My webpage used to be all about me. What I did in high school, where I went to college, career, etc. As my faith has grown, my goal is for my “self” to decrease, and for Jesus to increase in my life. I thought it best to replace the bit about me on my site, with a summary of my faith.
I believe the gospel is the good news, summarized as follows:
We are all sinners, incapable of living a sinless, righteous life. We deserve condemnation from God. However, Jesus was sent to reconcile us, and make us right with God.
Jesus lived a righteous, sinless life, and then died on the cross as an atoning sacrifice for us sinners. Because of this sacrifice, there is no condemnation from God for those who believe, he forgives us of our sins.
3 days after his death, Jesus rose victoriously. Because of this triumph, God promises those who believe to have everlasting joy.
This everlasting joy is given to us from the grace of God, and there is nothing we can do ourselves to earn it, not our good deeds, or anything else we can boast of. It is as if we are saying to God, the judge, “I am guilty”. He then declares us innocent based on the righteousness of Jesus, not our own.
The bible says that for all who put their hope in Jesus Christ alone, he promises them eternal life. If this faith is genuine, it will express itself through love. Jesus says the most important command is to love God. The next is to love others. All other commands are summed up in those 2.
As our faith grows, these commands become less and less burdensome, and our heart becomes more fully alive in Christ. Our ultimate desire becomes more and more to please God and give all the glory to him.