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A Different Perspective Official Podcast - The Righteousness of God (Good News) // Reaping the Harvest of Righteousness, Part 7
The bad news about God – and there is some really bad news, is that He's holy and perfect and righteous. And the reason that that's bad news … is that we're not. And our "not" has some serious consequences. So then what's the good news? And there is some good news. Great news. Fantastic news! So how are you doing this fine day? The one thing that I know with frankly millions of people listening to this same message today in 160 countries around the globe, is that there's going to be a myriad of different responses to that question. How are you doing this fine day? Some people are just on top of the world. Others are in the absolute depths of despair. And in between those two extremes there is every shade of grey under the sun. And wherever you are some good news would be sure to go down well. Some good news to shine some light into a dark place. Some good news to brighten just a mundane day. And even when we're in the middle of a fantastic patch in life, some good news to put all that in perspective. Well, today is a good news day. Today on the program as we spend these few short minutes together, we're not just going to share some good news, we're going to roll around in it, revel in it, delight in it, because the good news that I'm talking about isn't some cliché, it's not some bit of religious spin. This good news is meant to make a difference in our lives. A real difference, in fact a world of difference, an eternal difference. I previously said on this program that when it comes to God there's both good news and bad news. We are in the middle of a series that I've called "Reaping the Harvest of Righteousness" because when we live out the goodness and the holiness and the wonderfulness of God (is there such a word? Well let's use it) the righteousness of God, there's a huge harvest of blessing in that. Not necessarily the sort of blessing that the world tells us we should. You know, the whole 'healthy, wealthy and wise' myth. But a depth of reward, a joy, a peace, as we live out the righteousness of God in our own lives. The bad news is that we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God and wages of that sin is death. The bad news is that God is righteous and we're not and no matter how hard we work at it, no matter how hard we labour at it, we will always fall short of the glory and the righteousness and the wondrous perfection of God. And whilst at first that might seem a tad unreasonable, just because we're not as good as God, it seems harsh. It's that bad news that makes the good news so absolutely, incredibly, wonderfully fantastic. The Apostle Paul has this fantastic knack for hitting the nail right on the head, for boiling big things, huge things, seemingly complex things, down into a sentence or two that people like you and me can actually get our hearts and minds around. Have a listen to this. Romans chapter 6 verse 23: For the wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. There they are. The two sides to the coin. The bad news and the good news. And remember when we talk about the Gospel of Jesus Christ, that word "gospel" literally means, "good news" , "glad tidings" , we're talking about the good news of Jesus. And if I were writing a Bible dictionary trying to define the Greek word that's used in the New Testament for "gospel" , I think I'd define it as meaning absolutely mind-blowingly, fantastic news. Now if you are Christian and you've sat in the pew for a good many years each Sunday, maybe this good news has lost a little bit of it's lustre. You hear something so often, over and over and over again, well after a while it becomes mundane and passé, just the way things are. Have to tell you. It's happened to me from time to time too. But here's the thing. I wonder how many people really, I mean
