Fake news?

567 fake newsIt seems like we read fake news everywhere we look these days. For the younger generation who grew up with the Internet, the “fake news” is no longer a surprise, but for a baby boomer like me it is! I grew up with the truth that journalism as a profession had been entrusted with for decades. The idea that there are not only fake messages, but that they are deliberately prepared in such a way that they appear believable, is a bit of a shock to me.

There is also the opposite of false news - real good news. Of course, I immediately thought of the one good news that matters most: the good news, the gospel of Jesus Christ. "But after John was delivered, Jesus came to Galilee and preached the gospel of God" (Mark 1,14).

As followers of Christ, we hear the gospel so often that we sometimes seem to forget its effects. This good news is described in the Gospel according to Matthew as follows: «The people who sat in darkness saw a great light; and a light has risen to those who sat in the land and the shadow of death »(Matthew 4,16).

Think about it for a moment. Those who have not yet heard the good news of Christ's life, death, and resurrection live in the land of death or in the shadow of death. It doesn't get any worse! But the good news from Jesus is that this death sentence has been lifted - there is new life in a restored relationship with God through Jesus through His Word and Spirit. Not just for an extra day, an extra week or even an extra year. Forever and ever! As Jesus himself said: «I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me will live whether he dies soon; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you think the?" (Johannes 11,25-26).

That is why the gospel is described as good news: it literally means life! In a world where “false news” is something to worry about, the gospel of the kingdom of God is good news that gives you hope, confidence, and trust.

by Joseph Tkach