Dave Mullen, a pastor friend here in Manchester, and I were sharing about our common interest in Jonathan Edwards, and he was able to point me in the direction of a marker in Enfield, that indicates the location where Edwards once preached. I paid a visit to it was was moved by thoughts of what God had done through this man.
Edwards sermons are at the heart, simple and gospel centered.
Sin is a deliberate disobedience to the will of God. Sin is our nature. Sin separates us from God the creator. Being separated from God means hell is in our future. Our sin must be judged by God. God is a good judge, meaning he does not take bribes, or anything else that we try to trade up with him.
The Good News is that God made a way for us not to be separated from him and our sin can be pardoned. Jesus, the son of God, came from heaven to earth to live a sinless life, and since the penalty of sin is death, Jesus sacrificed or stood in our place to take the penalty that we deserved, because he loves us.
This is best summed up in John 3:16:
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life". God's grace is unearned and unmerited. It just because he loves us.
What God did with Edwards in the 1700s, he is still doing today.
My prayer is that your heart is being warmed by God. That the Good News of Jesus Christ is news that you want realized in your life. My prayer is, just like the Great Awaking in New England of the 1700's, that you would be awakened by the Gospel of Jesus.
Shoot me a email with your questions TimLyda@bellsouth.net
God truly does love you.
Shoot me a email with your questions TimLyda@bellsouth.net
God truly does love you.
Live & Love Like Jesus,
Pastor Tim
