The Blessings of the Gospel (What You Receive In Christ) | Season 04, Episode 03 | Simple Truth Podcast

Have you ever been called the B- word? Now, before your mind goes somewhere else, let me be clear. Have you ever been called blessed? We hear that word all the time in church. But what does it actually mean? And if it's a good thing, how do you get blessed? Most Christians know that the gospel saves them, but many don't realize what it actually gives them right now. So they live their life without clarity, without confidence, and without an expectation for what God has already provided. And they struggle not because God hasn't given, but because they don't understand or receive what is already theirs. In other words, they're supposed to be blessed, but they don't feel like it. In this episode, you'll learn what the blessings of the gospel have accomplished for you, how it brings peace between you and God, how it gives you a new life, and even brings you into eternal life. I know that might sound crazy. So, watch a little bit and see why it is true. In fact, you'll see how these blessings were actually promised a long time ago and are now yours right now through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Don't be a Christian who just watches others from the sidelines. Live in the blessings of the gospel right now for yourself. Let's get into it in this episode of the Simple Truth. Welcome to the Simple Truth podcast, where we open the Bible to uncover simple, biblical, and essential truths that can transform your life. And now, here's your host, Ted Ross. >> Hi, my name is Ted Ross and this is the Simple Truth Podcast, your home for biblical truth clearly taught and freely given. I'm super excited about season 4, episode 3, where we talk about the blessings of the gospel, what you receive in Christ. Let's get into it. Why does this episode matter? Well, first of all, and this is a bold statement backed up by scripture throughout the Bible. By the way, God provides every spiritual blessing you or I need through the gospel, the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Some Christians, they know the gospel is what saves them, but they don't even realize what benefits it gives them now. They live unfortunately without clarity, without confidence, or even an expectation of God's blessings in their life. They struggle not because God hasn't given these blessings, but because they don't understand or receive what is already theirs. The gospel is not just your starting point. It's your source of life, of power, and of blessing. It's honestly the foundation of your relationship with God. We cannot have a relationship with God if it weren't for the fact that Jesus died for our sins. He was buried and he rose again the third day. It's so simple, but it's something that even Paul the Apostle said he determined to know nothing except Jesus Christ and him crucified. In Romans 1:16, it says that this gospel is the power of God to save us. It is fundamentally the most important topic in the entire Bible. That's why we have a whole season dedicated to this topic. And let's make it clear once and for all. It's time to explain what God has really given you through the gospel of Jesus Christ. So before we talk about the blessings of the gospel, let's talk a little bit about what it means to be blessed and what is a blessing. A blessing is a gift. It's a benefit. It's an expression of favor. So to be blessed by God is to be gifted. is to be benefited. It is to be favored by God. This quote is coming from the BDAG, which is one of the most respected lexicons in the world. So, a blessing, it's a gift, it's a benefit, it's an expression of favor. Interesting. It brings us to our first simple truth of the episode. The gospel is always a blessing. Okay, we're going to go into Romans 15:es 28 and 29. All Bible verses throughout this episode, they're coming from the New King James Version. So, feel free to follow along. In this verse, we're going to see that the gospel doesn't just save us, it brings full blessings of God into our life. Romans 15 28, quote, therefore, when I have performed this, Paul says, and have sealed to them this fruit, I shall go by way of you to Spain. Verse 29, but I know that when I come to you, Paul says, I shall come in the fullness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ. Amen. So Paul says, when I have performed this, so after completing his current ministry tasks, Paul planned to visit Rome on his way to Spain. Okay? And he says, "But when I come to you," Paul said, "I shall come in the fullness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ." The fullness is the completeness. It means there's nothing lacking of the blessing. That's the benefit, the favor given by God. The gift, right, of the gospel, the good news, and the good message. Paul says that when he comes, he's going to bring the completeness of the favor or the benefit or the gift that God has given through the good message, the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Paul didn't just bring a message. Paul is actively bringing God's blessings, his favor, and God's gifts to every person who received the gospel and would trust in it. Amen. That's powerful. So, let's take a look at Ephesians 1:3. And here we're going to see that every blessing from God flows to you and to me through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Ephesians 1:3, quote, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ." Powerful. Blessed be the God and Father, right? Blessed in this case, and you'll see blessed, blessed, and blessing all in the same verse. So, we'll make sure we try to make it really clear and plain for you. So, blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ. That means that God is worthy of praise. He's worthy of honor. This is what God deserves. He deserves praise and honor. Why? Because he has blessed us. He has bestowed favor, given us benefits, given us gifts. This is what God has done for us. And these aren't just physical gifts. This is not like he gave me a birthday present or a Christmas present or, you know, something fancy like a new car or a toy or something like that. No, no, no. Way beyond that. He's given us spiritual