Episode 180: Believe the Good News

April 26, 2024David Lambert
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This week we have been reading in Mark's gospel about what happened to Jesus during the very early days of His earthly ministry, beginning with His baptism. We read that Jesus came to His cousin John the Baptist to be baptized. John was baptizing repentant sinners in the Jordan River. Jesus didn't need to repent but He needed to be baptized out of obedience. You and I, when we gave our lives to Christ, also had to be baptized, in order to embrace Jesus' death, burial and resurrection. We then read that Jesus was "compelled by the Spirit" to go into the wilderness and was tempted by the devil. We also must face the devil and his temptations. We learn that we can overcome the work of the devil by relying on God and His Word. Today, let's finish this series by listening to what happened next in Mark’s Gospel:

Later on, after John was arrested, Jesus went into Galilee, where he preached God’s Good News. “The time promised by God has come at last!” he announced. “The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!” (Mark 1:14-15)

This passage marks the beginning of Jesus' earthly ministry. He was baptized; he overcame the attacks of the devil; He emerged victorious to proclaim His message. And what was that message? One: “The Kingdom of God is near!” Two: "Repent of your sins!" And three: "Believe the Good News!" And what was the Good News? That the kingdom of God, and his King, Jesus, had come. This same Jesus is the one who rescued you and me from the power of sin, who broke into our damaged world and joyfully proclaimed the message that we can belong to Him. Jesus has destroyed the power of death in our lives and has raised us up to a new life with Him; not someday in Heaven after we die, but here and now.

The Kingdom of God has come! And you and I can experience that Kingdom today. Repent and believe—that is the very Good News!

© 2024 David Lambert
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