It is Settled!

A series of lessons from the Bible

by Howell Lasseter

The Gospel and Forgiveness

Are we willing to accept that most precious gift - being cleansed from our sins by the precious blood of Jesus Christ? If we have already accepted that gift, He is our Lord. That gift is still available today, as it was almost 2000 years ago.

To whom is this gift available? Is it the Jew only? Or, the Greeks only? Is it to those who live in the USA only? Is it for the Caucasian only? Or, the Blacks only? The answer to all these questions is "No."

What are some of the terms by which the gospel is called? It is called "the truth" (Romans 2:8); "the word" (James 1:21); "the gospel" (Romans 1:16); "the word of righteousness" (Hebrews 5:13). Many other words and phrases from the Bible could be cited, but enough have been listed to show all are referring to the same thing - the "New Covenant," or law, under which we live today (Hebrews 8:13).

Do all accept the "New Covenant," or New Testament just as it is? When it comes to obeying God's Word, how can I be sure I am correctly doing so? If I take it as it is, obey it as it directs, than I cannot be wrong, can I?

We have seen in past articles that, even during the time in which the New Testament was being revealed to man by the apostles and prophets under the direction of the Holy Spirit, there were those who failed to obey the New Covenant, and they were not pleasing to God. There were those who had once obeyed it, but did not continue following it, and they ceased to be pleasing to God. (See Revelation chapters 2 & 3; Galatians 1:6-9; 3:1.) Why would it not be true today that those who fail to obey the gospel of Christ are not pleasing to God?

There are those today who would say man can be saved by accepting the law of Moses, using it as our guide in religion. But, consider carefully: man could not have his sins forgiven under the Mosaic law. The ones to whom Peter preached in Acts 2 were in Jerusalem for the express purpose of worshipping; they were followers of the law of Moses. Yet, they were lost. How do we know? A reading of Acts 2:37,28 makes this clear. "Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized, every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." Some religious teachers today will tell you that "for" in verse 38 means "because of," but the exact same words in the Greek are used in Matthew 26:28. We know that, at the time Jesus spoke those words, His blood had not yet been shed; we know that their sins had not yet been forgiven.