What Is The Gospel Of This Age - Acts 2:22-36

In Acts chapter 2, we're going to start reading

Acts 2 · chapter mention

in verse 22, and we'll read through verse 36.

Starting in verse 22 of Acts chapter 2. Men of

Acts 2 · chapter mention

Israel, listen to these words. Jesus the Nazarene,

a man. attested to you by God with miracles and

wonders and signs which God performed through

him in your midst, just as you yourselves know.

This man, delivered over by the predetermined

plan and for knowledge of God, you nailed to

a cross by the hands of godless men and put him

to death. But God raised him up again, putting

an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible

for him to be held in its power. For him to be

held in its power. For David says of him, I saw

the Lord always in my presence, for he is at

my right hand so that I will not be shaken. Therefore

my heart was glad and my tongue exulted. Moreover,

my flesh also will live in hope, because you

will not abandon my soul to Hades, nor allow

your Holy One to undergo decay. You have made

known to me the ways of life. You will make me

full of gladness with your presence. Brethren,

I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch

David that he both died and was buried, and his

tomb is with us to this day. And so, because

he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn

to him with an oath, to seat one of his descendants

on his throne, he looked ahead and spoke of the

resurrection of Christ, that he was neither abandoned

to Hades, nor did his flesh suffer decay. This

Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all

witnesses. Therefore, having been exalted to

the right hand of God, and having received from

the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He

has poured forth this which you both see and

hear. For it was not David who ascended into

heaven, but he himself says, The Lord said to

my Lord, Sit at my right hand until I make your

enemies a footstool for your feet. Therefore,

let all the house of Israel know for certain

that God has made him both Lord and Christ. This

Jesus, whom you crucified. Let's pray. Father,

I come before you this morning, Lord, I ask and

I pray for your help in proclaiming the gospel

of your blessed Son, your glorious gospel. Father,

I ask and I pray that the hearts and the minds

of the people present would be receptive and

welcoming of the truths of your gospel. of the

person of the Lord Jesus. Father, I ask and I

pray that you would be honored and that you would

be glorified by all that is said and done and

thought and considered this day at this time.

I pray this in Christ's precious name. Amen.

You may be seated. So if you will remember the

context of what's taking place here in... Peter's

sermon. Last week, we looked at the message and

the means of that message. So we looked at the

act of preaching and we looked at the message

which Peter declared to the nation of Israel

and to the nations that were present. And we

looked at verses 14 through 21 last week. And

if you'll remember, As we looked at that last

week, we talked about how the coming of the Spirit

and living on this side of the cross, we're in

a new era. We're really, we're in the gospel

age, the age when the gospel is proclaimed, when

the mission of God is going forth, and where

people are saved by the power of the gospel.

So we're living in that age, but that age will

come to an end. So today, I want to talk... really

about what is the gospel of this age? What is

the gospel which is to be proclaimed and to go

forth in this age? We know that in Acts chapter

Acts 1 · chapter mention

1 that the primary role of the apostles was to

proclaim Christ, to be witnesses of Christ. And

here we see the fulfillment of that taking place.

So what is... I know it's a basic question, but

what is the gospel? We hear that term all the

time, don't we? We hear the word gospel center.

We hear gospel preaching. We hear gospel music.

We hear share the gospel. We hear present the

gospel. We hear consider the gospel. What is

the gospel? We hear phrases like, well, that's

gospel. Or that's a gospel conversation. So what

is the gospel? This is very, very important to

get the gospel right. Very, very important. Because

after all, this is the Christian message, isn't

it? The gospel of the Lord Jesus. And it's not

just the message of Christianity, but this is

the Christian's message. So it's Christianity's

message, but it's the Christian's message to

the world and to those around them. So why is

it so important that we get the gospel right?

That we proclaim the correct gospel? That we

know what the gospel is? In Galatians 1, verses

Galatians 1:6–10

6 -10, we read just how important it is that

we get... The gospel right. This is Paul writing

to the church at Galatia. And he says this, I

am amazed that you are so quickly deserting him

who called you by the grace of Christ for a different

gospel, which is really not another. Only there

are some who are disturbing you and want to distort

the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel

from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary

to what we have preached to you, he is to be

accursed, anathema, set aside for judgment in

the wrath of God in a unique and special way.

