It's sometimes hard to remind ourselves that the Christian life should produce a certain joy, not always based on our current circumstances, but rather on our future reality. If you are a Christian, here are three reasons you should be happy today, based upon the promises of God found in Romans 8. 

Question:

What is the Gospel?

Answer:

There is no greater message to be heard than that which we call the Gospel. But as important as that is, it is often given to massive distortions or over simplifications. People think they’re preaching the Gospel to you when they tell you, ‘you can have a purpose to your life’, or that ‘you can have meaning to your life’, or that ‘you can have a personal relationship with Jesus.’ All of those things are true, and they’re all important, but they don’t get to the heart of the Gospel.

By shai linne

If you are a Christian reading this, I have a question for you: Have you ever meditated on the purpose for which God has saved you? Why did He choose you before time began (2 Tim. 1:9)? Why did God go through all the trouble of sending His Son to die on the cross for your sins and then raise Him from the grave in order for you to be declared righteous in God's sight (Romans 4:25) ?

Why did He send His Spirit to regenerate you, bringing you to faith in Jesus (Titus 3:5) ? Why is God presently at work in your life to ensure that you will be preserved through the trials of this life and make it all the way to resurrection ( Phil. 1:6, Jude 24) ?

Through forgiveness God tears down the walls that our sins have built, and he opens the way for a renewed relationship with him. This is exactly what we must do if we are to forgive as the Lord forgives us:

We must release the person who has wronged us from the penalty of being separated from us. We must not hold wrongs against others, not think about the wrongs, and not punish others for them.

Therefore, forgiveness may be described as a decision to make four promises:

By shai linne

C.J. Mahaney is one of my modern day heroes in the faith. If you haven't heard his preaching apart from clips on The Atonement, you're missing out!

A good place to start is his classic message on the ten lepers, where he used a phrase that has stuck with me ever since I heard it.

"All gifts from God are intended to direct our attention to God and create fresh affections for God"