At Maranatha you hear a lot of talk about the Gospel, which literally means “good news.” We have been saved by the Gospel. We believe the Gospel. We’re committed to the Gospel. We preach the Gospel. We’re living out the Gospel in our relationships. We’re sharing the Gospel with our neighbors. It is ALL about the Gospel.
Since it is all about the Gospel, it is good to be reminded from time to time of the substance of the Gospel. So here are two summaries of the Gospel – the good news about Jesus – a short one and a really short one.
Even though you may KNOW the Gospel, let me challenge you to read through these summaries with fresh eyes. Hopefully, they will rekindle your love and appreciation for what God has done for you and make it easier to share with those around you.
A SHORT SUMMARY OF THE GOSPEL
The Gospel Proper (The Announcement)
The gospel is the royal announcement that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, lived a perfect life in our place, died a substitutionary death on the cross for our sins, rose triumphantly from the grave to launch God’s new creation, and is now exalted as King of the world. This announcement calls for a response: repentance (mourning over and turning from our sin, trading our agendas for the kingdom agenda of Jesus Christ) and faith (trusting in Christ alone for salvation).
The Gospel’s Context (The Story of Scripture)
The Bible tells us about God’s creation of a good world which was subjected to futility because of human sin. God gave the Law to reveal His holiness and our need for a perfect sacrifice, which is provided by the death of Jesus Christ. This same Jesus will one day return to this earth to judge the living and the dead and thus renew all things. The gospel story is the Scriptural narrative that takes us from creation to new creation, climaxing with the death and resurrection of Jesus at the center.
The Gospel’s Purpose (The Community)
The gospel births the church. We are shaped by the gospel into the kind of people who herald the grace of God and spread the news of Jesus Christ. God has commissioned the church to be the community that embodies the message of the gospel. Through our corporate life together, we “obey the gospel” by living according to the truth of the message that Jesus Christ is Savior and Lord of the world.
All Together Now
Put these three things together and we have a gospel-focused summary of the entire Bible.
In the beginning, the all-powerful, personal God created the universe. This God created human beings in His image to live joyfully in His presence, in humble submission to His gracious authority. But all of us have rebelled against God and, in consequence, must suffer the punishment of our rebellion: physical death and the wrath of God.
Thankfully, God initiated a rescue plan, which began with His choosing the nation of Israel to display His glory in a fallen world. The Bible describes how God acted mightily on Israel’s behalf, rescuing His people from slavery and then giving them His holy law. But God’s people – like all of us – failed to rightly reflect the glory of God.
Then, in the fullness of time, in the Person of Jesus Christ, God Himself came to renew the world and restore His people. Jesus perfectly obeyed the law given to Israel. Though innocent, He suffered the consequences of human rebellion by His death on a cross. But three days later, God raised Him from the dead.
Now the church of Jesus Christ has been commissioned by God to take the news of Christ’s work to the world. Empowered by God’s Spirit, the church calls all people everywhere to repent of sin and to trust in Christ alone for our forgiveness. Repentance and faith restores our relationship with God and results in a life of ongoing transformation.
The Bible promises that Jesus Christ will return to this earth as the conquering King. Only those who live in repentant faith in Christ will escape God’s judgment and live joyfully in God’s presence for all eternity. God’s message is the same to all of us: repent and believe, before it is too late. Confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, and you will be saved.
– from Counterfeit Gospels by Trevin Wax
A REALLY SHORT SUMMARY OF THE GOSPEL
“Here is what I understand the good news to be: the good news is that the one and only God, who is holy, made us in his image to know him. But we sinned and cut ourselves off from him. In his great love, God became a man in Jesus, lived a perfect life, and died on the cross, thus fulfilling the law himself and taking on himself the punishment for the sins of all those who would ever turn and trust in him. He rose again from the dead, showing that God accepted Christ’s sacrifice and that God’s wrath against us had been exhausted. He now calls us to repent of our sins and to trust in Christ alone for our forgiveness. If we repent of our sins and trust in Christ, we are born again into a new life, an eternal life with God. Now that is good news.”
- from The Gospel and Personal Evangelism by Mark Dever
Let me encourage you to use these summaries as tools in sharing the Gospel with your family, neighbors, and co-workers. If you can take the time to re-write them in your own words, it will help you meditate upon the truths, commit them to memory, and really make them your own. It is one more step towards making sure that the Gospel is at the center of all we do personally and as a church.
