Good News & Bad News
Luke 15 tells us that Jesus had the crowd muttering to themselves. Jesus did not fit into the prevailing thoughts of the day. Jesus was rocking the boat when it came to explaining how we relate to God. The Jews of Jesus’ day were zealously dedicated to defending the idea that a saving relationship could be earned by an individual. Such thinking is universal. All eras, all cultures, all religions taught that God could be pleased and amused by a person’s good deeds. Jesus came and destroyed this thinking, however, by stating that the only way one could hope to find salvation was by following Him.
Jesus clearly and repeatedly taught that He was the only path to God the Father. It was in this context that Jesus told the story of a father who had two sons. The youngest of these two sons was a wild and obviously sinful individual. It was easy to see that this son was estranged from the father and kicked out of the family. But Jesus astounds His listeners by describing an older brother who had problems as well. The older brother described himself as always serving the father. The older brother spoke of his many years of dutiful, sacrificial service to the father. Yet as Jesus tells the story in Luke 15, it is obvious that the older brother is at odds with the father.
The older brother in the story describes the person who thinks that he or she can earn God’s favor. Jesus comes along and shows that both brothers are in serious need of help and restoration. Jesus repeatedly got into trouble by telling the crowds that it doesn’t matter who you are, you are in trouble. Whether you are “public enemy #1” or the latest religious award winner, no one can stand clean before God.
The New Testament message is often called the Gospel. The English word “gospel” comes from a Greek word meaning "good news." What is often forgotten is that good news is nearly always presented in contrast with bad news. The Gospel of the Bible clearly has a bad news/good news scenario. The bad news is that all people are sinners. As a matter of fact, we (mankind, humanity) are far more wretched and sinful than we dare admit or realize. As a result, we are far more lost than we ever dreamed. We are in real trouble. This is the first concept that we have to understand and do business with. Without a realization of our dammed dilemma, we will never appreciate the good news of the Gospel.
The good news of the Gospel is that God loves us more than we ever dared dream. Even though we are lost, vile, wretched, and condemned, God reaches out to us with a love that appears crazy. The good news says that we cannot ever hope to save ourselves, and this offends the sensibilities of people who want to brag and boast. The good news appears too good to be true to those who have wrecked their lives. But if you will stop and consider what Jesus did and how Jesus sacrificed His life, “good news” is the only way you can describe what happened. Resist the temptation to hold God’s amazing grace at arm’s length and think, "I’ll do it myself.” You can’t! Don’t be content to live in the “mud" of life, thinking there is no hope. The message of the Gospel truly is good news! Keep looking up!