Gospel

Death is swallowed up in victory (1 Corinthians 15:54)

The word gospel (euangelion in Greek) means good news. The word is used in three different ways in the Bible, two of which are predominant. i

  1. Nonreligious meaning. This is simply good news of some sort. In 1 Thes 3:6 Timothy returned to Paul with good news of the Thessalonians faith and love.
  2. Gospel of the Kingdom.During His earthly ministry Jesus went out preaching the gospel of the kingdom. This refers to the good news of the kingdom Christ would establish if the Jews received Him as their long promised Messiah, and will still be established – Luke 1:32-33.
  3. The gospel of the grace of God in Christ: Grace means unmerited favor, so this message is good news concerning the unmerited favor of God toward us.
    Acts 20:24; Rom 1:16-17; 10:15; 1 Cor 9:12, 18; 2 Cor 2:12; 4:4; 10:14; 11:7; Gal 1:6-7; Eph 6:15; Phil 1:27; 1 Thes 2:2, 8-9; 3:2; 2 Thes 1:8; 1 Tim 1:11; 1 Pet 4:17; Rev 14:6.
The Good News of the Gospel: Christ died for our sins and arose.ii
  1. Christ Died: “Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures” (1 Cor 15:3). Christ died as our substitute. Had He not taken our punishment, we would all bear it ourselves.
  2. Christ was Buried: “He was buried” (1 Cor 15:4). The proof of death is burial.
  3. Christ Rose: “He rose again on the third day according to the scriptures” (1 Cor 15:4).
  4. Christ wasSeen: “He appeared to Cephas, then to the 12…. He appeared to more than 500 brethren… to James…to all the apostles…to Paul” (1 Cor 15:5-8). This is proof that He arose. These were not people who had not known Him and, therefore, might have mistaken Him for someone else. These were people familiar to Him.

The gospel has four unique qualities. It is objective, finished, proven, and never changing:

  1. Objective: It focuses on what Christ has done and not on what we want Christ to do in our lives.
  2. Finished: Christ died for our sins, was buried, and arose from the dead. It’s finished.
  3. Proven: Christ’s death and resurrection are proven historical facts, they are part of history.
  4. Never-changing: Regardless of time or culture, the message remains the same.
Sin

Man was created in the image and likeness of God. “Sin may be defined ultimately as anything in the creature which does not express, or which is contrary to, the holy character of the Creator.”iii Sin is basically a distortion of the image and likeness of God. Hence Jesus was without sin because He is the exact representation of God (Heb 1:3).

Inherited Siniv

When Adam sinned, creation was corrupted. This means all people are born with a corrupted nature (sin nature); all are children of wrath (Psa 51:5; Eph 2:3).

  1. Intellect is blinded (2 Cor 4:4; Eph 4:18).
  2. Emotions are degraded and defiled (Rom 1:21, 24, 26; Titus 1:15).
  3. Will is enslaved to sin and therefore stands in opposition to God (Rom 6:20; 7:20).
Personal Sinv

Temptation or trials are not sin, when overcome they produce endurance, proven character and real hope (Rom 5:3-5). The Christian is tempted to sin by three means:

  • The World. In it’s corrupted condition is hostile to God (1 John 2:15-17; 1 Cor 3:19; 5:10; James 4:4; Gal 6:14).
  • The Flesh. Your body has been corrupted; the desires of your body can control your mind (Rom 7:17-20; Eph 2:3).
  • Satan. Satan and his demons are in opposition to Christians (1 Pet 5:8; James 4:7; Eph 6:10-17).
Death

Death ultimately does not mean ceasing to exist. All will be resurrected (John 5:29). Some will be resurrected onto eternal life (1 Cor 15:50-57), and everyone else will be resurrected onto eternal (2nd) death (Rev 20:14), they will exist for eternity in the Lake of Fire.

Physical Death (inevitable for almost all)

Physical death is that of the physical body, because of Adam’s sin it is universal (Gen 3:19).

Spiritual Death (already happened)

When the bible says that we are dead while we are still physically alive, we call it spiritual death. Examples of this use of “death” can be found in Matt 8:22; Luke 9:60; Eph 2:1, 5; Col 2:13. The term Spiritual death refers to the destiny of those who have not made peace with God (Isa 59:1-2; Col 1:21-22), they will pay for their sin by suffering eternal death (Rom 6:23). When Adam sinned, all of creation was corrupted. Adam’s sin was imputed (or charged) to all mankind, evidenced by physical death, suffering …… Being at peace with God on our own account means never sinning (Rom 2:13-16).

Eternal Death (doesn’t have to happen)

Eternal death (2nd death) refers to eternal punishment in the Lake of Fire (Rev 20:14). Those spiritually dead (not at peace with God) when they physically die will face eternal death as punishment.

