Belfast OutReach

We often here people say, “You’re a sinner” or “Repent of your sins” or “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” But all too often I meet people, Christians and non-Christians alike, who don’t even know what sin is. What is sin and what is the standard by which we fall short? A lot of people have seen Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of the Christ”. When the movie had first been released, we stopped several people on the way out of the theater to ask them a few quick questions. First we asked them, “What did you think about the movie?” Commonly they would say something like, “Awesome, powerful, amazing and convicting”. Then we asked, “There’s something big missing from the movie; do you know what it is?” They’d say, “No what?” We’d say, “The motive for the murder you just witnessed! In other words, the reason Jesus was sacrificed – do you know why Jesus died?” The most common response was, “For me” or “For my sin.” Then we’d ask, “What does the Bible say sin is?” A

As I stood in front of the camera, I tried to look relaxed as I said, “I’m going to show you how easy it is to befriend strangers, using tracts.” Kirk Cameron, my associate Mark Spence, and myself were in Canada at the invitation of our Canadian agent (LivingWatersCanada.com), Pastor Chris Curry, conducting a “Way of the Master” seminar in Ottawa. Kirk had left earlier that day, so the three of us were looking for prospective interviews for our upcoming television program. Most Christians are a little apprehensive about approaching strangers, so I was going to demonstrate how easy it was. The key was to keep a relaxed atmosphere. I would simply walk up to strangers (wearing a hidden microphone), befriend them (using our unique tracts), and then explain what we were doing. We would then ask for permission to use the film. An hour earlier I had said the same thing, but just as I finished speaking, a youth spotted our “hidden” camera and angrily ran toward us with his middle finger pointe

How Christ is rightly and properly said to have merited grace and salvation for us. by John Calvin (1509-1564) The following selection by John Calvin was taken from book 2, chapter 17 of The Institutes of The Christian Religion, translated into english by Henry Beveridge, 1863. This electronic edition, made available by Reformation Ink, is in the public domain and may be freely copied and distributed. Contents include the following: A proof from reason and from Scripture that the grace of God and the merit of Christ (the prince and author of our salvation) are perfectly compatible, sections 1 and 2. Christ, by his obedience, even to the death of the cross, (which was the price of our redemption,) merited divine favour for us, sections 3-5. The presumptuous rashness of the Schoolmen in treating this branch of doctrine section 6. Section One: Christ not only the minister, but also the author and prince of salvation. Divine grace not obscured by this mode of expression. The merit of Chri