blessings, right? He's given us every spiritual blessing. In fact, okay, so these aren't physical. These are blessings. These are favors. These are gifts that are of God and they relate to the spirit. Amen. And it says every spiritual blessing. So these are spiritual of God blessings. They're favors. They're gifts. There's benefits that are come through the spirit and they're coming in the heavenly places, which means they're coming from God's realm. They're coming from the kingdom of God and not from the world. So God deserves favor, deserves honor, deserves praise because he has blessed us. He's bestowed favor on us, given us gifts that aren't just physical gifts. They're spiritual gifts. spiritual benefits, spiritual favors, and they're coming from the kingdom of God. Thank you, Lord. And they come in Christ Jesus, which means they come by being connected to Christ through that gospel. Amen. So, through the gospel of the kingdom of God, God has given you and me every spiritual blessing that you need to live a full and a thriving life. So, what exactly does God do through this? Right? That brings us to our next simple truth, right? Why does God do this? Why does God give us every spiritual blessing in heavenly place? This seems like an awfully large thing. And he does it because God loves you more than you will ever know. This is an important one, folks. This is important. Let's go ahead and take a look at John 3:16 and17, right? One of the most famous biblical verses ever. You see it on a t-shirt. You see it at a sports game. Okay? And here we're going to see that God's love is deeper than you can measure. It's higher than you could reach. And it's greater than you and I could understand. And it comes through the gospel. It comes through Jesus's death, burial, and resurrection. John 3:16, quote, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life." Thank God. It says, "God so loved." That word love, it's agape. He loved deeply. He loves sacrificially. He doesn't love to get something. And God doesn't give to get with his love. God loves in such a deep, such a sacrificial way that his love for us is for our good. He cares so deeply about you and me that what he does for us, he does for our good and not for his good. Thank you, God. Okay? He loved us so much that he gave us his only son. He freely offered, he freely granted his only begotten son. To say he's his only begotten son means that Jesus was the one and only, unique in nature, one of a kind. I think it's such a blessing that God calls us sons and daughters of God. But let's be clear, folks. We're adopted in as the scripture says, but there is one there is one the begotten one, and that's Jesus Christ. He's one and only. He's unique in nature. He was there at creation, right? He is something else. He is the son of God. And he gave his only begotten son of which he only had one. That whoever believes in him, whoever trusts, whoever has confidence in, whoever relies on him, on Jesus should not perish, but have everlasting life. That's God's life in you both now and forever. This is the start of us looking at scriptures that talk about, believe it or not, eternal life. Thank God. God's love is greater than you and I can fully comprehend just in these 12 15 words we're looking at in John 3:16. We could talk about this for 45 minutes, right? His love is deeper than we can fully comprehend. And the gospel, that's God giving his son for us is the clearest expression of that deep love. Thank you, Father. Thank you, Lord Jesus. John 3:17. And here we're going to say the world is in rebellion and is deserving of judgment. And yet God's first move was not to condemn the world, but to rescue as many people as possible through the gospel of the kingdom of God. Okay. John 3:17, quote, "For God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved." God did not send to send to send with a purpose to commission. He did not commission his son to be born of a virgin, to be born under the Virgin Mary, and to come into the world to condemn the world. He didn't come to judge or to pass sentence on the world. That would have looked very different. He came instead to save the world. He came that the world might be saved. Saved is this really important term that we use a lot, but I often don't quite understand what it means. To be saved is to be rescued from danger, to be set at safety, to be made sound. Okay? so important. God's mission, as we see from John 3:16-1 17, it's to rescue you. It's to bless you through the gospel. He didn't send his son to condemn you. He sent his son to rescue you and to bless you, to give you spiritual gifts from heavenly places that will bless you, that'll turn you from your iniquities, that'll do all these great things in your life. So, what exactly has God given you in Christ? Which brings us to our next simple truth. The gospel comes with many real benefits. So the first set of benefits is that through the gospel, God forgives, he heals, he redeems, and he fills your life with goodness. I know it's no fair for the first blessing to be several blessings all bundled in one. But that's how the scripture was written. Let's take a look at Psalm 103:es 1-6. And here we're going to see that the gospel, it brings real blessings into your life, but you need to intentionally remember and value those benefits. All of this is written in these scriptures by David, who by the way was a prophet. Psalm 103 verse one says, quote, "Bless the Lord, oh my soul, and all that is within me. Bless his holy name." Verse two, "Bless the Lord, oh my soul, and forget not all his benefits." Right? his blessings. Amen. He says, "Bless the Lord." That's to praise, to speak well of, to honor God. And he's telling that to his soul soul. Bless God. Honor him. Speak well of him. By the way, you don't always feel like blessing God. And David still instructs his soul to bless God regardless of how he feels. And he says, "Bless the Lord, oh my soul, and everything that is within me. Bless his holy name. Speak well of him. Honor him." And in verse two, bless the Lord, oh my soul, and forget not, forget not, don't neglect, don't ignore, do not fail to remember all his benefits. Those are the benefits given by God. The