Messenger

My name is Christopher Dryden. I am a messenger of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

True story. I loved journalism. For a while I wanted to be a journalist. In fact at one time I was seriously studying towards a career in it. One of the things I liked about journalist was the opportunity to apply my love of words to report on current events. I love the thought of reporting and sharing the news.

Though that ambition was not realised, I have been given a greater opportunity to share the news. As a member of the Family of God which is the Body of Christ, I have the privilege of being a minister of Jesus Christ. Being a good servant of the Lord includes carrying out the calling to be a messenger. Indeed every follower of Jesus is given the clear instruction to be about the business of being a messenger.

The good thing is, though, that in a world full of negative messages, we get to share the best news in the world ever. We get to share the good news that Jesus is Lord. We get to share the good news that He has overcome the powers of sin, death and the devil to establish the eternal kingdom based on righteousness, peace and love. We get to share this good news and invite people to accept it and so get in on the action of embracing this Kingdom in every day. They get to see for themselves the difference between this glorious Kingdom of light and the Kingdom of darkness that in comparison they were only stumbling and fumbling about in.

Sure, it’s unfortunate, that for whatever reason not every follower of Jesus is quite on board with the instruction to share the good news. And not everyone does a good job of backing up the news as though it really is good news for them. Sure – that’s unfortunate. Yet this is to be expected with such an enterprise – always going to be a few people who didn’t quite the memo, always going to be the odd person who didn’t quite understand. For the most, though, this is the sort of news that when you think about it gets easier to share.

Look at the news! Look at this glorious news! Look at this – from a rule of slavery to sin, there comes this Redeemer, there comes this Saviour, there comes this Lord and Master. Here He comes and He says He rules with righteousness and justice. He says He is the Resurrection and the Life – so we need not die in His rule. He says He is the Bread of Life – so we need not hunger any more in His rule. He says He is the Light of the World – so we need not experience darkness in His rule. He says He is the Gate – so we can have free access to our Father in His rule. He says He is the Good Shepherd – so we can be assured of nurturing and protection in His rule. He says He is the Way, Truth and the Life – so we need not stumble around with lies, mis-directions and the disaster that is death. He says He is the True Vine – so we can flourish in all fruitfulness in His rule.

This is great news!! Who on earth would want to satisfy themselves with the grim morsels of gossip and chew on the dreary fat of malice, when they can feast on this news of life to the full as they look and live?

It may not have worked out for my ambition to be a journalist as I hoped. Getting to deliver this good news, though, through the variety of means available from a chat in the local pub to a blog read around the world, from WhatsApp messages to telephone calls, it’s brilliant.

This is not a passing fad or a trend popular for the moment – this is the eternal truth. The good news remains the good news whether you choose to accept it or not, but it’s great when you get the chance to do it having heard it. So thank God for the feet of those blessed with the privilege of sharing the good news – our God reigns!

My name is Christopher Dryden. I am a messenger of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

For His Name’s Sake

Shalom

C. L. J. Dryden