Making The Gospel Relevant to our Community
That’s what we say our vision is. But are we living it out? Are we doing everything we can to make the Gospel relevant?
What about in my own life? Is it relevant to ME? Do I even know what the Gospel is any more? I know Christians who feel that the Gospel is for lost people, but then after you “get saved,” you can move on past it to the “real meat” of God’s Word… Theology, doctrinal issues, and other “deep study.”
Sure… We must move on to maturity. We must continue to more and more deeply know the mind of Christ. BUT, let us never forget that the truth of the Gospel is the ONLY thing that makes that possible. If we get too caught up in how we should live, and lose sight of the fact that our very lives in the first place are due to HIS sacrifice, then we run the risk of teaching LAW, rather than grace. We can’t for one second forget the most important part of all teaching:
I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. 4 He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said.1 Corinthians 15:3-4 NLT
In short, the Gospel is for everybody. The lost, AND the saved. The churched and the unchurched. It all begins and ends with Christ and His sacrifice on the cross for our sins.
If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved. As the Scriptures tell us, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.” Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who gives generously to all who call on him. For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”Romans 10:9-13 NLT
This is the reason you will hear the bad news AND the good news clearly articulated in each sermon at The Orchard Church. We believe that the Gospel is first and foremost. That without a clear understanding of the nature of our salvation, all else is just the “form of Godliness, while denying it’s power.”
It all begins and ends with Christ.