaved, and rekindles my passion to reach out beyond “his own” to tell the other sheep; “come home, God is not angry with you as you’ve been made to believe” “Come home, come home”

OTHER SHEEP…There are millions of our brothers and sisters, who are outside of the Church. They have never felt comfortable to come and be a part of the sheepfold, as God’s family. I can only describe them as; “being on the run, with a belly full of guilt and emptiness”. They think; first – they have to put their acts together, in their own power and ability, then they will come to Christ. They have not heard about the good news of their freedom from God’s anger, legalism and the gift of righteousness, on the basis of grace. They have only heard partial gospel of their sins, condemnation, and how bad they are; heading to perdition.

ONE IS NOT A SINNER BECAUSE HE SIN, ONE IS A SINNER BECAUSE…Please, tell them they are not “sinners” because of their sinful deeds. They are sinners because they have not believed in God’s one and only son….they have also refused to accept the undeserved payment of their innocence, and the goodness of God, which is the power unto salvation for all who will believe. Almost all unbelievers believe that, if they can change their behavior, they will be in good shape with God. In our depraved state, without Christ in us, through the power of the Holy Spirit, we can never be in good shape, on our own. This understanding will change the way we approach evangelism and sets captives free from the cave of their inability to surrender to God. The salvation deal is not a behavioral goal, but a transformation of the heart.

“This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person’s failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him John 3:16-18 MSG

WHEN THE GOODNESS OF GOD IS SHARED…how God thinks about humanity through what He has done through Christ Jesus is shared with the world of sin… the Holy Spirit, immediately goes to work in the heart, to shine the light of the glory of Christ, for healing and transformation.

Romans 2:4 NKJV…”Or Do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? What brings repentance? It is in the goodness of God. Paul was not ashamed to talk about the goodness of God to the undeserved; he knew that, righteousness by faith could only be revealed to the unsaved through the gospel. He writes… Romans 1:16, 17 NKJV “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”

TELL THE WORLD…Please, tell them, God himself will perfect that which concerns them…the drugs, addiction, witchcraft, voodoo, hate, adultery, lesbianism, gambling, pornography and all derivatives of the fallen nature. Paul put it this way… “Because God is working in you to help you want to do and be able to do what pleases him” (Philippians 2:13 NCV) It is the Spirit which works in us both to will and to do of God’s good pleasure; this working of grace in our hearts, puts us in alignment with God, as one progressively walk with Him.

To focus all our energies on one’s behavior change, as a yardstick to set up a relationship with God, is not the gospel. The gospel takes the burden from your shoulders as you place your faith in Christ, to appropriate God’s mercy and goodness. To try to save oneself through discipline and self denials will only do the outer work of change, not the transformation from the inside out. This form of righteousness is what Paul call it; “my own righteousness”.

Philippians 3:9 NKJV… and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness, which is from God by faith. The gospel is what God has wrought for humanity, through the finished work of Christ, on the cross of Calvary, independent of our efforts and performance; it hinges on faith alone” – 2 Corinthians 5:21(NIV)  God made him who had no sin to be sin^[a] for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God

A PRAYER TO PRAY… You can be free from the guilt of the death sentence, already paid on your behalf by Christ if and only you will believe in His person as God’s son, and His gracious work for your freedom. I entreat you to come home, my friend…Pray with me and come home to the open arms of your gracious Father;

“Dear God, I know I’m a sinner, I know I am not where I want to be, and I want forgiveness! I believe Jesus died on the cross, to pay the price for my sins. Come into my life Jesus to be my Lord and Savior! Thank you for the gift of life eternal and rest, flooding my soul” Amen!

  Share the joy of Christian fellowship with other believers & Share your Christ experience with the world. Shalom

– McDaniels Gyamfi