rewards, the favor, the blessings, right? David ordered his own soul to speak well of and to honor God for God's benefits. Now, exactly what blessings is David talking about? Let's see. Let's take a look at Psalm 103:3. And here we're going to see that through the gospel, God doesn't just save you. He forgives you. He heals you. He redeems you. He restores your life. As you can see here, there's not just one blessing of the gospel. There's many blessings of the gospel. God wants to do so many powerful and wonderful things in your life. You got to get out of his way. You got to let him do it. Which means you're going to trust him. You're going to rely on. You're going to adhere to him. You're going to listen for his voice. You're going to set your life aside to live his life. And when you do it, he heals, he blesses, he pardons, he restores, he redeems. It's just such a long list, as we'll see as we go through this episode of the things, the wonderful and powerful things that God wants to do through you and through me. He has a purpose for us. He loves us if we just get out of our own way. Amen. Psalm 103 verse3 it says who forgives all your iniquities. That's the first blessing of the gospel. Who forgives all your iniquities. To forgive is to pardon, to remove guilt, to restore the relationship. Sin isn't just making a mistake. Sin isn't just falling short, so to speak, which is its definition. It's more than that. God cannot abide in darkness. God is light. There's no evil in him. And when you and I choose evil and do evil, it separates us from God. Not because he moved, but we moved. We separated ourselves. And we create this chasm. And often that division, you even feel it as you sin. You feel a distance. You feel less sensitive. You feel an oppression. You feel a pressure because what you're feeling is you're starting to feel less of God's presence. And here's the thing. You can get it right back. You can get it right back. When Jesus said, "It is finished on the cross," the veil was torn from top to bottom. It says in the temple, a darkness came over and everyone looked and says, "Truly, this was the son of God." Because every sin, every iniquity, every shortcoming, every transgression, all the rebellion, all the pride, all the sin, every addiction, you name it, was put on his body. And he was punished. And he didn't deserve the punishment. You and I deserve the punishment, but he took the punishment on his body. And when he rose from the dead, he said, "All power has been given to me in heaven and earth. Thank you, Lord Jesus." So when you sin, when you fall short, when you feel conviction, when you feel a distance, you go to God and you say, "Father, forgive me." And why do you have to forgive me? Why will you forgive me? Because Jesus died for my sins. God loved him. He paid the price for my sins. God loved us so much that he sent his son. He gave his son. So receive that gift. You may feel terrible inside. About how you feel. Receive that gift. Receive the forgiveness of God. He is reaching out to you and saying, "I will forgive every sin, every iniquity, and every transgression if you'll simply receive me." Amen. Amen. So, first blessing, first benefit of the gospel, forgives all your iniquities. And to be clear, what is an iniquity? Specifically, it's a continuous wrongdoing based on our fallen nature. It's a willful deviation from the right path. So, there's sins, which are shortcomings and falling short. There's iniquities, as we see here, continuous wrongdoing based on our fallen nature. It's like an addiction. It's like a bad habit, so to speak, that we keep doing. We keep deviating from the right path because we care so passionately about these desires. And there's transgressions, which is breaking the rule, knowing what we shouldn't be doing and just stepping out and doing it anyway. God forgives sins, iniquities, and transgressions. Thank God. It says God heals your diseases. To heal is to restore. It's to make you whole. Amen. I don't know about you, but we live in a world in which a lot of people need to be restored. They need to be made whole. And they can be made whole. You could be made whole. I could be made whole. He has made us whole through his death, his burial, and his resurrection. Put your trust in that power. Submit to his lordship. He'll make you whole in all things. He'll restore all things. Remember, Jesus had prostitutes, tax collectors, and others hanging out with him. And why did they hang out with him? Because his message, the power that went through him, the power of the gospel made them whole. And if a prostitute and a tax collector and a murderer and all sorts of people could be made whole, clearly you and I could be made whole. Thank God. It says he redeems your life from destruction. To redeem is to deliver. It's to rescue. It's to loose you away. It's to rip you away from it. He redeems our life. He delivers our life from destruction. Thank God. He crowns us with loving kindness and tender mercies. Loving kindness is favor. It's kindness. It's mercy. He crowns us with favor and he crowns us with tender mercies. It's a deep compassion. It's a gentle love. Honestly, the scripture is like it's like a mother's love. It's like a deep-seated gentle love, a deep compassion. Amen. Thank God. Through the gospel, God is working to restore your life, past, present, and future. Psalm 103:5. And here we're going to see that David continues. He keeps going down more benefits. It doesn't stop there. He continues describing God's benefits, showing that God not only forgives and redeems, but he also actively satisfies and restores his people. Psalm 103:5 says, quote, "Who satisfies your mouth with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagles." Verse 6, "The Lord executes righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed. He satisfies your mouth with good things. To satisfy is to fill. It's to bring contentment. It's to fulfill. Right? It implies food. But it's also deeper than that. It involves satisfying desires and appetites. A deep-seated fulfillment. So, not just giving you good things to eat, but giving you deep-seated satisfaction and deep-seated fulfillment that only God could provide. And it says, "So that