He is to be accursed. As we have said before,

so I say again, Now, if any man is preaching

to you a gospel contrary to what you have received,

he is to be accursed. It is vitally important

that we get the gospel right, that we understand

what the gospel is, that we have a working definition

of what the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ is.

Here in this text in verses 22 through 36 of

Acts chapter 2, we have what may be one of the

Acts 2 · chapter mention

greatest, most clear gospel presentations in

the history of the church. Peter beautifully

clarifies for us what the Christian message is

and what the message of the Christian is. which

Peter preached on the day of Pentecost to the

thousands of hearers which were in front of him.

This message, think about what it brought about,

the results of it. Nearly 3 ,000 people were

saved, were pierced to the heart, and the Spirit

of God came upon them and dwelt in them and regenerated

them. and converted them, and dwelled in them.

And 3 ,000 were added to the church that day

as a result of this gospel message. As a result

of what Peter has just said. Nearly 3 ,000 people

came to Christ. One person in this, when they

were working on this text, when they were preaching

it, they titled it, The Sermon That Saved 3 ,000

People. Now, I've never preached a day in my

life compared to this. My goodness. This is a

powerful text. But here's the thing I want you

to see in this text, and we'll see it today.

It's not complicated. It's a simple, straightforward,

black and white message about who the Lord Jesus

is. So today, first, we're going to look at the

gospel according to Peter. In doing that, we're

going to follow the natural break of this. And

so, if you would, grab your Bible and just look

at the Bible as I read through these sections,

and you'll see these natural divisions as we

look at them. So first, we see in verse 22, in

looking at the Gospel according to Peter, we

see the life of Jesus in verse 22. In verses

23 through 24, we see the death of Jesus. Then

a lot bigger chunk in verses 24 through verse

32, we see the resurrection of the Lord Jesus.

And then in verses 33 through 35, and we'll talk

about it a little different and a little bit

separated from the other three. In verses 33

through 35, we see the exaltation of Jesus. So

already we can see that this is about the Lord

Jesus. It's about His work and who He is and

what He's accomplished. So first, let's look

at those individually. We see the life of Jesus

in verse 22. He says, Jesus the Nazarene, a man.

Jesus the Nazarene, a man. The life of Christ

tells us about the humanity of the Lord Jesus.

It tells us about the fact that He lived with

flesh and blood. It tells us of the incarnation,

God taking on flesh and dwelling among us. The

Creator stepping in to creation. That's what

the life of Christ tells us about. It tells us

the fact that He was tempted as we are tempted.

It tells us the fact that He faced and He encountered

the troubles and the issues of this life yet

without sin. It tells us that Christ was excellent

in His humanity. It tells us that Christ was

perfect and holy and pure in His humanity. The

text says, a man attested to you by God. miracles

and wonders and signs and then it talks about

how God did these things through him in their

midst so in the life of Christ we see God working

powerfully and God's approval of the person of

Christ that he lived in a manner that was pleasing

to the Lord that he lived in a manner that was

pleasing to the Lord's law, God's moral law.

And so if you think about Christ and you think

about Christ's heart, you think about Christ's

perfection and His holiness and His purity, consider

the Ten Commandments the moral law of God. And

consider yourself in regards to the Ten Commandments

and the moral law of God. The Ten Commandments,

they don't just give us one simple negative,

don't do this, but they also reveal to us the

heart of God on that issue. So if the Bible says,

you shall not murder, it also means that you

shall love your neighbor. It means not just the

action of murdering somebody, but it means the

motive of hatred and enmity within your heart,

which causes you. to murder them. So Jesus, in

his life, in his living, never ever broke a single

commandment of the moral law of God. Not just

in action. Not only did Jesus not ever murder

anybody, he only worshipped the Lord his God.

He never made for himself an idol. He never worshiped

God improperly. He never took the name of the

Lord God in vain. He never broke the Sabbath.

He never dishonored his mother and father. He

never... He never lied. He never bared false

witness. He never committed adultery in His heart.

He never coveted anything that wasn't His. Not

just in the surface action, folks, but Jesus

never desired in His heart to do those things.

His motives and His desires and His longings

were pure and holy and perfect. The reality that

he never did those came from a pure and a holy

and a genuine and a sincere and a godly heart.

So the life of Jesus, his living, shows us his

perfection, his holiness, his keeping the moral

law, but not just on his behalf. So when Jesus

got to the end of his life, He had kept the law

of God perfectly. And what are the wages of sin?

