Choose To Believe: The Good News Is Still Good News

The world is full of various news each day, and given the abundance of negative stories, we could benefit from some good news.

The good news remains the good news, and it’s crucial to remember that Jesus is not just a way, a truth, or a life, but the way, the truth, and the life. This understanding should guide every step we take.

Discovering The Good News

Have you ever considered why it was a mistake for the first humans in the Garden of God to desire and eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil? As children of God, we often put ourselves in danger when we seek knowledge that goes beyond the wisdom and guidance of our Heavenly Father. Even today, this serves as a cautionary example, reminding us to respect and follow God’s guidance.

And again, gaining knowledge in and of itself is not wrong, and it’s not against God’s will and plan for us. We see in Genesis 2:19 that Adam gained knowledge, “Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name.”

The Truth vs. The Lie

Genesis 3:4-7

“Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.” Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.”

The essence of the lie remains unchanged today: “You will be like God.” The enemy was deceitful, never revealing the truth, which was that they would not become like God but instead would resemble the one who rebelled. The fallen one who disobeyed and dishonored the Most High God was ultimately cast out from his original home. Although we continue to confront the same lies from the enemy today, we are not alone in this struggle. The good news is that through Jesus, we have victory over the enemy. This knowledge should make us more vigilant and cautious of the enemy’s deceitful tactics.

The scripture indicates that they placed their trust in the word of another rather than in God’s word. By doing so, they honored the creature above the Creator, the Most High God, and chose the imagined over the one who provided for all their needs—the Creator, again, the Most High God. We see this in the scriptures. Exodus 20:3 states, “You shall have no other gods before Me.”

Hope

My hope and prayer for each of us is that, while we live in a world with ever-increasing knowledge and advancements, we’ll remain steadfast in the truth of the gospel —the good news — and not be deceived in uncovering forbidden things, falling away from the truth. We see from scripture that in the last days, knowledge will increase. “But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.” (Daniel 12:4) Let us remain reassured and steadfast in our faith.

So, even as knowledge increases and technology advances, the good news remains unchanged; the message of salvation and freedom in Jesus Christ remains the same good news.

Jesus Is The Way, The Truth, and The Life

God, in His great love, has given us the free gift of life by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus. Now that’s fantastic news. “For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.” God showed us His love by giving His own beloved Son, who became the perfect, acceptable sacrifice for us and our sins.

Genesis 3:24

“So He drove out the man, and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.” The ‘tree of life’ symbolizes eternal spiritual life with God, a life that we can only attain through Jesus Christ.

We are truly blessed to witness the fulfillment of God’s plan for redemption, rescuing humanity from spiritual death and separation that began in the Garden of Eden. We can draw a parallel between Genesis 3:24, which speaks of “the way to the tree of life,” and John 14:6, where Jesus declares, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

The Word and The Way

I must admit that whenever I read the words “flaming sword” from Genesis 3, I think of the armor of God in Ephesians 6:17, “and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” From scripture, we recognize that Jesus is the Word. The Word became flesh and lived among us, and we witnessed His glory, the glory of the only begotten of the Father, who is full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)

Jesus is the way, the way to the tree of life, which is eternal spiritual life with God. And Jesus is the way to be in relational fellowship with the Most High God.

“Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.” Revelation 22:14

Jesus is the truth about God. He reveals the hidden, unknown God and has made Him known to us. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. Colossians 1:15

Furthermore, Jesus is the only way to live both abundantly and eternally with God. Thus, He is the way, the truth, and the life. There is no other way to the Father, the Most High God, Creator of all things. The bible declares this truth, and I pray that you, my friend, will accept this truth for yourself and receive the free gift of Salvation in Jesus Christ, the risen Savior, King, and Lord.

The Good News, The Word of Faith

“that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” Romans 10:9

Additional Scripture Reading

Acts 4:12

Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

John 6:28-29

Then they said to Him, “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?” Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”

1 John 3:23

“And this is His commandment: that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as He gave us commandment.”

Be Encouraged