your youth, that's your vigor, that's your strength is renewed like the eagles." Amen. To be renewed is to be restored. It's to be made new again. It's to have new energy. Thank God. I love the sound of that. As I get older, these scriptures become even better. When I was younger, I was full of energy. But now I look to God and I say, "Father, renew my youth like the eagles. I will take that word. I will believe that gospel and I will be renewed in strength. I will have vigor and strength. I'll be restored. I'll be made new again and it'll be done spiritually and it will reflect itself in my body. Thank God. And it says the Lord executes righteousness. He'll execute what is right. He'll vindicate people who are wronged. And he'll do it for everyone who's oppressed. Thank God. God is ready to do all of this in your life. So repent of your resistance to God. Stop resisting God for crying out loud. Trust God. Believe the gospel. These are the things he says he wants to do. So much so that David even says, "Bless the Lord. Give God favor. Praise God and honor him, soul, because God is granting me all these things. All these blessings, they lead us to one reality. The gospel brings peace with God." So let's take a look at that. The gospel brings peace between you and God. Let's go to Romans 5:1. By believing the gospel, we see that the conflict between you and God, it's over. settled. As they say, the beef is squashed. And it's squashed because Jesus died for our sins. He was buried and rose again the third day. Romans 5:1, quote, "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Okay? Therefore, having been justified. To be justified is to be made right before God. To be acquitted. So, we were in a wrong place and then we've been justified. God looked to us and made us right. You can't justify yourself. God justifies. So, we are justified by faith. We're made right with God by faith, by belief, by trust, by a reliance upon God. Notice that we weren't declared right or acquitted because we woke up and said five prayers. Notice that we weren't declared right or acquitted because we went to the right church. Notice that we weren't because we read the right Bible verses or the right translations or that we said things a certain way or we No, no, no, no, no. You were justified by receiving God's gift. You're justified by believing, trusting, or relying on God, by having faith. So, you're justified by faith. And through that, we have peace. That's harmony. That's a restored relationship. We have peace with God. And we do it through our Lord Jesus Christ. We cannot have peace with God if it weren't for the fact that God sent his only begotten son. That son came. That son suffered. That son was crucified. But on the third day, he rose again. He wasn't going to be contained because he shouldn't have been crucified. He didn't deserve any of it. But he went to the cross as a punishment and as a price to be paid. Your punishment. My punishment. Your price and my price. He went to that cross to pay a price and he paid it and he rose on the third day and as I said before he said all power has been given to me in heaven and in earth. That is the savior that we serve. That is the God that we serve and he does so willingly. He did it willingly. And so we have peace with God because of sin our actions against God. We were separated from him. But through the gospel that separation's removed and our relationship is restored. We are forgiven. Praise God. Not because of our goodness, but because of his goodness. Thank God. This peace is not just a feeling. It's a real change. A real change in our standing with God. In our position before God. So, it's not just that we feel a peace. Yes, there will be peace and we feel it, but we are actually at peace. You can feel all sorts of ways. Feelings can be very deceptive, but we are actually at peace. We are at one. We are reconciled with God. And that's made possible through the gospel of the kingdom. Peace with God, though it isn't the end. It's just the beginning of a new life in Christ, which is another blessing. The gospel empowers you to live a new and a better life. Yet another blessing of the gospel of the kingdom. Let's take a look at 2 Corinthians chapter 5. We're going to look at verses 14, 15, and 17. Here we're going to see that the gospel empowers us to live like Jesus, meaning not for ourselves. Amen. 2 Corinthians 5:14, for the love of Christ compels us, Paul writes, because we judge thus that if one died for all, then all died. Verse 15, and he died for all that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for him who died for them. and rose again. Read uh chapters 14 and 15 real fast over and over again. It's like a tongue twister, but it's very powerful and it's very meaningful. The love of Christ compels us, right? That means the love of Christ controls constrains us to live differently. Are you catching this? The love of God, it controls us. It constrains us. It pushes us to live differently. Remember what causes us to live differently? It's not so much that we're scared of God. God is worth being scared of. He is powerful. He is immensely powerful. But the real benefit, what really causes us to change is God's love. Remember we read in John 3:16, God so loved the world, he gave his son that whoever would believe in him would not perish but have everlasting life. And the if you catch the revelation that God did something that no one has ever done for you while you were misbehaving and acting a fool in the streets, God loved you and did a wonderful thing, took a terrible punishment for you. And he does it because he wants you to submit to him. Wants you to obey him. And if you obey him, he'll grant you every spiritual blessing in heavenly places. You'll be so blessed. We're going to see you walking down the street or driving down the street. We're going to say, "Who is that person?" Because man, are they blessed? And you're gonna say it's not me, it's God. Thank God. Thank God. He Paul writes, "For the love of Christ compels us, constrains us." Because we judge this way. He says that if one died for all, and that's Jesus dying for us, then we all died. Wow. Then we all died. To say they all then all died is to