What is the Gospel?
Because of the length of the Blog, “What is the Gospel?” it has been divided into two parts. Part 1 deals with the fundamental issue of why the gospel message and why it is needed. Part 2 goes back to the historical Jesus of Nazareth who is the central person without who there could never be a gospel at all. They can be read separately or together and in any order that you choose. We hope that you will take the time to read it.
What is the gospel and why do I need it?
PART 1
The word “gospel” means good news. The “good news” is not found in any of the commercial publications such as Hello or the OK magazine but in the Bible, the most published book of all time. The good news has not changed for nearly 2000 years and has outlasted all the trends and fashions of the day, it has also changed the lives of many people who have believed it.
Some years after the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, a man called Paul (who was responsible for writing most of what we call the New Testament) referring to himself as a servant of Jesus Christ wrote about Jesus, his resurrection and the good news of salvation with the following words:
“I declare unto you the gospel...
How that...
Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
And that he was buried,
And that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve:
After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; And last of all he was seen of me also.
1 Corinthians 15: 1- 8
Paul once again clearly sets out the historical facts of Jesus’ death, burial, physical resurrection and verification by those who had seen him alive. However Paul includes two extra but essential details that cannot be overlooked:
1. That He died for our sins
2. That His death, burial and rising from the dead were all according to the scriptures (what is written in the part of the Bible known as the Old Testament).
His crucifixion and death that day was not an accident. It was according to the scriptures, being foretold many years before it actually happened. The blueprint and outline of His life and death were all set out before he was ever born or anyone had ever met him. They were written in detail in the scriptures and were completely fulfilled to prove the truth and reliability of those scriptures. The scriptures are authentic, accurate and the final authority in all matters that deal with God and mankind.
Special attention is given to the fact that He died for our sins. His death is directly linked to our sin. Sin is the ugly problem and persistent principle that indwells every person in the world today. It is little talked about or discussed but those same accurate and authoritative scriptures tell us that; “all have sinned” Romans 3:23, and that, “the wages of sin is death” Romans 6:23, (not just the physical death of the body but what the Bible calls the second death which is eternal separation from God in the Lake of Fire, read Revelation 20:14-15). The sin principle within men and women means we break God’s laws and commandments constantly (especially in our thoughts and motives). At some stage God must judge every sin ever committed by us as it is an offence against his holy nature and judgement is in keeping with His righteous character. Sins (and therefore sinners) if unforgiven, must be eternally separated from Him.
However God’s mercy and love has made a way for us to escape the judgement and penalty of our sins. God sent His own Son, Jesus Christ to bear the judgement in our place. This happened on the cross outside the city walls of Jerusalem in Israel where Jesus suffered, bled and died and where the Bible says; “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree” 1 Peter 2:24. On the cross, He became our substitute. Before Jesus was born, the angel told Mary, his mother, that, her child would be Holy. No other child has ever been born with a holy nature except Jesus Christ. Jesus was without sin and had never broken a single one of God’s laws or commandments (this perfectly qualified Him to be a substitute for us and a saviour to save us from certain ruin and the judgement for our sins). The New Testament writers wrote about our sins as a debt which we could never repay but which Jesus paid for us on the cross. The price paid or currency to settle and cancel the debt was his blood. A perfect and innocent man, Jesus, paid the price for us the guilty and imperfect ones. The substitution and transfer of debt took place in a deep and mysterious way between God and Jesus on the cross.
The good news is that through the death and resurrection of the Jesus Christ God now offers us
the forgiveness of our sins. For all who believe in Jesus Christ along with God’s forgiveness there is a promise of a place in heaven when we die. This is a message of peace, good will and joy to the entire world.
Today, God is offering you the forgiveness of your sins and the chance of getting right with Him through the death of His Son. Isn’t it better that He is your saviour today than your judge in a day to come?
“Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” 1 Timothy 1:15