Often the church emphasizes the Ten Commandments as a pathway to salvation.
To be saved, the commandments must be followed as if salvation is the reward for those who follow them.
When Jesus says “do not be afraid”, he follows this statement with a more dramatic one that causes us to rethink our relationship between the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Jesus says, “it is the Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom”.
God, the Father, does not grant the kingdom as a reward; the Father grants the kingdom freely to those who follow.
Jesus’ words highlight his mission in the world, that is he, God the Son, would take sin upon himself and destroy it in a way that only He can do - that is through the cross, by dying, and through his resurrection by living once more.
That is the ‘Good News’.
All we do to receive the kingdom is to turn to Christ, God the Son, and be reborn and made new.
We follow the commandments not to receive the new life but because we have been made new.
Being made new through Jesus is available to everyone.
Do not be afraid, just turn to Jesus for life, eternal life!
How do we turn to Christ? Seek out a church person nearby, maybe a friend who is a churchgoer, or a neighbour, or maybe a relative, even the minister of a church nearby.
But, as Jesus says, don’t be afraid. The news of salvation that you hear may change your life!
As I said before, it is God the Father’s good pleasure, desire, or yearning to make you a new person.
You might ask though: “why do I have to turn to God the Father to be made new?”.
If you have ever tried to talk to someone’s back and form a relationship with them, you know who hard it is.
We need to turn to God, we need to face the cross, and salvation is ours!
Why not try it, commit some time on a Sunday morning to come into a church, to hear the speaker, and to know the love of God.
As Jesus says: “do not be afraid!”.
~ Contributed by Fr Tim Fogo from St Paul’s Anglican Church, on behalf of the Combined Churches of Deniliquin.