say because Jesus died for all, that's the gospel. Then those who believe have died with him. Which means our old life is no longer our identity. Amen. Praise God. And it says, "And he died for all that those who live should no longer live for themselves." That's saying that through the gospel, Christians are given power and purpose to live through Christ instead of themselves. So we don't live for ourselves because there was nothing in ourselves to live for. The world is just not worth it. But through the gospel, we have power. We have purpose so that we could live through Christ instead of living through ourselves. That we could be converted and made like him, our Lord and our Savior. And again, they'll see you driving down the street or they'll see you walking down the street and they say, "That person's so blessed." Because really, what they're seeing is Christ in you. Thank God. And you didn't deserve it. I didn't deserve it. But it's what God is doing. He's working Jesus Christ in you and me. A powerful statement. And if you don't believe it, please go ahead and check out season two, what it really means to be a Christian. We go through in the entire season, we get right into the details of what we just talked about. Thank God. Just as Jesus died and rose, Christians die and rise with him. We don't focus in on the death. The death feels difficult, right? We go through the wilderness. We die to our flesh and those desires because again, they're not worth it. They pale in comparison. They're nothing in comparison to the blessings God has for us here, let alone what God has for us in heaven. It's not even comparable. What are you sitting around selling yourself short, chasing after the things of the world? Chase after the things of God. Those are the things that transform you, that bless you, that work a wonderful work inside of you. So just as Jesus died, rose, Christians die and rise with him. Praise God. Living for yourself, it's such a drain. Living for Christ has power, has blessings, has gifts, has favor. Amen. 2 Corinthians 5:17. And here we're going to see that in Christ, the old you is gone, and a new and better you has begun. Thank God. 2 Corinthians 5:17. Quote, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new." If anyone is in Christ, if anyone's in union with Christ, if anyone's connected to him, if anyone's born again, amen, connected, born from above, connected to Christ, they are a new creation. That means completely different, new in quality. It says old things have passed away. Old things have come to an end. They disappeared, folks. Thank God. All things have become new. All things have come into being. All things have been made different. Praise God. Through the gospel, a person is not just improved. A person is made entirely new. In technology, they'll say, "Is that a 1.1 or a 1.2 improvement?" Nope. It's a 2.0 improvement. Completely different, complete overhaul top to bottom. The gospel doesn't just change what you do. The gospel changes who you are. Praise God. The new life in Christ, it begins now and it carries into eternal life with God. Try that on for size. So, not only are you new creation here living that way in this world and being conformed to the image of Christ, but you are also being transformed so that you will have an eternal unending life with God. Yes, believing the gospel brings you into eternal life. Let's take a look at 2 Timothy 1:es 8-10. And in here we're going to see, don't be ashamed of the gospel or the sacrifices it requires. It's totally worth it. Second Timothy 1:8, therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord. This is Paul writing to his brother in Christ, his son in Christ, Timothy. Okay? Do not be ashamed of the testimony of the Lord, nor of me, his prisoner. Paul's talking about himself. but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God. He says, don't be ashamed. Don't shrink back. Don't be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, the testimonies of our witness, declaring the evidence of God, the truth of God. God has done things in your life. Do not be ashamed. Don't shrink back. Don't be embarrassed of what God has done in your life. Be a witness of it. God deserves it. We deserve to give God the thanks and the honor to at the very least admit to what he's done to to tell someone to say, you know, God did this and I know God did this and I thank God for doing this. Don't be ashamed or embarrassed of your witness. It says, "But share with me, that's with Paul, in the sufferings." Share in the sufferings. Paul said, "Let's suffer together. Let's endure hardship together." Amen. You might ask yourself and say, "Who wants to share in sufferings?" Remember what we talked about before. You share in the sufferings of Christ. You die with Christ and you rise with Christ. That's why you share in the sufferings. Amen. He says, "Share in the sufferings for the gospel, for the good news, for the good message." Now, Jesus already died. Jesus was already buried. Jesus already rose again the third day when Paul wrote this to Timothy. But why did he write that? because he knew that everybody who would believe, who would trust, and who would rely on, who would adhere and cling on to the gospel was going to go through sufferings. Amen. And they were going to do it for the good news and the good message of God. Paul said the gospel is worth living and even suffering for. Amen. The gospel is worth living for and the gospel is worth suffering for. Let's see why. Second Timothy 1 verse 9. And here we're going to see the gospel is worth it because it saves you and it gives you your calling, your purpose in life. Second Timothy 1:9, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, Paul writes, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began. The gospel is worth it because it saved us. It rescued us from danger. It set us at safety. It made us sound. Praise God. That's why Paul said it's okay to suffer because that gospel is rescuing us from danger. It's saving us. It's putting us at safety. It's making us sound spirit, soul, and body. And it called us. It invited us. It summoned us into a relationship with God. It summoned us into a purpose. God gives us a purpose