Are you ready for some good news, some very good news?
Good news is found in the Bible. In Paul’s letter to the Romans there is good news that is truly good. This letter begins with good news (1:1) and ends with good news (16:25). The term “Gospel” is used some 60 times in this letter. It is the good news that God will deliver us from the burden of guilt, forgive us, justify us and give us eternal life, all by faith alone in Jesus Christ alone. In ancient days, the town herald would stand in the village square & shout “Good News! The emperor’s wife has given birth to a son.” Or, “The new emperor has ascended to the throne!” The good news Paul proclaimed was an entirely different order than the trivial & vain proclamations concerning emperors. The fact that it is of God means that God was the source of it. It was not man’s good news, but God’s good news for man.
One cannot help wondering why God would condescend to bring good news to a world that rejects & scorns Him. None deserve to hear, much less be saved by it, but God offers it by His grace. This good news is the answer to the headlines, to the world, to every man. There are 16 chapters in Romans, yet Paul cannot wait to introduce us to some truly good news so he bursts into it immediately.
Are you also eager to receive it and to share it?
Dr. Rodney Phillips
Director of Student Life Ministries