“The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is near; repent and believe in The Gospel.” These are your Savior’s words to you. They are words He first spoke when He began to preach in Israel nearly 2000 years ago. But they aren’t old fashioned or passé. They are the most important words you can ever hear! “The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is near; repent and believe in The Gospel.”

The time was fulfilled then. “In the fullness of time, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under The Law, to redeem those under The Law.” God sent Jesus to redeem us, to buy us, to get us back from sin, death, and Satan. What did He use? Not silver or gold, but His holy, precious Blood and His innocent suffering and Death. The kingdom of God crushed the kingdom of Satan. The serpent’s head was crushed by The Cross.

The kingdom of God doesn’t stay at The Cross. It comes to you. The words Jesus spoke to His hearers then are just as valid today as they were then. “Repent and believe in The Gospel.” What do those words mean? Repent means you need to have a change of heart. It does not mean you need to do something to make God happy with you. It means you need your heart to be changed. But how can you change it? You’re a sinner! You can’t change it! You need God to do it.

He does it when you believe in His Gospel. How does that work? He preaches to you this word “Repent!” and His Spirit makes you sorry that you’ve done bad. Then He preaches to you the word “Believe!” and His Spirit makes you trust that Jesus died for you. That’s The Gospel. Jesus died for your sins. Trust Him! He doesn’t lie about it. You are forgiven. You are part of God’s kingdom. You don’t belong to Satan. You belong to Jesus!