The gospel was proclaimed by the prophets, lived by Jesus Christ, preached by the apostles, and spread through all the world. But, what is it? The word “gospel” means “good news”. The good news is Jesus Christ has already finished all the perfect work for you, Jesus Christ has already paid the full penalty of all your sins to make you perfectly acceptable to God, there is nothing you can do to deserve any of this because there is no way your own works can merit any of this; therefore, all you have to do is accept God’s perfectly free gift of rest (from working to establish your own righteousness) and accept complete peace with God (Psalms 19, Romans 10, Hebrews 4).
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. (John 3:16-18)
He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. (2 Corinthians 5:21)
Anything that denies the perfectly finished work of Jesus Christ, anything that causes distressing fear, anything which enslaves you in bondage to work for your acceptance by God — is not good news — and it is not the gospel (Galatians 1).
The gospel saves us, the gospel inspires us, the gospel motivates us…
Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received,
- that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
- and that He was buried,
- and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,
- and that He appeared to Cephas,
- then to the twelve. (1 Corinthians 15:1-5)
Dear brothers and sisters, I want you to understand that the gospel message I preach is not based on mere human reasoning. (Galatians 1:11)
I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always offering prayer with joy in my every prayer for you all, in view of your participation in the gospel from the first day until now. For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:3-6)
Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel (Philippians 1:27)
…This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant. (Colossians 1:23)
I am writing these things to you now, even though I hope to be with you soon, so that if I am delayed, you will know how people must conduct themselves in the household of God. This is the church of the living God, which is the pillar and foundation of the truth. Without question, this is the great mystery of our faith:
- Christ was revealed in a human body
- and vindicated by the Spirit.
- He was seen by angels
- and announced to the nations.
- He was believed in throughout the world
- and taken to heaven in glory. (1 Timothy 3:14-16)
It was for this He called you through our gospel, that you may gain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 2:14)
When you really accept the good news…
Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:7)
If you have experienced this rest and peace, write to us or join the conversation below. If you would like help finding this rest and peace, write to us or join the conversation below.