When Jesus began his public ministry, he proclaimed, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:15) 

In Romans 1:16, the apostle Paul wrote, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”

 Obviously, the gospel is important! So, what is the gospel? 

In summary, the gospel is the good news that God saves sinners in Jesus Christ through his life, death, and resurrection. Of course, that statement requires further explanation. 

Gospel Explanation

The gospel begins with God. God is the holy one and the creator of everyone and everything.  When God made the heavens, and the earth and all that is in them, it was good. He created a beautiful world for man to live in while enjoying his presence and living under his benevolent rule. He made man, male and female, in his image to know him, love him, enjoy him, and glorify him. Adam and Eve were the first man and woman whom God placed in the Garden of Eden. God gave them good commands to follow that would lead to their flourishing. God’s people, living in God’s place, living under God’s rule, and enjoying God’s presence. It was good!

Sadly, Adam and Eve rejected God’s rule over their lives by disobeying his good commands. Through their rebellion, sin and death entered the world. In Romans 5:12, we read, “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned…” It’s not just Adam and Eve. All humanity has rejected God's purpose for our lives and His rule over our lives. We have all sinned against Him and fallen short of His perfect standards. As God is the righteous judge of all the earth, our sin problem is our biggest problem. Because of our sin, we have come under His just condemnation and are deserving of hell. 

But God, who is rich in mercy, provided a way for us to be forgiven of our sins and escape the punishment we deserve. He did so by sending God the Son, Jesus Christ, into the world as the Savior of the World. Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He lived a life without sin, perfectly obeying God and fulfilling the righteous requirements of God’s law. As the only one to live a life without sin, Jesus offered himself as the perfect sacrifice to pay the penalty for our sins. (Hebrews 10:12) The wrath of God was poured out on Jesus for the sins of His people as he died upon the cross. Jesus paid the penalty for the sins of His people so that His people will receive the forgiveness of their sins. We can be certain of this because God raised Jesus from the dead, vindicating Jesus and demonstrating that he accepted his sacrifice for our sins. After he died, Jesus was buried in a tomb, but on the third day, he rose from the grave and appeared to hundreds of people for 40 days. After 40 days, he ascended into heaven, where he is now seated at the right hand of the Father. Jesus promised he will return and render a final judgment.  

The gospel is epoch-good news for sinners. But the question is, how must we respond to this good news? What does Christ command us to do before he returns and renders his final judgment? For this good news to be good news for you, you must repent of your sins and trust in Jesus Christ for your salvation. In John 3:16, Jesus said, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” Now, everyone who repents and believes in Jesus will be forgiven and receive eternal life. On the day of judgment, those who put their faith in Jesus will be welcomed into his glorious kingdom for all eternity. Praise the Lord!

We are all in need of salvation, and we must believe in Jesus to be saved, for “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)

If you have not repented of your sins and believed in Christ, we pray that today you will receive the gospel, believe, and be saved.