“Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God,” Mark 1:14
This scripture says that Jesus was preaching the “ Gospel.” The word “Gospel” means, simply, “GOOD NEWS.” Now, do you want to know what the good news is? The good news is not that God is going to give you a brand new car. The good news is not Him telling you, “You will never have a bad day.”
The Good News is that God will forgive your sins!!! The Good News is that God will deliver you from sin’s grasp!!! The Good News is that God will give us eternal hope!!!
Do you like a message that is short and to the point? Well, I believe Jesus did too. He didn’t want to make this sermon difficult. In verse 15, we have His sermon.
“And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel”
Mark 1:15
*** REPENT & BELIEVE.***
#1- Repent- Turn from your sins and your false gods and serve me. That is what Jesus was preaching. He was saying you have a sin problem that you need forgiveness for!!!
#2- Believe- Believe in these words. Believe that the prophets of old spoke of a coming Saviour. Believe that that Saviour came in the form of a babe, born to a virgin mother. Believe that He lived a sin free life and paid the price of your sins with His blood on an old cross. Believe that He rose up out of that grave three days later because neither death nor hell could have a hold on Him. Believe that Jesus is ALIVE and coming again!!!! That’s what Jesus was saying. You can do that today. God has called you to repentance like so many times before. In verses 16-18, He calls Simon & Andrew. What did they do?
“Now as he walked by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers. “
Mark 1:16
“And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men.”
Mark 1:17
“And straightway they forsook their nets, and followed him.”
Mark 1:18
I find this very interesting. Many times when Jesus spoke in parables, He spoke of the world as a net. See, I can see the fishermen dropping the world (sin) behind them and leaving it (repentance) and following Him (belief.) The Bible says you can’t serve to masters. You will love one and hate the other. Lying, cheating, stealing. The world says it’s all right to drink alcohol, but God says a drunkard can’t enter into His gates. The world says that abortion is fine, but God says it is murder. The world tells us that little fibs don’t hurt, but God says, “Thou shalt not lie.” The world will tell us the negative, but Jesus tells us “THE GOOD NEWS” of forgiveness!!! Listen to His words, “repent ye, and believe the gospel.”
|