The wages of sin are death. What is sin? The

breaking of God's law. So Jesus never had any

wages upon his own life because he never sinned.

He never transgressed the law of God. So Jesus'

active obedience to the law of God is what gives

us our righteousness and our... keeping the law

of God in his sight. So Jesus' life is very,

very important. Jesus' life was not just for

himself, but Jesus' life was to be the life and

the place of his people. So when he got to the

end of his life, when he got to the end of his

perfect life, after he'd worked signs and wonders

and God had worked through him in the midst of

the people, He did not get what he deserved as

having lived a perfectly holy life, did he? No,

he got to the end of his life. And what does

the text say? This man delivered over by the

predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God,

you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless

men and put him to death. Put him to death. at

the hands of godless men. So this holy and pure

and perfect and lovely Christ Jesus, who never

transgressed the law of God, who did not have

an imperfect bone in his body, got to the end

of his life and he had nails driven through his

wrists and he had nails driven through his feet.

Was that for His life? Was that because of what

He had done and how He had lived? No. His death

was substitutionary. Meaning He died on the cross

for His people to propitiate or to remove the

wrath of God from the people of God. Jesus lived

a perfect life, perfectly obeying the law. You

and I, we don't. We break the law of God. We

break the law of God fairly regularly. We commit

adultery in our heart. We long for things that

are not ours. We do not always worship the Lord

our God and have no other gods before him. We

commit idolatry in our heart. We worship God

improperly. We do not approach God in worship

reverently and in awe, and we take His name in

vain, and we do not love our neighbor as ourself,

as God has commanded us. Now what do we incur

as a result of transgressing the law of God,

the anger and judgment of God? the just penalty

for breaking God's law. We deserve the wrath

and the judgment and the anger of God to come

down upon our lives to destroy us for eternity

because of our transgression of God's moral law.

That is what we deserve as a result of breaking

His law. So when we come to the end of our life,

that is what we should receive. That is how we

should be paid. Yet, the Lord Jesus at the end

of His perfect life gets to the cross and He

bears the wrath of God taking the penalty of

His people. He takes the punishment on behalf

of His people so that they would not suffer the

penalty of breaking the law themselves. So he

was a substitute for those whom he died for.

So his death was in the place of his people and

his life was in the place of his people. The

text tells us in verse 23 that he was delivered

over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge

of God. The life, the death, the resurrection,

the person of Christ, redemption as a whole,

and humanity. It is not accidental. Not only

does God know what's going to take place with

foreknowledge, not only does He see down the

quarters of times, but God preordains and decrees

and predetermines and plans the future. If this

is true with the Lord Jesus Christ and His gruesome

death, then this is true for all of us. The Gospel

which we proclaim and we'll see through this

text is a sovereign, God -given, God -ordained,

God -designed Gospel. It is a Gospel which is

not... Plan B, it is a gospel which is not accidental

or a backup plan, but it is the gospel of the

Lord Jesus Christ fixing what Adam ruined, bringing

us back to the original providential plan of

God and redemption, redeeming all things, lifting

the curse in due time. So he was delivered over.

We see that he was nailed to the cross by the

hands of godless men. So we're marking about

his physical sufferings, but the cross wasn't

just about physical sufferings, it was about

spiritual suffering. We see that he took the

punishment of God's people on the cross. Now

I think it's really important for us to realize

If you are a child of God, if you are a Christian,

if you are a born -again believer, the death

of the Lord Jesus tells us that if you are in

Christ, that God will never punish you ever again

because he took your punishment on the cross.

You will never again be under the wrath and the

anger and the judgment of God, and He will never

punish you. Now, that does not mean that God

will not, in love, in love for His beloved children,

discipline and correct, but it's always done

in love. It's never out of Him being a judge.

It's never coming out of His wrath. It's never

coming out of His judgment. It's always coming

out of His great love. So the believer will never

be punished because Christ has taken our punishment

in His death. We will never be punished. I think

it's important for us to realize that. Now, the

Bible says that Jesus gave up His spirit. This

text tells us, and Peter's telling this crowd,

that Jesus died at the hands of godless men,

but did he stay dead? Did he remain dead? Did

he get overtaken? by the power of death? Was

he consumed by death? Did he get held in the

grave where his body rotted and he couldn't get

out? No! This text tells us, and it spends more

time on the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, that

death could not hold him. That it wasn't just

that he was able to get out, but it says that

death was incapable of holding him in its power.

