The Tree Did Not Summon Them to Do

“Only by ‘righteousness’ could it be pacified; and nothing less than that which is divine could meet the case. At the cross this ‘righteousness’ was found; human, yet divine: provided for man, and presented to him by God, for relief of conscience and justification of life. On the one word tetelestai, ‘It is finished,’ as on a heavenly resting-place, weary souls sat down and were refreshed. The voice from the tree did not summon them to do, but to be satisfied with what was done. Millions of bruised consciences there found healing and peace.”

– Horatius Bonar, The Everlasting Righteousness, p.9 (italics in original)

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What Is The Gospel?

“It’s the good news about Christ. It’s the message of what God has done in and through the Lord Jesus Christ to deal with man’s sin and to make the guilty sinner acceptable to God.

True, the gospel has many sub-messages, but, in essence, it’s not about Christ healing our bodily diseases. He may do that, but that’s not the gospel. If it were, there would be no offense in it. Neither is the gospel about Jesus solving our marriage, emotional or financial problems. The gospel is about Christ dealing with our sin. Sin involves the cross, and the cross is always an offense to sinful man because it accuses us, judges us, condemns us–and leaves us in no doubt that we are guilty before God. This is the offense of the cross, but the glory of the cross is that it’s our only hope of salvation.”

– Peter Jeffery, Believers Need the Gospel, p.15