SATURDAY, MARCH 31
Luke 24:44-53
Ephesians 1:15-23

“The eyes of your understanding
being enlightened; that ye may know
what is the hope of his calling…”

THE BLESSED HOPE

After the Lord Jesus Christ revealed Himself to His disciples, He commissioned them to preach the gospel. God first gave this gospel message immediately after man fell into sin (Gen 3:15). It was not an afterthought but a fulfilment of what God had decreed and written in the scriptures. This good news is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself who was born in human flesh, lived a perfect life, suffered and died for man’s sins, was buried and rose again the third day.

The core message of the gospel is the acknowledgment of man’s sinfulness. With the admission of sin comes the acceptance of its consequences: death, judgment, everlasting condemnation. The abhorrence of sin must cause the person to change his sinful ways and turn his back to sin. This does not suggest sinless perfection but a sincere desire to do away with sin and to live a holy life for the Lord.

The necessary component of the gospel does not end with repentance of sin. Man must be directed to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. The sin-convicted man must realise he cannot do anything to escape the consequences of sin. He must look unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith (Heb 12:2).

The inevitable outcome of faith is to be a witness. There is to be that willingness and passion to share what he has heard about the gospel. It is not a requirement for salvation but his zeal to win others for Christ is a proof that he has truly experienced salvation.

All who have experienced the salvation of the Lord surely experience great joy. If he is not joyful with his new life in Christ, then he does not fully understand that he is delivered from eternal torment. Moreover, he does not know the exceeding blessedness of being in God’s Kingdom. Read Ephesians 1:17-18.

THOUGHT: Am I assured of that blessed hope in Christ?
PRAYER: Lord, I thank Thee for the blessed hope!