That God rose Him from the dead. Verse 24 says,

But God raised Him up again, putting an end to

the agony of death, since it was impossible for

Him to be held in its power. Jesus' resurrection

defeated our greatest enemy. Our greatest enemy.

Even greater than the devil himself. What is

the one thing that no person in this world can

escape death? When we come to the end of our

life, we die. We are consumed by it. All because

Adam disobeyed God and transgressed his law.

Sending all of humanity plunging into sin, wickedness,

rebellion against its maker, against its creator.

Now, when Adam ate the apple, he did not drop

dead at that minute, did he? No. He continued

to live physically for some time. But he died

spiritually immediately. The death of Jesus brings

about the death of death because of what Christ

accomplishes and because the fact that the resurrection

demonstrates that Christ made an acceptable payment

for sins. It was acceptable. accepted the payment

which Christ gave for his people, giving them

eternal life. We may still physically die. We

will have to walk through that door if Jesus

doesn't come back. But we do not have to fear

death. Death has no sting. Because we know that

it's just a door that we step into glory with

Christ. We go to be with Christ. We go to be

with Him. We don't go in uncertainty into the

dark abyss. We go to be with Christ. We can have

confidence and we can die well because death

has no power. Christ. killed death. Death tried

to hold Christ in the grave, and death attempting

to hold Christ in the grave by its power is like

me trying to fill up the ocean with a glass of

water. It's not going to happen, and it's ridiculous.

I cannot fill up the ocean with a glass of water.

It takes a whole lot more water than that. But

that shows just how great and mighty and powerful

Christ is. He defeated death because He was raised

again on the third day. The resurrection, and

Peter goes on here to tell us about a prophecy

which Christ fulfilled regarding the resurrection.

It's one of the final proofs for the people of

God, for the nation of Israel, that Christ was

their Messiah. That He was the promised one of

Israel, the Holy One, as we saw in Proverbs,

as we saw in Acts 2, the Holy One of God. That

was Christ. And He proved it and He demonstrated

it because He fulfilled the scriptural prophecies.

and because He rose from the dead. His resurrection

was not just a fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies

as we see in verses 25 through 29 and then a

little bit farther down in verse 31 and eventually

in 35 again in verse 35. But we also see that

the death of Christ or the resurrection of Christ

was God vindicating Christ, but it's also God

declaring that our sins are forgiven and that

Christ was who he said he was. We don't have

to question whether our sins are forgiven if

we're in Christ. We don't have to question whether

we have eternal life if we're in Christ because

God accepted his payment when he rose from the

dead. He rose. historically in time. There's

several other things regarding the resurrection

that we cannot talk about and that we cannot

emphasize, but the doctrine is amazing. There's

a reason that Peter spends more time on the resurrection

in this text and throughout the book of Acts

than he does any other throughout the book. Now,

finally we see the exaltation of Christ. We see

in verse 33, in verse 33 of our text, we read

this, Therefore, having been exalted. Now it's

important that we pause there and we see the

therefore, because that signals some sort of

change in thought, some transition in this text.

What has he presented up to this point? He's

presented the life, the death, and the resurrection

of Christ. Now he says, therefore, having talked

about the life, the death, and the resurrection

of Christ, therefore Christ has exalted to the

right hand of God. We see in his exaltation,

we see, that he's at the right hand of God, we

see that he receives the Spirit, but we also

see that he gives the Spirit. So in this text,

when he talks about the exaltation of Christ,

we see Peter bringing this full circle. You remember

last week when we were talking about... Peter

preaching, he said, when he was explaining to

the crowds what they were seeing and what they

were experiencing, and he explains the prophecy

of Joel, and he explains to them what was taking

place, he said, this, what you're seeing and

experiencing right now, this is that which was

prophesied. So Peter's bringing us, circling

us around. So the very reason which the Spirit

of God was poured out in Pentecost and the very

reason these great crowds, these thousands of

people are gathered and Peter is addressing them

is a direct result of the gospel of the Lord

Jesus. It's a direct result of His life, His

death, His resurrection, His ascension, His exaltation,

His receiving the Spirit and Him giving the Spirit

to His people. Him sending the Spirit and pouring

out the Spirit upon His people. So even the people

at that time, they were receiving the benefits

of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. So what

is the gospel? What is the gospel of the Lord

Jesus? How do we define the gospel of the Lord

Jesus? So finally, let's talk about the definition

of the gospel according to Peter. We see Peter

explaining it and Peter giving this sermon about

it. But what does Peter define it as? What do

we see in this text up to this point? What all

is the content of Peter's message in verses 22

through 36? What's the content? What fills up

this space? Just think with me. We see the life

of Jesus. We see the ministry of Jesus. We see

the miracles and the signs and the wonders of

Jesus. We see the humanity of Jesus. We see Jesus

among... The people. We see the death of Jesus.