through the gospel and called us with a holy calling, which means we're set apart. We're sacred. We're belonging to God. Holy is a strong word, a powerful word, and it's a word that God uses for you. It's a word God uses for you. God calls you set apart. God calls you sacred. God says you belong to him. So, quit fooling around with all that mess, right? Quit fooling around with those things. Get out of the streets. Obey God. Do what's right before God. Humble yourself before God because you're set apart. You're sacred. You belong to God and he'll do wonderful things through your life if you'll submit yourself to him. Amen. And it says it's done not according to our works. This wasn't done through human actions or deeds or through the effort that we put in. This was done through our faith in the gospel. That's the effort we put in. We put our effort into believing and trusting and receiving the gift that God has given because none of our actions, none of our deeds, none of our efforts are worth a hill beans. They do nothing before God but believing the gospel that does everything before God. Right? And it says, "But according to his own purpose and his own grace, God's unearned favor, God's kindness, God's enabling power." The gospel is the means by which eternal life is made available to us, folks. Second Timothy 1:10. And here we're going to see that through Jesus, death has been defeated and eternal life is made known. 2 Timothy 1:10. Quote, "But has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel." Wow. There is a whole lot in this verse, folks. It says that God is now revealed. He's made visible. He's brought into the open by the appearing of our savior, Jesus Christ. That's his visible arrival. Jesus existed before we saw, before he became a man. Jesus existed. Jesus is eternal. But he was made visible when he was born of a virgin birth, right? He became visible. And when he became visible, he came for a purpose. He came to die, be buried, and rise again. In the third day, he came to do the gospel, right? And it says he has abolished death. He renders death powerless. He made death ineffective. Wow. Oh, praise. Death is no longer dying. That's what he's saying. That's why many folks would call it a homegoing at a funeral. Amen. Because people looked and says, "Wait a second. Death has been rendered powerless. It's been made ineffective. Thank God." And that he brought life. That's true spiritual life. That's the life of God. He brought the life of God to you and immortality, never ending, imperishable life, eternal life. And he brought it to light through the gospel through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The gospel brings eternal life because it defeats death. And it reveals the life and the light of God through Jesus Christ. That is a powerful blessing. If we talk about the blessings of Christ, that's way up there, folks. That's why I decided to end on that one for that list. But there's more. Our next simple truth, the blessings of the gospel were actually promised long ago. I thought it was really important to show you this. We're going to want to see this where this all came from. Let's take a look at the history, the story arc, if you will, of the gospel. Amen. Let's take a look at Genesis 12:es 1 through3. And here we're going to see that God's plan to bless the world through the gospel began with a promise to Abraham. Amen. began with the promise to Abraham. Genesis 12 verse one. Now the Lord had said to Abram, "Get out of your country, from your family, and from your father's house to a land that I will show you." Verse two, "I will make you a great nation. I will bless you and make your name great, and you shall be a blessing." This is such a powerful thing. God said this to Abram. Abram hears the voice of God, and when he hears it, he gets out of his country. He leaves his family. He leaves his father's house, who, by the way, was wealthy. And he goes to a land that he didn't even know of yet. He went in faith. And then God says to him, "I'll make you a great nation." Now, Abraham and Sarah were barren. They had no children. And yet, God was going to make them a great nation. That God was going to bless them and to make Abraham's name great and that he would be a blessing to others. And what does this guy do? He obeys it. That's why he's described throughout the Bible. And he's described as a father of faith because Abraham hears God's voice and he doesn't second guess it or question it. He gets up and goes because he submits himself to the father. And that is a powerful powerful example for us of someone who knows what God wants and goes out and does it. And you better believe he was tempted. You better believe there were struggles, but he resisted them and he did the will of God because he knew there was something more important in life than chasing after your desires and doing what you think is right. He laid his life down to take up the life that God wanted for him. Amen. So God says, "Get out of your country and from your family." He goes, "I will make you a great nation." God promises in Genesis 12:2. That means a large and important people or group. Again, it's ironic to a person who had no children, who couldn't possibly have established a family that creates this great nation that God was describing, right? He says, "I will bless you. I will bestow favor. I will enrich you with benefits." That's what we're describing here with these blessings. I will make your name great. I'll give you a reputation. I'll give you an identity as great. People will think of Abram and they'll say, "That's great." And he'll say, "It's God." But they'll say, "No, no. I see God in you. I see greatness. I see these favors. I see these gifts. I see these benefits that God has been providing. And Abraham will say, "No, no, it's God. It's all about God." God called Abraham and promised to make him a blessing also to others. Okay, that's the key here. God blessed Abraham and thank God for that. But really, what comes down to you and me is that God also made Abraham a blessing to others. God's redemptive plan when God says, "We're going to do this gospel." It actually started back at the fall of Adam, right? In Genesis 3:15, you see where