The content of this article is from the BCM virtual conference “What is the Gospel?” Written by Jared Duncan, edited by Antonio Salgado.
One of the saddest truths is that if you were to walk around many of the churches in the United States and ask, “What is the gospel?” most would not be able to answer. Well, that’s what my experience has taught me. I’ve asked many Christians this question and most cannot answer. Most just stare at me.
But let me now ask you this question. What is the gospel? Can you answer? You should be able to. You need to be able to. Why? Because as Paul says, the gospel is “the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.”
And as teachers of God’s word, if you do not have a clear understanding of the gospel, neither will your church. The gospel is the foundation of our belief…of our salvation. If we (leaders in the church) are not clear here, ministries will suffer, spiritual formation and growth in our church members will suffer, the whole church will suffer.
Illustration:
In Italy there is a tower called the leaning tower of Pisa. It was built in the 1170’s but the builders did not properly pack the dirt it was built upon and so the foundations settled unevenly and the tower over time began to lean. Every year a little bit more. It would have fallen long ago if it not were for architects and builders who came later to secure the tower. It still stands to this day, but leaning very noticeably. Just like this tower of Pisa, leaning because of a bad foundation, so our churches and ministries will be off kilter, askew, not strong and upright if we do not get right, the foundation of our faith, which is the gospel.
Theme:
What the gospel is according to the Bible.
Reference:
And we are going to answer this question from the Bible. We will look at two passages. Mark 1, and 1 Corinthians 15. Hopefully, after we discuss these two passages we will be able to construct a biblical definition. Then in a future article I’m going to talk about how to explain the gospel to unbelievers, and then lastly how the gospel relates to believers. Yes, the gospel is for the Christian too, not just the unbeliever! Here, we will discuss how to preach the gospel in your sermons and teachings to the church, whether it be Sunday morning or in small groups.
Outline:
But for now, What is the Gospel? Three headings will guide us through this topic: First, The Person of Christ. Second, the Work of Christ. And third, Our response to Christ.
The Person of Christ
So, the question I asked in the beginning: What is the gospel? First, open your bibles to Mark 1.
Mark 1:15 says,
“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”
So think about this…the gospel was preached even before the cross and resurrection. Interesting.
Now, let’s turn to our other passage, one of the most famous passages on the gospel, 1 Corinthians 15.
1 Corinthians 15:1-4 says,
“Now I would remind you, brothers of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.
Here is the more standard mention of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus when talking about the gospel. But, the point I’m making right now is that the gospel was preached before the events of the crucifixion and resurrection as well. The implication, therefore, is that the gospel is more than Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection. In other words, it is more than Jesus’ works and accomplishments because it was preached before these accomplishments were made known.
Now, if I heard someone tell me the gospel was something more than the death and resurrection of Jesus I’d be very worried this person was going to tell me something unbiblical. And I hope you are concerned right now. But hear me out.
So, what could possibly be in addition to Jesus’ death and resurrection that would be part of the biblical gospel? What could be added to the works of Christ? The person of Christ. Jesus could preach the gospel before His works of death and resurrection because of who He was: His person. I am here, he said. The King is here, and therefore the kingdom of God is here.
The meaning of “gospel” is good news. So, “Good news, Israel! Your long awaited King is here! The King promised from the kingly line of David is in your midst. The King whose kingdom shall have no end! I am Him!”
It is for this reason:
The person of Christ (Who Jesus is), that Mark can say Jesus preached the gospel even before he died and rose, and even before he taught about those events. Simply, that He was in their midst was good news, was the gospel.
Now, even when we look at Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 15— this is after the cross, after the resurrection, after the work of Jesus—this 1 Corinthian passage is focused on the works of Christ, but Paul still draws the reader’s attention to the person of Jesus also. How so? By saying twice, “According to the Scriptures” (v. 3,4).
For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.
So, Christ died for our sins “according to the Scriptures” (v3). And He was buried and was raised on the third day “according to the Scriptures” (v4). This is often overlooked, but so important! The work of Christ (His death and resurrection) did not just happen out of nowhere, or in a vacuum. It was told of old. It was told in the OT that a certain person would suffer and die. And that He would rise again. One thinks of a text like Psalm 2 or Isaiah 53. In Isaiah 53 it is the soul of this Servant of Yahweh that was “poured out to death” Isaiah 53:11. Yet God would “prolong His days” (53:10), a reference to the Servant’s resurrection.
Now, you really can’t divide the person and works of Christ Jesus. They go together. So I don’t want to split them up, I want you to see they go together and in doing so, make up the gospel. How does one share the gospel? Tell the good news of Who Jesus is and What he did. So we would say Jesus is the Messiah of Israel, He completes Israel’s story. He is the long awaited king from David’s line. He is the seed of Abraham. Jesus is the one mediator between God and man. Jesus is the last and greater Adam, the greater Jonah, the greater David, Jesus is the greater temple, the fulfillment of the law and old covenant, Jesus is the Son of God, and God the Son, the second member of the Triune God Who took on flesh to become a man. The great judge who will judge all things in the end and who even now upholds the universe by the word of power because He is the Word of God.
Now, do you have to say all that? No! Please don’t, especially if witnessing to an unbeliever, but some of that should be said! We will talk about what should be said next time, but know for now, the gospel is sharing the good news of the Person of Jesus— Who He is.
