The story in the news article was shocking. A man went to see his doctor and discovered that he had prostate cancer. The news ripped through the man’s world like a tornado. Plans for treatment were arranged while the man waited for his next appointment. After another set of X-rays were taken the man went home to await the results. The call finally came and his answering machine recorded the good news. The cancer was gone. No trace of any cancer cells remained. The man was given a clean bill of health. Yet the wonderful good news was too late. In desperate turmoil, the man had killed himself.
You and I are infected with the cancer of sin. Rom. 3:23 says: “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”. We are told that our prognosis is certain death; Rom 6:23 says: “For the wages of sin is death…” Yet even though the picture looks bleak, our Heavenly Physician tells us that there is some tremendously good news. Christ died in our behalf. Rom. 5:8 relates the good news: “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us”.
I can’t imagine any better news than to find out that we do not have to die in our sins. We can be saved and guaranteed eternal life in heaven through simple faith in Jesus Christ. Yet that good news challenges us to take two specific actions. The first action is to receive it. Unless a person believes the good news of the gospel, he will not experience the salvation that is promised. The second action we must take is to share it. The good news of the gospel is only good news if it reaches the lost in time. Many around the world perish every day because they have not heard that Jesus loved them and died for them. We are called by the Lord himself to go into the whole world and preach the gospel.
An X-ray of our heart shows that we also have the cancer of sin. The good news reveals that we can be saved from an eternal death. Let’s be sure to receive and be swift to share the good news, before it’s too late.