I wish for us to contemplate three things: the heart of the gospel, the darkness in which the gospel shines, and the light of the gospel itself (2 Corinthians 4:4-6; John 1:5; 8:12). The aim is to see the gospel for the treasure it is.

The Heart of the Gospel

Jesus’ death and resurrection are the heart of the gospel. His sacrificial death was the pinnacle of His suffering; His glorious resurrection was the dawn of His glory. Jesus died in the place of sinners. He rose as the hope of sinners. By death He conquered sin and by resurrection he conquered death. This is the heart of the gospel and the centerpiece of Christ’s redemptive suffering and glory. He was not the loser, but the winners. He conquered through death and resurrection. Two words capture the heart of the gospel: substitute and representative.

Jesus died as a substitute for sinners to bear their guilt and punishment. Notice the he/our and the us/his dynamic of the prophecy, “But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. [6] All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—everyone—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:5-6). Jesus was and is a representative for His people (Matthew 1:21). He died so those worthy of death might live. “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. [11] I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (John 10:10-11).

As a substitute and representative, Jesus drank a cup of wrath that was rightfully ours. “For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup with foaming wine, well mixed, and he pours out from it, and all the wicked of the earth shall drain it down to the dregs” (Psalm 75:8). “Shall I not drink the cup that the Father has given me” (John 18:11)? “And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, ‘My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will’” (Matthew 26:39). “When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, ‘It is finished,’ and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit” (John 19:30).

It is finished? Yes! He drank the cup. He finished off the wrath of God rightly meant for me. Jesus died on a cross for the sake of and in the place of any person who would be joined to Him by faith. He was a sin-offering. He removes guilt from the guilty. He hung and bled in agony taking the verdict and punishment of the wicked. Dear friend, He finished every drop. If only you would believe he drank this cup for you.

Speak to me of this when I am discouraged. Speak to me of this if you find yourself with me in my dying days. Speak to me of this if you see me taken in by sin or overcome by weakness. Tell me of the blood that was shed so I might be free. “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. [25] For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls” (1 Peter 2:24-25).

Men do not willingly suffer the penalty of criminals, but this Savior Jesus does just that (Romans 5:6-8). He suffered on a cross for the sins of many (Hebrews 9:28; Mark 10:45). It is no wonder why the Apostle Paul wrote, “For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2). He wanted more than anything to get the message of Christ’s sacrificial death on as many ears as possible. I pray your heart receives the message of the cross and blood, the good news of the substitute and the cup.

But He did not stay dead. God rose Jesus up with a new eternal body, a body of resurrection glory. This very same thing is promised to all who come to Christ by faith. You can share in eternal life before you die; but you reap the fullest blessing of eternal life some time after you die. Jesus will one Day return and give all His spiritual brothers and sisters resurrection bodies just like His (1 John 3:2; Philippians 3:21). We love Him now. We’ll be with Him later.

“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns’” (Isaiah 52:7; Romans 10:15).

You and I began in a state of spiritual death. Christ’s death and resurrection are the path of life. Jesus is the way to God. He is a substitute for sinners; a representative for His people who died the death that we deserve that we may live the life that He attained. The gospel does not just administer medicine to the sick, it gives life to the dead. It shouts truth amidst lies, shows love amidst hate, and shines hope amidst despair. Come drink of these waters and live.

The good news of forgiveness in Jesus is light in the darkness. Our problem is not slight dimness, but utter darkness. To appreciate the radiance of the gospel, to truly see it, we must first see the darkness in which it shines. Before we expound the gracious light of gospel treasure, we will discuss the tragic darkness of sinful man.

The Greatest Sin

What is the worst thing you ever did? Did you do it once or many times? Do others know about it or only you? Close your eyes a minute and think on it. What is the absolute worst, most immoral thing you have ever done?

So, did you think about it? What is your answer? “The worse thing I have ever done is…” Now, probably 99% of us got it wrong. You most likely though about an action. You think the worst and most immoral thing you have ever done was something you did with your hands, mouth, or with your body in some way. Was it something you did or something you said? Was it somewhere you went or something you took? You got it wrong.