“Now, you really can’t divide the person and works of Christ Jesus. They go together. So I don’t want to split them up, I want you to see they go together and in doing so, make up the gospel. How does one share the gospel? Tell the good news of Who Jesus is and What he did.”
The Work of Christ
So, we’ve seen the person, let us look more at His work. I think we are more accustomed to the work of Jesus, so I won’t spend as much time on this point…but the work of Christ Jesus is that he would die for sins, be buried and rise again. That is what 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 tells us. This is the atoning work of Jesus on the cross where He would be obedient to taking on flesh, obedient in life, and obedient unto death, dying a sacrificial death in the place of sinners who believe upon Him. The gospel is also the work that Jesus is yet to do. His coming again as the latter part of 1 Corinthians 15 points out.
So, putting all what we’ve been talking about together, this is what the gospel is according to the Bible. It is the good news of who Jesus is, and what He accomplished, what he did. Also, what He’s going to do—come again and set up His kingdom. The gospel is the good news of the person and work of Jesus Christ.
So, let’s now fill that in with what we know of Jesus and what Jesus did. Jesus, the Son of God Who is the long awaited Messiah of Israel, is now King of Kings and Lord of Lords because He came to earth, took on flesh, died for sin, and rose from the dead conquering death and the grave, and will come again to establish His kingdom in full.
His person:
Jesus, the Son of God Who is the long awaited Messiah of Israel, is now King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Why?
Because of.. His work:
Because He came to earth, took on flesh, died for sin, and rose from the dead conquering death and the grave. And is coming again to establish His kingdom.
That is the gospel. But there is one more aspect of the gospel I’d like to mention before we finish. And that is our response to Christ. Let’s go back to Mark 1. Let’s read v14-15: After John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand, repent and believe in the gospel.” That is the response the gospel calls for: Repentance and belief. Our other main text , 1 Corinthians 15. Here Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:1 tells the church he preached the gospel to them and they “received” it. That is the same thing as believing it. He goes on to say the gospel is saving them in v2, if they hold fast to it. If they don’t, they have believed in vain. You see the response: receiving it by believing it.
All through the book of Acts, when you read of the gospel being presented by either Peter or Paul, or whoever, they call for a response. Acts 2:38 and Acts 17:30 for example. And so part of our gospel presentation needs to be a call for the listener to respond to King Jesus, to repent and believe on Him for the forgiveness of sins.
Conclusion: Why Jesus and His Works?
I want to conclude with a final point, Why Jesus? Why Jesus’ death and resurrection? Why His Person and His works? Now, there has been a lot of discussion as to if “how the gospel works” is actually the gospel. I think there are good arguments on each side. I think actually this explanation of the gospel is not the gospel. In other words, you can preach the gospel without explaining all the details of it. Jesus really doesn’t explain the gospel in his time on earth. But Paul does later, as well the writer of Hebrews does. And this explanation of the gospel is justification by faith. Simply put, Jesus had to be both God and man to pay for sins against a holy God. He had to be man to die for man because man sinned. He had to be God to be the perfect sacrifice without blemish and also capable of absorbing the full of God’s wrath. He drank the cup of God’s wrath to the last drop. No mere man could do that. So that explains why Jesus.
Double imputation, the great exchange.
Our sin going to Jesus, His righteousness going to us. So He condemned His Son but accepts us. Why? Because of Jesus’ blood that washed away our sin. Because God looks upon us as being “In Christ.” We are covered with the righteousness of Christ. What a beautiful thing the cross was, and what a terrible thing. Then God raised Jesus from the dead! This means Jesus’ sacrifice was accepted. And Now the new life Jesus has, He shares with those who come to Him in faith.
Outline for teaching: What is the Gospel?
Introduction:
The Gospel is the most important message that can be shared. It is the good news of God’s salvation for humanity. We will focus on three key points to better understand the Gospel:
The Person of Christ: Who is Jesus?
Jesus is the Son of God, the long-awaited Messiah of Israel.
The Work of Christ: What did Jesus do?
Jesus came to earth to die for our sins.
He died on the cross as a perfect sacrifice for humanity.
He rose from the dead, conquering death and sin.
He ascended to heaven and now intercedes for us before God the Father.
Our Response to Christ: How do we respond to the Gospel?
We must repent of our sins
We must trust Christ for our salvation
We must recognize Him as Lord and King.
Conclusion:
The Gospel is the only hope for lost humanity. It is wonderful news, a message of love, grace and forgiveness. By accepting Jesus as our Savior, we can have our sins forgiven, receive the gift of eternal life and enjoy a personal relationship with God.
Call to action:
Have you trusted in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? If you have not done so, I invite you to do so today. There is nothing more important you can do in your life.
Reference Verses:
After John had been imprisoned, Jesus came to Galilee preaching the gospel of God. “The time is fulfilled,” he said, “and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” –Mark 1:14-15
Now I make known to you, brothers, the gospel that I preached to you, which you also received, in which you also stand, by which they are also saved, if they hold fast to the word which I preached to them, unless they have believed in vain.
For I delivered to you first of all the same thing that I received: that Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures; that he was buried and that he rose again on the third day, according to the Scriptures;who appeared to Cephas and then to the twelve. –1 Corinthians 15:1-4
