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The Goodness of the Gospel > “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” Genesis 12:2-3 NIV The Bible tells the story of God’s redemptive plan to rescue humanity from sin and restore creation. As a disciple of Jesus, you’re now a part of that story. It’s a story that started with a good beginning, a loving Creator, and His good creation. It’s a story that took a turn for the worse when the creation rebelled against the Creator and unleashed sin and death into the world. But that’s not where the story ends. The God we worship is crazy about His creation and will stop at nothing to bring us back to Himself. So God chose a man named Abram, changed his name to Abraham, and promised to change the world through him. Abraham’s family became a great nation. Sadly though, this nation was full of sinful people who repeatedly rejected God, gave themselves over to the worship of idols, and committed injustice after injustice against other people. So God prepared the world for the arrival of a savior. The Chosen One of God who would deliver the people from sin and restore them to their rightful place as partners with Him. And so God left heaven and entered history as a baby born to poor Jewish parents living under Roman rule. That baby was Jesus, the Messiah, the Son of the Living God. At the age of 30, Jesus would announce to the world: “The time has come … The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!” Mark 1:15 NIV His message was the gospel, which means good news. Because it was the announcement of a better King and a better kingdom. No longer would people need to be subject to the kingdoms of this world, but instead they could become citizens of the Kingdom of God. A kingdom where God rules and everyone is welcomed in. This is the story you’re now a part of. The story of God and the story of us. The story of His never-ending pursuit of His people. A pursuit that brought Him all the way to death on a Roman cross. A pursuit that couldn’t even be stopped by the combined forces of sin, death, and hell. And the same Jesus who rose from the grave has promised to return one day and finish what He started: making all things new. Until that day comes though, as His disciples, we’ve been called to partner with Him in expanding His kingdom to every corner of creation. Pray: Heavenly Father, use me. I want to play my part in sharing Your good news and advancing your Kingdom. Help me to see people the way you see them and love them the way you love them. In Jesus’ name, amen. Bonus : Watch this video to learn about how to love others the way Jesus loves us.