We see the suffering of Jesus. We see the physical

suffering of Jesus and the spiritual suffering

of Jesus. We see the delivery of Jesus by God

to the people. The death of Jesus at the hands

of godless men. We see the murder of Jesus. We

see the defeat of death by Jesus. We see the

resurrection of Jesus. We see the power and the

deity and the Godhood of Jesus. We see the prophecy

concerning Jesus. We see Jesus fulfilling that

prophecy about Himself and Jesus as the Messiah

of Israel. We see the people witnessing all of

this about Jesus and what is taking place in

the life. We see the exaltation of Jesus. We

see the rule and the lordship of Jesus. We see

Jesus receiving the Spirit and sending the Spirit.

What do we see in this text? We see a whole lot

about the person and the work of the Lord Jesus

Christ. So if we want to define what the gospel

is, we have to start with the person of the Lord

Jesus. He filled... this sermon with Christ.

He explains Christ. He instructs us about Christ.

He builds upon Christ. It's all about Christ.

That's why this entire text is about the good

news. It's about the person and the work of the

Lord Jesus Christ. It's not super overly complicated.

It's about who Christ is and about what Christ

has accomplished and what He has done. With an

emphasis, with a heavy emphasis upon the life,

the death, and the resurrection. We see those

three elements which were accomplished in the

humiliation, And the triumphant nature of his

resurrection, we see those three elements identified

over and over and over in the preaching of the

gospel in the Bible. We see Acts chapter 15,

Acts 15 · chapter mention

his life, death, burial, resurrection. We see

all through the book of Acts those three things

emphasized. They're important. It's about the

life, the death, And the resurrection and the

person who accomplished those things. That is

the gospel. The message of Christianity is about

a person, the Lord Jesus Christ. The message

of Christianity is about what a person has accomplished

and done in history. What Jesus Christ has done

in history. The gospel is not. And this is important,

I think. Because it helps me clarify in my mind

a lot of times what something is by understanding

what it is not. So the gospel is not an ethic.

The gospel is not a morality to live by. The

gospel is not a way of life. The gospel is not

a principle. The gospel is not even an idea.

The gospel is a living, breathing person who

is exalted and reigning and who lived on earth

and who was killed on earth and who rose from

the dead. It's a reality which took place. It's

not a principle. It's not an idea. It's not a

morality. It is about the person and the work

of the Lord Jesus Christ. We have to be very

careful about those distinctions. The gospel

is not, here is Jesus, this great and wonderful

teacher, now go and be like him. That's not the

gospel. The gospel is Jesus did everything because

you could do nothing. The gospel is all of Christ

and none of us. The gospel is not. Jesus loves

you. Accept him into your heart. That's not the

gospel. Who is this Jesus? Do I want him in my

heart? Who is this Jesus? Jesus, what did he

do? What has he accomplished? Who is he? In this

text, I think it's important to clarify this

as well. In maybe one of the greatest gospel

presentations of all time, The word love is never

used. The gospel is not just a thing of a ball

of fluff. It's a heavy reality about what Jesus

Christ has accomplished. Does God love us? Yes.

Does God love His elect in a special and unique

and electing way? Absolutely. But you also have

to repent. And you have to believe and you have

to trust in what Christ has done. The gospel

is bloody. The gospel is gory. The gospel is

challenging, but it's also encouraging and uplifting.

We have to be careful about how we think about

the gospel. The gospel is not keep the law. The

gospel is not repent and believe. Why should

I repent of? What am I supposed to believe in?

Anything? Can I believe in Bob over there? No,

the gospel is not repent and believe. That's

the call or the response to the gospel. The gospel

is not be a better person. That's not the gospel.

