The Impact of the Gospel

It is such a joy to be living in Christ and have His Gospel truth impact our lives. Each Sunday night we have been walking through Milton Vincent’s little book called, A Gospel Primer for Christians: Learning to see the Glories of God’s Love. Most of the book goes through different ways that the Gospel impacts the life of the believer. Vincent discusses 31 of these truths that, when mediated upon and practiced, cause the believer to rest on Jesus and His Gospel grace even more. It has been a rich discussion with Pastor Nate as we have had the pleasure of elaborating on each section and marveling at the kindness of God in our lives. Of the 20 we have covered so far, a few of my favorite Gospel truths are “My Daily Protection,” “Freedom from Sin’s Power,” and “Stimulated to Love Others,” but all 31 of these Gospel-rich truths are in play daily in the life of the believer. It is just flat-out awesome to know what Jesus has delivered in His grace to the believer in Him. These truths lead us to trust Him when things are on shaky ground. They enable us to obey Him, giving us confidence that He protects us while we walk in His Gospel.

Let me go deeper into what he says in just one of these sections so you can see why you need to buy this book and take your family through it (our bookstore has several copies for purchase). Under the section “Stimulated to Love Others,” Vincent says this, “Doing good and showing love to those who have wronged me is always the opposite of what my flesh wants me to do. Nonetheless, when I remind myself of my sins against God and of His forgiving and generous grace toward me, I give the gospel an opportunity to reshape my perspective and to put me in a frame of mind wherein I actually desire to give this same grace to those who have wronged me.” Of course, he points to scripture that generates this statement. Ephesians 4:32 says, “Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.” And Colossians 3:12–13 says, “So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you.”

Those two passages drive a stake into our hearts. They address a sinful and selfish heart and refocus the redeemed heart to where it needs to be, on Christ. The Word of God is kind to attack our fleshly and sinful hearts and cause us to walk in the Gospel of Christ. No wonder Vincent recommends preaching the Gospel to ourselves daily, because we need to resist our flesh and instead walk in the power of this saving Gospel.

So Christian, where will your focus be today? Will it be selfishly guided by the flesh? Or will it be on Christ and His wonderful Gospel? That answer should be easy. May we continue to be blessed as we walk in this Gospel that transforms our lives, to be a living example of what Christ calls us to be. And, in turn, may He receive all the glory for His Gospel that saturates our soul. Lord willing, see you this coming Sunday evening as we look at more of these truths that impact our lives.