:a note on John 8:24–

“Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.”

There will always be an applicable necessity for the mature, knowledgeable, well-read Christian to humble themselves- to read, remember, and remind themselves of the gospel of Jesus Christ. This gospel, (i.e good news) is that which miraculously saved them at first, is actively saving them now, and will gloriously at the consummation of all things, save them at last!

Simplicity in regards to the gospel, is not a gospel that is to be understood as “easily accepted” by man, or an “all I have to do is” mentality. This kind of rendition of the good news of Christ would ultimately say a lot about one’s true grasp of the gospel. What gospel simplicity is, in its unadulterated, biblical context, (which it always has been, always will be, and never anything different) is that it is first and foremost to be understood and proclaimed as ‘Jesus IS God’.

If this is not the first thoughts in one’s mind when sharing the gospel, or even a testimony of how they were saved, then it is not the gospel of God. It is rather the deduced one that is most prevalent in our day- Satanism; or better rendered as Selfism! This is an affront in the face of the one true living God, and will save noone!

At times, one who is sharing the gospel can have a true zeal to tell others of Christ. However, where there is little to no talk of Christ, there exists then a great need for much reflection of one’s own conversion which must be considered and wrestled with. If not, this can easily become tangled up in pride, therein leading to error. Pride can also, and often does, by the mercies of God, serve Christians well in helping them to see that the high wave of God’s providential grace never fails to toss them upon the shore of gospel necessity; or the continual need of a gospel reminder.

The sharing of the gospel will undoubtedly be confronted with pushback and discomfort to the believer. Nonetheless, we must recall for ourselves the gospel for the comfort of our souls, and that with the great reminder of Psalm 90:2- “from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.” We will always arrive at a right and biblical understanding of the gospel when our minds have been submitted to Christ. Christ will never offer a counterfeit of Himself. He IS God!