It seems that there is an increasing measure of shock at the state of mankind today – I mean we are in the 21st century and we shouldn’t be behaving like this after thousands of years of evolution, surely we have improved and become better, more educated, more understanding, more socially aware, more just, etc.?
The fact is that a scan of recent news events will tell you otherwise, whether it’s a story in the local news or an event that grabs the worlds headlines – a local murder, or the murderous and utterly repugnant behaviour of those in terrorist groups, or the stealthy land grabs of foreign powers.
Every seeming advance in culture also brings with it a reminder of how we haven’t got there yet, in fact humanly it would seem we’ve not even started. Given half the chance we will behave in the most fallen of ways. Each generation it seems must learn afresh that the so-called enlightened are not so enlightened after all. Whether it’s first century man or twenty-first century man, we find again and again that there is something in humanity that no amount of education, social improvement, law etc. can change.
The reality is law and order are needed because we aren’t what we should be, and the every increasing nature of law only serves to remind us that humanity will constantly be trying to find ways of getting round it – with every advance there is always the danger of abuse. The fact is we have all sinned, we are all naturally lawbreakers.
Which brings us to the need of the gospel. We still need it. Today. Just as much today as then. We haven’t grown out of it. We cannot save ourselves. All our so-called improvements don’t match up, always fall short, never really identify or meet humanities greatest need – that of salvation, our need of a Saviour, someone just like us, but other than us, who is able to be and do what we can’t, who is able to pay the price for our sin and break it’s power in our lives and set us free to live transformed lives.
Enter – Jesus.
Jesus did all that, through his life, death and resurrection. He IS the gospel! Not a law, but a Person.
The message transformed lives then, and has done down through the centuries, and it still transforms lives today. Praise God, up and down the land and around the globe there are hundreds and thousands, millions upon millions of saved and transformed lives.
The gospel needs no adjustments, it still saves, whether you are post-modern, post-post-modern or whatever, it just needs communicating with and in love, through acts of kindness and sharing the word.
Jesus said, “Go…” Let’s go with confidence that it’s still needed and it still saves.
The Word 4 Life 