The Work of Christ on the Cross

While it is possible for mankind to not sin (Jesus didn’t), no one else is able to avoid sin. Therefore without God’s intervention all of mankind is spiritually dead, destined for the eternal (second) death punishment. The good news is God intervened. Jesus’ death on the cross makes it possible for individuals to be reconciled with God.

Substitution

Christ’s death on the cross was substitutionary. He suffered the punishment of physical death as a substitute for sinners suffering the punishment of eternal death (Isa 53:4-6). Christ who was without sin was made like a sinner being allowed to die (2 Cor 5:21). In His physical death He bore the sins of sinners (Heb 9:28;1 Pet 2:24).

Propitiation:vi to satisfy, appease or placate

The death of Christ fully satisfied all the righteous demands of God toward the sinner (Rom 3:25; Heb 2:17; 1 John 2:2; 4:10)

Redemptionvii:to pay the ransom price, or to liberate one captive

Christ’s death on the cross paid the ransom price that is sufficient for all mankind (Matt 20:28; 1 Tim 2:6; ) and provisionally available to all, but the liberation is only effective to those who believe (Col1:14-15).

Reconciliationviii

Sin alienates mankind from God, we were enemies of God, but the cross reconciles us to Himself saving us from the second death (Rom 5:9-11; 2 Cor 5:18-20).

Forgivenessix

Forgiveness is the legal act whereby God removes the charges that were held against the sinner because satisfactory payment has been made for those sins (Col 2:13).

Justificationx

Justification is to vindicate. One who is vindicated of guilt is one who was never guilty. God, however, justifies those who are guilty by declaring them righteous on account of their faith in Jesus Christ. God credits faith as if it were righteousness because of what Jesus did on the cross. Justification is a gift given through the grace of God (Rom 3:24), and takes place the moment the individual has faith in Christ (Rom 5:1). The ground of justification is the death of Christ (Rom 5:9). The means of justification is faith (Rom 5:1). It is through justification that God maintains His integrity and His standard, yet is able to enter into fellowship with sinners because they have the righteousness of Christ imputed to them, they are no longer spiritually dead (destined for eternal death) instead they are born again, destined for eternal life.

Response: Saving Faithxi

The gospel is concerned not only with what God has done for man but also with what God asks man to do. What has been declared must now be acted upon. Faith includes understanding and responding to what Christ is offering. The gospel account of John is written for this purpose (John 20:31).

  1. Christ offer’s eternal life (John 3:14-15; 4:14)
  2. It is Christ who we must believe in (John 14:6; 4:10; 5:21, 40).
  3. Jesus being God qualified Him to offer eternal life (John 1:14; 5:17; 6:67-69; 20:28).
  4. Jesus’ death and resurrection verify His offer, they were divinely designed to bring forth faith in His person and His offer (John 2:13-22). Christ Himself made it clear that His offer was verified by His own death and resurrection. Having risen from the grave, He has every right to ask us to put our faith in His ability to give us life.
  5. The offer must be accepted and the gift must be received for eternal life to be granted (John 4:10; 3:14-15; 6:35
Regeneration

“Regeneration is the act whereby God imparts life to the one who believes.”xii It means to be born again.

Titus 3:5; John 3:3, 5.

“God regenerates (John 1:13) according to His will (James 1:18) through the Holy Spirit (John 3:5) when a person believes (John 1:12) the gospel as revealed in His word (1 Peter 1:23)”xiii the Bible.

Indwellingxiv

Jesus promised that God the Holy Spirit would indwell believers (Eph 1:13; Gal 3:2) and that the indwelling would be permanent (John 14:16; 2 Cor 1:22; Eph 4:30).

Security

“The basis for the security of salvation does not rest with man, but with God. The security of the believer is based on the work of the Father (Purpose: Rom 8:30; Power: Jude 24; John 10:28-29; Rom 8:28-30; Love: Rom 5:7-10), Son (Death: Rom 8:33-34; Prayers: John 17:24; Advocacy: 1 John 1:21; Intercession: Heb 7:25), and Holy Spirit (Regeneration: Tit us 3:5; Indwelling: John 14:16-17; Baptism: 1 Cor 12:13; Sealing: Eph 4:30).”xv

i R. Larry Moyer. Free and Clear: Understanding and Communicating God’s Offer of Eternal Life. (Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1997), 14-15.

ii Moyer, 15-18.

iii Charles C Ryrie. Basic Theology(Chicago: Moody, 1986, 1999) 243

iv Ryrie, 252

v Paul Enns. The Moody Handbook of Theology. (Chicago: Moody, 1989)Enns, 313-314

vi Enns, 325

vii C. Gordon Olson. Beyond Calvinism and Arminianism: An Inductive Mediate Theology of Salvation. (Cedar Knolls: Global Gospel, 2002), 117-121

viii Olson, 122-123

ix Enns, 325-326

x Enns, 326

xi Moyer, 35-40.

xii Enns, 338

xiii Ryrie, 376

xiv Enns, 267-268.

xv Enns, 340.