"The gospel is good news for criminals, as the thief on the cross can testify. He knew that he deserved to die and that he still wanted to live." -- Douglas Wilson, A Justice Primer
Faith is the courage to confess that you deserve to die combined with the conviction that the glory of God is worth living for. It is a willingness to die for that which is worth living. It is an acknowledgement of the kindness and the severity of God, the seriousness of sin and the superfluity of salvation. Sin is worse than our depravity and salvation exceeds our audacity. Our situation is far worse than we wish and our salvation is far greater than we dare dream.
"Courage is almost a contradiction in terms. It means a strong desire to live taking the form of readiness to die." -- G.K. Chesterton
Matthew 10:39, 16:25; Mark 8:35; Luke 9:24, 17:33; John 12:25
For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.
The Gospel is Good News for criminals who openly confess to their crimes. All have fallen short of the glory of God and committed crimes, but only repentant criminals can be forgiven. Only those who agree that they deserve to die can live. You must admit your crimes in order to remove your condemnation. The Gospel is ONLY Good News for criminals. It is Bad News for those who imagine that they have clean records. The healthy don't make Dr. appointments anymore than the innocent seek clemency. Yet, the sick find healing and criminal find freedom in seeking the Good Physician and our Brother, the Advocate.
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