Pastor Barry's  "Chapter & Verse"  Day 257

September 14;       Acts 14:21;       103/260(III);       ‘The Gospel Saves’

Acts 14:21 And when they had preached the gospel to that city and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch,

Paul and Barnabas were in Derbe preaching the gospel.  Many people believed and became disciples.  That is what the gospel does, it saves and causes people to become serious with the Lord.  The gospel is called Good News and it surely is.  When you hear the truth, which the gospel is, the magnitude of what the Lord Jesus has done for us in obedience to the will of God the Father, it is staggering.  The Greek word for world, the world God the Father sent Jesus to save, means humanity, alienated from God and opposed to Him.  How could He love us?  It is simple.  He knows we are the way we are out of ignorance to who He is.  The Lord believes that when we know the truth, which the gospel is, concerning His great love for us and the sacrifice Jesus willing made for us, we will love Him and accept Him as our Lord and Savior.  Religion is a tool of the devil to alienate people from the Lord.  What religion teaches is man-made traditions or demonically inspired lies about the Lord and what you have to do to be accepted by Him.  Until we know the gospel truth, our ideas about the Lord are often influenced by religion.  This is why when we share Jesus, we must share what the Word of God says about Him and how much they person we are sharing with means to Him.  The Lord Jesus is a faith God.  He believes that when we hear the true gospel, the truth of the Word will impact our spirit profoundly and we will be saved.  The gospel saves.