The gospel is you're a sinner and Jesus was the

only good person. Trust in His goodness, not

your own. That's the gospel. This means that

the gospel, based on what it is and who it is,

the gospel is not something that we outgrow or

we move beyond or we progress out of. Historically,

I think the gospel is one of those things that

you embrace the gospel, you believe the gospel,

you hear the gospel, and you get saved, and then

you kind of leave the gospel there, and then

you move on to bigger and better and greater

things in the Christian life. If the gospel has

to do vitally with who the person of Christ is,

then you will never outgrow the gospel because

you... have to get to know Christ more to get

to know the gospel more. The more you know Christ,

the more you love the gospel, the deeper you

dive into the person of Christ Jesus, the more

you plumb the depths of the Son of God, the more

you will realize your need for the gospel of

the Lord Jesus. So it's not something we outgrow.

We mustn't ever forget that the Christian daily

needs power to overcome sin in their lives. We

don't just need to be freed from the penalty

of sin in our lives. So what is the gospel? The

gospel is the redemptive, substitutionary, satisfying,

pleasing, redemptive work of Christ, the person

of Christ's life, death, and resurrection. It's

who it is and what he did. It wouldn't be the

gospel, and we just focus on the works and leave

out the person. It wouldn't be the gospel if

we just look at the person and leave out the

words. Those are two extremes. We can't separate

the two and we can't pull them apart. It's who

Christ is and what Christ did and what Christ

accomplished. So what does this matter to us?

Well, there's people in here who have never embraced

the gospel. There's people in here who have never

believed and trusted in the gospel. There's people

in here, there's kids, there's young people in

here who don't know the Lord Jesus Christ and

they haven't believed in the person and the work

of Christ. That has not been credited to their

account yet. That righteousness, His sin -bearing,

wrath -satisfying death is not there for them

yet. So this is an urgent plea and an urgent

call for anybody that has not believed in the

Lord Jesus and turned from their sin and trusted

in all that He is and who He is to do that. To

look to the Lord Jesus and consider Him. Believe

in Him. Trust in His life, His death, and His

resurrection. Don't go to God without Christ.

Don't die and stand before God without Christ

standing with you. You will not make it. You

have no goodness. You have no righteousness.

You have no holiness in yourself. You need the

gospel of the Lord Jesus. You need the person

of Christ. You need His righteousness. You need

His life. You need the person of Christ. This

gospel was a confrontational gospel. In this

text, we see Peter repeatedly saying you. Now

he's talking to Israel. He's talking to the Jewish

people present. He's talking to them because

many of them, Jesus walked among them. He was

around them. They saw him in his resurrection.

They saw him in his death. Some of them were

yelling, crucify him, crucify him. He's talking

specifically to the nation of Israel. But he

did not withhold the gospel. He knew that that

nation needed to come face to face with the person

of Christ Jesus. So take heed whenever you do

share the gospel, which is not complicated. But

when you talk to individuals about the person

of Christ and who he is and what he's done, take

heed that when you do that, don't try to walk

around the issues. Don't try to get around the

offense. Don't try to get around the call to

repentance. their sinfulness and their need for

a Savior. Don't try to avoid that. Don't try

to soften that. Let it be and allow the gospel

to do what the gospel does. To confront people

in their sin and show them their great need for

a blessed Savior. So as a confrontational gospel,

that does not mean that we are unloving. We should

always be loving in our proclamation of the gospel.

But we can still love and confront sin. We can

still love and proclaim the pure, clear, transparent

gospel of the Lord Jesus. It's more loving to

yell at somebody who's about to go over a cliff

to their death than it is to just... Whisper

gently and kindly, hey, hey, come on. No, we

need to allow the gospel to do its work. We need

to present them with the facts, the truths, the

reality of what Christ has accomplished and what

he has done. I think finally we have to remember

that as we share the gospel, as we proclaim the

gospel, or if we don't proclaim the gospel, we

don't. Share the gospel. We do that in light

of Christ's current state and condition. Where

is Christ now? What is Christ doing now? Christ

is exalted. He's ruling and he's reigning. He's

not dead. He's not in the grave. He's living.

He's the head of the church. So remember, as

you go into this world, remember as you talk

to individuals about the gospel of the Lord Jesus,

that Christ is risen, He's reigning, and He's

ruling. That if they reject the gospel, they

don't just reject an idea, but they reject Christ.

That if we... Deny the gospel going forth. We

deny telling people about a risen and exalted

Lord. We must share, we must communicate and

proclaim the gospel in light of the reality that

Christ is exalted, He is risen, and He is reigning.