The Gospel: What is it? The chronological events of Jesus life seen through Matthew, Mark, Luke and John's eyes? Was it just the Holy Spirit inspiring (breathing) into each of them the stories and history of Jesus life on earth, years after these events took place? Was it just a record of events that they observed the times and places in each of their lives so that they could reflect on "life and times" of Team-Jesus? Or was it as many say...The "Good News"?? It was surely...all of these things but much more....! What is it??
If you will allow me to elaborate a little. I would like to share a pretty crazy experience I have encountered over the last 4 days. First, I located on YouTube a series of all 4 of the Gospels individually that were acted out as a verse by verse narration was read! Maybe you have seen it!?! The actors were speaking very softly in Aramaic(the original language of that time), however the reading was in English. Good for me because I cant understand anything else! lol I took one of these per night, which ranged from 2.5-3.5hrs and over 4 consecutive evenings of watching, note taking and reading my bible(NKJV) while listening to the narrator read in another similar version, the actors replayed the events verse by verse. Pretty cool!! I found myself starting @ 9p and finishing hours later. While viewing these 4 books of the Gospel as a transparency overlay, if you will, and comparing each of these books and going back to the book from the night before, therefore gaining a perspective of the content, I started to feel something that was like...."I cant stop", "I have to keep going!" Later into the night a presence from within was driving me on and to not stop. Even late into the night until 2, 3, 4am. This desire and fire had a purpose I knew, but wasn't totally sure other than the fact that I was remembering what was happening from the night before and with all of its details. I was excited to identify what it really was!?! As I read the events from one book to the next, I remembered things from the night before, therefore the night before with all of the events started to take on a new "full disclosure" that I had never seen or experienced ever before!
I felt within me, something growing and burning as I felt in a peculiar way that I, myself that I was in the book somehow! From having read these books many times before, I knew as I was reading the events were about to happen and everything that was going to happen later. However, I felt I was in this story for some odd reason!?! I knew that "the star" Jesus was going to die and go away, but I was starting to identify life, knowing that the story was about to turn ugly. I became more and more alive in the middle of the night while watching and reading etc....
I paused frequently over these last 4 days during the read, soaking it in and meditated from time to time reflecting on what I had just experienced. Much of the content was the same from book to book with some mentioned in one and not in another. I realized that on of the guys or the other may have not been there or ran out of ink or something! Furthermore,...The Nativity story, Jesus as a boy in the temple, the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist("the messenger"), tempted in the wilderness, the rejection of Jesus by his own town, Jesus teaching the disciples, the earthly stories with heavenly meanings(parables}, the healings, the compassion, the persistence of those to see Him who would not let anything hold them back from Him(faith), the one on one talks, another rejection , the sermons, the betrayal, the capture, the torture, the beating, the nails and the cross....the tomb...Defeating Death!
That fire of desire that started nights before grew stronger and brighter and kept me up into the wee hours to read and press into this project that I had no idea what to expect, but I made a commitment and the Holy Spirit supplied the power and gravitational force to complete this. It started to create a new light that shown on all of the things told about in the bible. In absolutely every story that I had ever heard or read from Genesis to Malachi I started to see more of His plan and purpose with a glimpse of what I had not seen before. The entire book started to come to life and It became even more evident to me than before that these were all a chain of events...strategically choreographed by God, the only God, the God who created me...! It was more evident than ever before that this same plan was fitting and overlapping into all of the stories in the bible.....and even that this plan was established and was put into motion and existed before time was created and certainly before I ever existed!! This further opened my eyes to see that it was Gods love providing for divine insurance plan...to buy me back...because He knew, that I was going to make all the wrong choices, screw it up and....reject Him and who He was...Just like His own town rejected Him...the people of Nazareth!!...
What?...Why?...I was trash!...I didn't warrant or deserve having someone go through all that on my account!!... As I became overwhelmed with this thought, and my emotions getting the best of me...I realized what it was!! That before I came to believe in Him, I had completely botched up everything! Because He created me to do just one thing...have a relationship with Him...I had completely screwed that up!!!...WHY??? WHY for me and WHY did I do all that?? I was sad just remembering the years I had wasted when I heard a still soft voice say. "I was there through all those years and knew that you would see!" "I knew the day that you would say...I had enough emptiness in my life"! The voice said to me..."remember that night when I called your name in that dark lonely place?" I said yes! He said..."that was me and wanted a relationship with you more that you did and I did all of that for you!" He also said...I would have done all of that even if it was just you!"
I realize now what the Gospel is....
What He did for me...so that I could experience true love, His love that made Him do everything that I couldn't...so that I could have a future...eternal life!
Luv,
GDUB
