The Gospels!

THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST.

When we set up this web site, we were well aware of the fact that we were beginning a journey that would accomplish a vast array of tasks, and from which I am pleased to say we have each been blessed enormously, as we endeavor to share the truth of God's word. We were fired up about some world events and about some prophetic fulfillments we were seeing, and were eager to "jump into the fray" if you will, along side the literally hundreds of web sites that discuss these matters. We trust God will bring those he wishes to bring to our site, and that the work will be done. I know most people who come to this site will most likely already be Christians, but we know that some will not. In this Article we will portray the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Approximately 2004 years ago, a man lived in the region of the middle east, and his name was Jesus. He lived a simple life, filled with the standard daily activities of the Jewish tradition, where he spent his young life studying the scriptures, being in the temple, learning and teaching the word of God. Having grown up in a Christian home and understanding the way a religious community becomes well known to each other, and some what of a family, I imagine that throughout Jesus' young life, as he walked around in the temple, the Scribes and Pharisees of the day most likely enjoyed watching him grow up, marveled at his understanding of the scriptures, and I am sure many times the Elders of the Temple blessed him and spoke of how God would bless him. He was most likely viewed as a real pleasure to watch grow up and become a young man. He did the daily readings of the scriptures in the temple and spent a great deal of his time there, when in the city.

That all changed one day, when Jesus stood up to do the daily reading that he had done so many times before, and he read:

Isaiah 61:1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound. To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD:

This was part of a scripture from Isaiah, which was a prophecy concerning the Messiah, and the Jews knew that. After reading this verse, Jesus closed the book, and said to those who were present:

Luke 4:21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.

The world as we know it changed that day, and has not been the same since. Even the very calendar, by which most of the world judges time itself, has been split in half by this man. I believe that like it or not, the world is forced by this measure of time, into a literal countdown until his promised return. Millions upon millions of people have both lived their lives, and have had their lives ended over this man. He has become the center of all spiritual thought, even to those who do not believe his claims. In the preaching of every single religion/sect in the world, declaration is made as to the identity of Jesus Christ. He said of himself, that he was the son of God, that he was:

John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. This claim could not be made by a man, even if he was a perfect, holy man, or even a Prophet. This claim could only be made by the one who had power over life and death. It could only be made by Messiah. Religions have come to admit that Jesus was at least a prophet, but the truth is, he was either all that he claimed to be, or he was nothing.

There are 3 major religions in the world today. They are Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. According to Islam, Muhammad, a prophet of God, was given divine inspiration which is now evident in the Koran. (Islamic Bible) Islam believes that this prophecy:

Deuteronomy 18:18 I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.

speaks of the prophet being raised up of Israel's brothers, not in fact Israel, as they believe that out of Ishmael, rather than Isaac, should this Prophet arise. One wonders if they do not see the immediately following verses:

Deuteronomy 18:20-22 But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die. And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the LORD hath not spoken? When a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shall not be afraid of him.

You see, God's plan for redemption did not involve a Prophet, but a Savior. Even in his most high spoken claims, Muhammad could only claim to be a Prophet. The Redeemer was much more than a prophet, and Bible prophecy speaks of one who would give his life, the ultimate sacrifice for Sin. All agree that Muhammad died. In this, is manifest the fullness of his claims. In the book of Isaiah, is given the authoritative Prophecy concerning the one that Islam attempts to name Muhammad:

Isaiah 53:4-8 Surely he hath borne our grief, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.

Jesus Christ was not merely a Prophet, he was the lamb of God. In this passage are the identifying truths of who Jesus was. "For he was cut off from the land of the living, for the transgression of my people he was stricken". These words speak of one who was executed, though he were innocent, and that for the sake of others was he killed. This is not the legacy of a man who was surrounded by "peace" as Islam teaches Muhammad was, it was not the legacy of a man who had a Harem of women, and who certainly did not die on behalf of others. Here are a few scriptures that I can think of now, that dispute the Islamic Idea that Messiah or "the Prophet" would descend from Ishmael..

Genesis 17:19 And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shall call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.

Genesis 21:12-13 And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called. And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed.

Genesis 26:4 And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed;

In the red text above, is the existence of Islam. God promised that he would in fact raise up a "nation" of the bond woman's son. [This is interesting in light of the "nation shall rise against nation" scriptures, since a "nation" is here identified as a descendant line] In all three of these scriptures, God promises Abraham, that out of Isaac, not Ishmael, will all nations be blessed. (which is a reference to the salvation provided in Messiah) There are 11 scriptures in the Old Testament that I can find, I will list here also, that prove that Messiah was also a descendant of David, making it again, unlikely that Ishmael would be the one from which he would descend. 2 Samuel 7:12, 1 Chronicles 17:11,Psalms 89:3-4, Psalms 89:29, Psalms 89:35-36, Psalms 132:11, Psalms 132:17-18, Isaiah 7:14, Isaiah 9:6-7, Jeremiah 23:5-6, Jeremiah 33:15-16. Please take the time to read these verses of scripture, as they prove without doubt, that Messiah descends from Isaac, through David, rather than Ishmael. We could spend an amazing amount of time on this subject, but I want to give short outline of the reality of Jesus, compared to the opposing views. This final 2 verses prove beyond any doubt that Islam's claim concerning Ishmael is incorrect...

Genesis 17:20-21 And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation. But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year. I guess this verse escaped the Muslim translation of the old text.