Heart-sin. All sins are horrendous and grotesque in God’s eyes. Some are worse than others (John 19:11). It is worse to murder than it is to gossip. It is worse to rape than in is to look lustfully. All sin merits the same consequence from God, but not all sin is the same (Romans 6:23). All sin is judged as sinful, but not all sin is the same. To say, “sin is sin,” is true but it does not say enough about the topic. That is like saying, “animals are animals.” But a gator is different than a puppy. Sin is expressed in different ways, in varying degrees, and renders many results and consequences. You are guilty before God just like a mass murderer is guilty before God, but you do not need to go to prison for the rest of your life. Your sins are different than his, but you still need forgiveness. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

The Bible does teach that the heart behind all sin is the same (Matthew 5). More to the point, the heart-sin that leads to all sinful actions is the same (Matthew 15:19). And there is one heart-sin behind them all, which we will get to in a moment. Murder is worse than gossip, but murder and gossip come from the same heart-sin, i.e., selfish hatred. Rape is worse than a lustful glance, but rape and lustful glances come from the same heart-sin, i.e., sexual impurity. It all warrants God’s judgement, but it is not all the same (James 2:10). What is the root sin? Where do selfish hatred and sexual impurity come from?

The Root. Now to the root, the heart-sin that yields all wicked fruit. It is the worst thing I have ever done and the worst thing you have ever done. We have not loved God as God deserves to be loved. Behold your vilest offense! It happens in the heart, not the hands. Behold the height of all wickedness and rebellion. It happens in the heart, not the mouth (Matthew 22:34-40!). God’s greatest command it to love him above all things, with all that we are, in all of life. Our greatest sin is our failure to do so. And we never bat an eye about it.

We are so accustomed to not loving God as God deserves that we can be faithful, biblical, devoted, and growing Christians for decades and still not know that this is our greatest immorality. It happens in the heart, not the body. It is the greatest law we violate, the greatest commandment we transgress, and the greatest mark of holiness we lack and ignore with stunning coldness. There is much outward fruit of this sin of sins. But the root grows in the heart. It gets worse.

The Heart Itself. The great sin “happens” in the heart. It happens by commission (i.e., we do what we ought not do). For example, we do treat other things the way only God should be treated. We treat money as most valuable, things as most precious, people as most beautiful, image and reputation as most important. The great sin also happens by omission (i.e., we do not do what we ought to do). We do not adore, acknowledge, seek, cherish, thank, or desire God. So, there are always two sides of this coin. We ignore God’s truth, despise His commands, reject His morals, and detest His presence, all the while we create our own truth, embrace society’s commands, celebrate culture’s morals, and rejoice in God’s absence. What is worse than these sins of commission and omission?

What is worse is the spiritual nature of the heart that commits them. We do not have time to go into it here. The darkness we need to see before we can appreciate the gospel’s light is the darkness of our sin-corrupted hearts. We need new hearts. Praise God that He graciously gives new hearts through Christ, the Savior. The good news is not merely that God forgives but also that God purifies and cleanses. These twin blessings of forgiveness (of guilt) and purification (of heart) are found in a person: Jesus. He is the blessing; from Him all other blessings flow.

Go to Christ and be cleansed. Rest in Him and find forgiveness.

Picture a man sitting on a bomb about to explode, but he does not know about it. He sits and sits. He does not move. He dies. He did not know about the problem. What a pity to be so aloof to such a need! God has told us our greatest need and has given ample provision in Christ. Let us not be perpetually aloof. Aloof to our greatest sin, we neither rest in nor rejoice in Christ and His shed blood as we ought. We do not cry out to Him as we ought; we do not cherish His power as we ought; we do not ask for the Spirit and repentance as we ought. All because we go day after day without noticing, much less thinking about, the worst thing we have ever done: We have not loved God the way God deserves. How dark is this darkness! The light of the gospel is what keeps us from despair.