John 3:16 KJV
16 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.
Theology is “the study of God” and the nature of God which in turn translates into systematically developed religious beliefs.
It is taught as an academic discipline in universities and seminaries and from these courses come future teachers, professors and pastors. Leaders of the flock.
The subject of theology scares a lot of people, and it certainly can be complex, difficult to understand and subject to debate.
Why else would there be more than 200 different Christian denominations in the United States and about 45,000 Christian denominations in the world? It must be very complex and debatable.
And guess what?
Every one of these denominations believe THEY are the ones who are right in their theological interpretation of God’s word and all others are generally wrong.
Yes, humankind has definitely made God’s Word complicated and subject to debate. Therefore, resulting in all of those Christian denominations.
However, God’s plan of salvation is not hard to understand and should never be presented as complicated.
We are thankful that He made it so simple. Simple enough that even a child at the age of accountability can understand it.
GOD'S PLAN IS SIMPLE
When Jesus Christ was born in that manger in Bethlehem, God's New Covenant with mankind was ushered in. In other words, there was now going to be a new way for sinful mankind to be reconciled with God, if they would accept it.
It wasn't going to be complicated in any way, shape or form.
Jesus the Son of God was born of a virgin mother, without sin or blemish and He would die on the Cross of Calvary, shedding His blood as an atonement for the sins of the world. He would rise from the grave after three days and ascend back to heaven as our advocate with God.
1 John 2:1-3 KJV
1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
3 And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.
God didn't make His plan of salvation hard for a very important reason. He wants EVERYONE to be reconciled to Him through His Son Jesus Christ.
2 Peter 3:9 KJV
9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
There certainly are things in God's Word that are at times difficult to understand. But the ONE thing that we definitely have to agree on is God’s plan of salvation, which is NOT difficult to understand.
For our benefit, God didn’t want there to be any confusion or debate on how we must be saved.
Since the advent of the New Covenant, God has made the Gospel of Jesus Christ simple and easy to understand, as He has communicated it to us through the Bible, which is His inspired and ordained word.
He tells us that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God and on our own merits, we deserve separation from Him.
However, through the death and blood of Jesus Christ, we can be reconciled with Him and receive His gift of eternal life.
Romans 3:23 KJV
23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
Romans 6:23 KJV
23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The message of the Gospel is simply that God loves us.
Through His mercy and grace, sinners can repent and accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior, thereby claiming the promises of God and beginning their reconciled and changed life. It is that simple.
Yet, we must be on guard because Satan likes to confuse the matter, wanting it to be difficult and hard to understand.
DON'T MAKE IT DIFFICULT, OR LET ANYONE ELSE MAKE IT DIFFICULT
Theologians, and sometimes pastors and teachers have a tendency to talk over the heads of their listeners. Not intentionally, as their knowledge is great, and they share it.
However, great teachers over the years have found that simplifying subjects, to their basic thought, is the best way to educate and teach.
Experts in the field of education have stated that those who are the most informed on a subject, are able to bring the topic to simplicity with ease. Thereby making it "clear as a bell", as the old saying goes and not "clear as mud."
In fact, our Lord Jesus Christ did just that. The master of all things simplified the Gospel message so that even a child can understand it.
John 3:16 KJV
16 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.
The hymn “Thank You, Lord”, written by Seth and Bessie Sykes says it so well.
"Thank you, Lord for saving my soul
Thank you, Lord for making me whole
Thank you, Lord for giving to me
Thy great salvation so rich and free."
Don’t let anyone confuse you, or the issue.
God’s plan of salvation is simple to understand because He made it that way. And it is free to all who accept His grace and mercy.
Of course after accepting Christ as our Savior it does take commitment, faith and obedience as we go forward on our spiritual journey. And don’t let anyone fool you, there will be trials along the way.
But starting on that Christian journey couldn’t be any simpler than starting with this verse, coming from the mouth of Jesus Christ.
It is worth repeating over and over, as Jesus says it all with these few words.
John 3:16 KJV
16 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.
RVH