Judaism is the basis on which Christianity is founded, and the only difference between the 2 is that Christianity recognizes the Messiah Jesus of Nazareth, and the Jews do not. In deference to some 300 scriptures from their own writings, they just can not see the salvation offered by Jesus. I don't judge them, in light of the fact that if an American said he was Messiah, I'm sure I would have a hard time with that. We believe that soon, Jesus will reveal himself to the nation of Israel, which will fulfill another of their own prophecies...

Zechariah 12:10 And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.

which will be fulfilled in...

Revelation 1:7 Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.

No other man in the history of the world has come even close to fulfilling every single prophecy, that was given concerning Messiah, and given that there are so many fulfillments, we have to assume that this blinding of the house of Israel is part of God's redemptive design. We know, because the scripture says so, that Israel will see the salvation God has provided at the time he intended for them to, and we look forward to that soon coming day. For a list of the scriptures we can find fulfilled in Jesus of Nazareth...

Go here .

So we see clearly, the magnificent foretelling and appearance of Jesus as the Messiah, and one has to ask himself what is his call with respect to all of this? What do I, a simple American, or a simple person in the 21st century have to do with this Jesus? The call of Jesus rings out to all men, of reconciliation with all mighty God. He came here, and lived a perfect life, and was rejected, and killed for YOUR sake friend. Out of his everlasting love for us, God, as Jesus said in Judea 2000 or so years ago..

John 3:16-17 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

I have always thought that it was so amazing that God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son to him, and that as a result of Abraham's painful willingness to do so, that this was a sign that God would raise up his son for us, as the ultimate salvation. I don't think we can fathom the moment, when Abraham lifted that knife, and was about to obey God above all. Here is the conclusion of the story...

Genesis 22:10-18 Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fear God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me. And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the LORD it shall be seen. And the angel of the LORD called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.

So we see God saying here, that because you have not withheld your only son from me, (God still calling Isaac Abraham's only son, even though Ishmael lived) I will raise up messiah in your seed.

Thank God for the faithfulness of Abraham! So God has offered his only son who was killed for YOU and ME. When we consider the pain that has to come from one offering his only son, this gesture of love from almighty God demands response, from every man and women. Will you accept the love of God? Would you respond to a love of this purity? Consider if you were totally innocent of any crime, and they came and took you, beat you, hung you on a cross, nailing you to it, and among the only things you could say would be, "Forgive them, they know not what they do"?

Jesus Christ is the only way to be made right with God. This is a very difficult concept for man to accept, that through the deeds of someone else we are made right, and man continually builds his own bridges to God, denying the great work of Jesus. There are many sects of the Christian religion today that add to the work of the cross, their own set of deeds or works designated as the "rights of passage" to rightness with God. The truth is, that only in a TOTAL acknowledgement of the fact that nothing we can do can add to the work of the cross, and that even in obeying Christ's word, (which we are in fact commanded to do), we are only expressing our love and servitude to him, can we find salvation. Every concept of religion, and spirituality hinge upon one's confession of who Jesus Christ was. There is no accident there friends, Jesus is, was, and always will be the center of all spiritual truth, until he hands all things back to the Father. Jesus said:

John 15:13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

Do you see the greatness of this? Jesus calls men his friends, and that he loves them, and died for them. Surely no man, even all of the Prophets could make this claim!

Do you feel alone? in spite of knowing plenty of people, and having family, do you find yourself feeling an empty hole in your heart? Do you find that no matter what you accomplish, no matter what you achieve, that there is always something missing? Do you furthermore find, that as the years pass, this emptiness becomes more and more nagging and ever present? Even if you are someone who is part of some church, but still this nagging remains? I will say to you now, as a man that has known God his whole life, that this, in spite of how unpleasing it may seem, is the call of God on your life! I have seen again and again, men in this place, not realizing that God is working in their life and telling them that there is nothing outside of him worth living for. He doesn't wish that your life continue on this path, yet in his infinite love and grace, he will fight this battle throughout your life, that you and he may be together for eternity. God is calling you friend. He is calling you to know him personally, not through another man, not through your church, but face to face, Jesus Christ your Lord wishes to have a one on one personal relationship with you. There are many in the world that would have you believe that you need to leave this to others to handle for you, thereby controlling you, and standing in between you and God, this is wrong! Jesus said..

Revelation 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

The nagging emptiness a man feels in his heart, is exactly what this scripture verse is talking about. Rather than being disappointed in life due to this feeling, I would encourage you to rise, open the door and allow the everlasting salvation of God, Jesus Christ to enter. In so doing you will begin to experience a life that, regardless of its trials and tribulations, is at peace, is fulfilled, and has so much more purpose than anything you have ever experienced before, that for the first time you will have life flowing through your veins. You will be thankful for this dark time, and you will understand that for many years Jesus has stood at the door of your heart, knocking. Can you picture the amazingness of that truth? Picture Jesus standing at the door of your heart, persistently, unfailingly, lovingly, after so many years, still knocking at your door. One who surely needs not to be so ignored, to be so neglected, yet his love keeps him knocking even for decades upon decades. I get a tear, just picturing him there knocking at the doors of men's hearts. He is told "go away", He is told "not now", he is told "NO". Yet he persists to knock, he says, "Please, won't you let me in?" Jesus is my friend, he is my king, he is my savior, and I promise you, that if you with humility, not daring, ask him to prove to you that he is in fact knocking on your door, I declare by the word of God that he will prove to you, both his existence, and his love for you, in ways that only you will see! I have seen it before! It is REAL. The world did not come about by accident my friend, we are not evolved from apes. We are the children of a mighty and Holy God, and the hand of his love is outstretched to you RIGHT NOW as you read this text! Take his hand, receive his love, Be SAVED!

In Christ, F.E.Reilly