God curses the serpent. There's a conflict between the serpent and the seed of the woman. That's the very first place where you see God prophesy the gospel that there will be a death, burial, and resurrection. You're going to see that there's going to be a conflict between the serpent and the seed of the woman. And it also unfolds here God talking to Abraham because God says to Abraham that through Abraham a great nation and the promised seed Jesus Christ would come through. So that Abraham here who had no children had no lineage not only would there be a great nation but through that great nation would be the Messiah Jesus Christ. Amen. There's some powerful stuff here folks. This goes way back. I take great comfort knowing the fact that I'm not just sitting here hearing voices and going crazy, but that I'm a part of a long arc. I'm a a small page in a very long book. And it's a powerful book, a book in which God started from the very beginning and he's doing a work and that I have great grace and great mercy on my life that I could hear God's voice, that I could submit myself to his will, that I could obey him and I could be a part of this wonderful redemptive plan of what he has done through our Lord Jesus Christ. Thank God. Genesis 12:3. And here we're going to see that the gospel blessing was never meant for one people. The gospel is for the whole world. Praise God. And it came through a promise of Abraham. Genesis 12:3. Quote, "I will bless those who bless you." This is God talking to Abram. And I will curse him who curses you. And in you, Abram, all the families of the earth shall be blessed. He says, "I will bless. I'll bestow favor and enrich with benefits those who bless you, those who bestow favor on Abram. I will curse. I'll bring judgment on those who bring judgment on you, Abram. And in you, Abram, all the families of the earth, all the clans, all the nations, all the groups of people shall be blessed. They will receive favor. They'll receive benefit. God's promise went beyond Abraham to the whole earth. And he did it through the seed of Abraham, the seed of the woman. He did it through the Messiah. He did it through Jesus Christ, the true seed of Abraham, who died, who rose again to bless every person with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places, as it says in Ephesians, and every nation that would receive that gift. Every person in every nation who receives that gift will be blessed. Powerful. Let's take a look in the New Testament. Let's jump from Genesis to Galatians, from G to G. in the New Testament this time. And here in Galatians 3:16, we're going to see that this promise to Abraham, it wasn't vague. It pointed straight to Jesus Christ. Galatians 3:16, quote, "Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made." He does not say, "Quote, and to seeds as of many, but as of one, and to your seed, who is Christ." Amen. Now to Abraham and his seed, that's Abraham's offspring, Abraham's descendants, was the promises made. He does not say and to seeds as of plenty, but to seed as in one. Paul was saying, who is Christ? It's the anointed one, the Messiah, Jesus Christ. So this promise that was being made was a promise that wasn't about so much the Jewish people, but it was about a specific seed, Jesus Christ himself. Paul explains that God's promise to Abraham was not only about many descendants, but it was about one specific descendant, Jesus Christ. The gospel is the realization of that promise, of that promise to Abraham. Many, many, many years ago, and all the blessings flow through Jesus Christ to those who receive him and believe the gospel, God promised that there'd be this seed of Abraham who would bless everybody, and that was Jesus Christ. And for you and me who receive him and believe the gospel, all sorts of gifts, all sorts of favor is bestowed upon us. God didn't just promise Christ. God preached the gospel to Abraham through the promise. The blessings of the gospel were assured so long ago. Galatians 3 verse 8. Here we're going to see that the promise to Abraham was actually the gospel and its blessings being preached far in advance. We're actually part of something huge, something preached to Abraham so many years ago. Okay. Galatians 3:8, quote, "And the scripture foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preach the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, quote, in you all the nations of the earth shall be blessed." Verse nine, so then those who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham. says, "And the scripture, it's the written word of God." In this case, it's the Old Testament books. Right? Here's Paul writing this letter to the church at Galatia. But when he's talking about the written word, he's talking about the Septuagant. He's talking about the Old Testament that they were carrying at the time. So, the scripture, right, the Old Testament foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith. God would justify all nations by faith, by belief, by trust in God. And remember, to justify is to declare, right? It's to acquit. So he declared us right. God declares us right through faith. And it shows up right here again, right? Make right before God, acquit of all guilt, and to do so by faith, by belief, by trust, by reliance on that gospel. He says that foreseeing this, that God actually preached the gospel to Abraham. He announced the good news of the gospel before the death, burial, and resurrection. Notice that God preached the gospel to Abraham. Notice that Jesus in Mark 1 preached the gospel. He says, "The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the gospel." These were all messages that God was doing through various ways before Jesus even died, before he was buried, and before he rose again. Because again, the most important topic, the most important concept in the entire Bible is the death, burial, and resurrection that God literally prophesied at the fall of Adam. And it goes all the way through from Genesis to Revelation. That is why it's so important. The gospel didn't begin at the cross. Its blessings were promised from the very beginning and then fulfilled through the cross and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Let's