The Good News of Salvation

I remember as a child asking God daily for a new heart.  Then as I taught Jayden God’s Word, sang and prayed with him, and shepherded his young heart, I wondered where that came from. Where in the Bible did it talk about asking God for a new heart? As I pondered, only one verse came to mind.

Psalm 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.

Then I started thinking about the context of that verse. Is David asking God for salvation? No, we know he was a child of God already. So why is he asking God for a clean heart? Because he felt his heart was polluted with the sins he committed with Bathsheba and against Uriah. He felt the blackness of his heart and was asking God for forgiveness and cleansing.

These past several months Jayden has been asking me a lot of questions about life and death, heaven and hell, sin and forgiveness, Jesus, the cross, God and the devil.

On the morning of October 21 he asked me how he could be saved. Now, I could have brushed his question off with the excuse that he was too young to really understand, but I remembered the words of Matthew 19:14. “But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.”

So instead I told him the ‘good tidings of great joy.’  

Luke 2:10-11 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

We don’t have to sit in darkness any longer.

Matthew 4:16 The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.

And God has no pleasure in the death of the wicked.

Ezekieal 33:11....As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live..

So I answered Jayden how Paul and Silas answered the Philippian jailer: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved.” (Acts 16:30-31..Sirs, what must I do to be saved?..they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.) 

And how Philip answered the Ethiopian Eunech, (Acts 8:37 And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.)

And what Paul wrote in the book of Romans: (Romans 10:9-11 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.  For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.”)

And the promise that: “..as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:” John 1:12

Deep in thought he finally replied, “I believe in Jesus and that he died on the cross for my sins Mom, but what about everybody else out there? Don’t we need to tell them the good news too?”

Yes, I replied. Mark 16:15-16 says: ...Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

He started to name off cousins and friends who needed to know this and I felt a sense of guilt. Have I really been telling everyone the good news?

The Bible is clear, so here I am, sharing it with you in the way I know best, and I’m begging you “..Today if ye will hear his voice,Harden not your heart..” Psalm 95:7-8

And Jayden, as the weeks went by continued to ask questions and to grow in the grace and the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour.  And “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.” 3 John 1:4