take a moment. Okay, we saw a lot today about the blessings of the gospel. So, let's make it simple. Number one, every blessing you need, peace, purpose, transformation, even eternal life comes through believing the gospel. We saw this in simple truth number 42 earlier in this episode. If you want to go back, we keep chapters so you can quickly go back to simple truth number 42. But all these things come through believing the gospel. Number two, your relationship with God has been fully restored and you now have the power to live a completely new life in Christ. We saw this in simple truth number 43 earlier in the episode. Number three, the gospel doesn't just change your future. It transforms your identity, transforms your purpose and how you live right now. We saw this in simple truth number 44 earlier in this episode. And number four, the blessings of the gospel were declared by God way back at the fall of Adam and then preached to Abraham long ago and are now yours through faith in Jesus Christ, which we saw in simple truth number 45. As they say in Hollywood, there's a story arc. You are a very important page in a very long book. And God bless you for paying attention. God bless you for listening for the voice of God. God bless you for tuning into this episode and for reading and praying and seeking God and receiving God's favor so that you can be a part of this very important as this expression goes. It's the greatest story ever told and you are a part of that. That's a powerful thing. God bless you for that. So, wow. Okay. So, with all these things being true, what should I do now? Right? Let's take a look. What should I do now? Well, number one, repent and believe the gospel. Leave your old ways behind. Don't be tempted by them. Right? Put your faith in the gospel. The death, the burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I don't know if anything you were doing before was prophesied at the fall of Adam was preached to Abraham. I don't think anything you were doing compares to anything that we just been describing over the course of this episode. So lay that nonsense aside and go submit yourself to God and put your faith in that death, burial, and resurrection. Test God out. See See how it works. Number two, meditate on the blessings of the gospel. I suggest try it out for seven days. So for each day, meditate, think about, meditate, ponder on what the death, the burial, and the resurrection of Jesus Christ, what it accomplished for you. Right? Think about that. Think about how you have peace with God. You are not at war with God. He is not at war with you. That conflict is over. The beef was squashed. Amen. We saw that in Romans 5:1. Secondly, you are completely forgiven. You were healed. You were redeemed. Meditate on these things each day for seven days. God is actively restoring your life. We saw that in Psalm 103:es 1-6. You're a new creation with a new purpose. The gospel has the power to change who you are fundamentally. We saw that in 2 Corinthians 5 15-17. You have eternal life. Meditate on that one. Live differently in this world knowing that there's a world to come. God's life is now your life. We saw that in second Timothy 1 10. These are scriptures. So meditate on these concepts. I recommend you meditate on these scriptures too. Do it every day for seven days so that it starts to work inside of you. These things are truth, folks. And number three, live for Christ. Don't live for yourself. We're so tired of that. Tired of that world. It's nonsense. Does nothing for you. Walk in your new identity. Let the gospel shape your choices. Let the gospel shape your purpose. Let the gospel shape your direction. It's never too late. I don't care how young you are, how old you are. It's never too late. Let the gospel shape who you are. Amen. So, let's talk about the next episode of The Simple Truth. Okay, so you've seen that there are many blessings that come through believing the gospel. And by the way, there are more verses. I just didn't want to keep I didn't want to make this episode too long, folks. There's so many more verses. There's so many more blessings. So, we we pick the choicest ones. There's so many blessings that come through believing the gospel. But does God really want you to have them? Yes. Yes, he does. God does want you to have them. The Bible says that God's promises are yes and amen, which means yes and so be it. through the gospel of the kingdom of God. Don't miss next episode. We're going to show you how God's promises are yes for your life. Thank you for listening to this episode of the Simple Truth Podcast. Today, we saw that the gospel is not just about being saved one day. It is the source of every blessing you need right now. Through the gospel, you have peace with God, a new identity, a new purpose, and even an eternal and unending life with God. Amazing. So, believe the gospel, leave your old self behind. It's not even worth it, and put on this new life. So, I challenge you to meditate on what God has done for you through the gospel every day for the next seven days. Consider what these blessings are and what they actually mean. Quietly repeat it back to yourself throughout the day and ponder how these blessings affect your life and the life of others around you and take a stand. Live for Christ. I mean, we're talking about the one who's raised from the dead, right? So, don't take my word for it. Try God. Test God. See if he's not true to his word. Let us know in the comments what God is doing in your life and share this episode with someone else who may not realize all of the blessings that come through the gospel of the kingdom of God. If this episode helped you, please be sure to like and to subscribe. In next episode, we will get into how the gospel is God's yes and why that matters. You'll see how the Bible doesn't describe God as yes and no, but yes through Jesus Christ. You won't want to miss it. It's been a real pleasure talking about the Bible with you. I pray God bless you, God keep you, and help you walk confidently in every blessing he has given you through the gospel. Until next time, thank you for listening to the Simple Truth Podcast. For additional episodes, visit us at www.simpletruth.org.