WHAT IS THE GOSPEL?
[16] Hindi ko ikinakahiya ang Magandang Balita tungkol kay Cristo, dahil ito ang
kapangyarihan ng Dios sa ikaliligtas ng lahat ng sumasampalataya – una ang mga Judio
at gayon din ang mga hindi Judio. [17] Sapagkat ipinapahayag sa Magandang Balita
kung paano itinuturing ng Dios na matuwid ang tao, at itoʼy sa pamamagitan lang ng
pananampalataya. Ayon nga sa Kasulatan, “Sa pananampalataya mabubuhay ang matuwid.”
(Roma 1:16-17)
When Paul says that he is not ashamed of the gospel, he means, “I glory in the
gospel. I’m proud of the gospel.”
But why does he express it this way? Well, there were many reasons that a first
century Roman might feel a bit uncomfortable about this Jewish man coming to a
sophisticated city like Rome to preach about a Galilean carpenter-prophet who was
executed by the Roman government in the most humiliating manner possible, by being
crucified. After all, this was Rome, the capital of the civilized world! Your
message had better appeal to the educated or it won’t fly here! Your message needs
to offer political solutions to the pressing needs of the empire or it will not
gain a hearing here! It had better offer some answers to the massive problems of
slavery, greed, lust, and violence, or the people in Rome won’t listen!
But Paul’s main message did not directly address these issues. His main message
focused on the main need of every human being, whether the most religious Jew or
the most educated, worldly, immoral Greek—the need to be reconciled to the holy
God. How can I be right before God? As we’ve seen, Paul’s theme in Romans is God
and the good news that comes from God, how sinners can be delivered from His
righteous judgment and reconciled to Him. This is called salvation.
Let us dive in much deeper to the Gospel of Christ.
The Gospel in a Nutshell
In 1 Corinthians 15:1-8, the apostle Paul summarizes the most basic ingredients of
the gospel message, namely, the death, burial, resurrection, and appearances of the
resurrected Christ. Note the four clauses introduced by that in bold type in verses
3-5 below:
15:1 Now I want to make clear for you, brothers and sisters, the gospel that I
preached to you, that you received and on which you stand, 15:2 and by which you
are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message I preached to you—unless you
believed in vain. 15:3 For I passed on to you as of first importance what I also
received—that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, 15:4 and that
he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures,
15:5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve…4
These verses, which were an early Christian confession, give us the heart of the
gospel and show the that the resurrection is an integral part of the gospel. Note
that Paul described this as “of first importance”—a phrase that stresses priority,
not time. The stress is on the centrality of these truths to the gospel message.
Actually, the central ingredient of the gospel message is a two-fold confession:
(1) Christ died for our sins and (2) He was raised on the third day. The reality of
these two elements can be verified by the Scriptures (cf. Ps. 16:10; Isa. 53:8-10)
and by such awesome historical evidence as the empty tomb and the eye witnesses.
Thus, the other two elements mentioned here accomplish two important facts
regarding the gospel. The fact that He was buried verified His death, and the fact
that He appeared to others verified His resurrection.
But in order to understand the Gospel of Christ we need to emphasize why he needs
to die on the cross. Paul cry out in the 2 chapter of 1 Corinthian:
[1] Mga kapatid, nang pumunta ako riyan upang ipahayag ang lihim na plano ng Dios,
hindi ako gumamit ng malalalim na pananalita o karunungan. [2] Sapagkat ipinasya ko
na wala akong ipangangaral sa inyo kundi si Jesu-Cristo lang at ang kanyang
pagkapako sa krus.
Why? Because of sin.
What Is Sin?
The first point in understanding the Gospel is that which relates to the condition
of man. Men view themselves in varying ways, depending upon one's self-concept and
theological background. The word "understand" is a crucial word. Men think they
understand themselves and like to think they understand God or whomever their
"supreme being" is.
[11] Walang nakakaunawa tungkol sa Dios, walang nagsisikap na makilala siya.
[12] Ang lahat ay tumalikod sa Dios at naging walang kabuluhan.
Walang gumagawa ng mabuti, wala kahit isa.” (Roma 3:11-12)
[4] Ang lahat ng nagkakasala ay lumalabag sa Kautusan ng Dios dahil ang kasalanan
ay paglabag sa Kautusan. (1 Juan 3:4)
Now hear a part of Peter's sermon during the Pentecost in the Upper Room:
[22] Nagpatuloy si Pedro sa pagsasalita, “Mga kababayan kong Israelita, makinig
kayo sa akin! Si Jesus na taga-Nazaret ay sinugo ng Dios sa inyo, at pinatotohanan
ito ng Dios sa pamamagitan ng mga himala at kamangha-manghang ginawa niya sa
pamamagitan ni Jesus. Alam nʼyo mismo ang mga ito dahil ang lahat ng itoʼy nangyari
rito sa inyo. [23] Alam na noon pa ng Dios na itong si Jesus ay ibibigay sa inyo at
ganito na talaga ang kanyang plano. Ipinapatay ninyo siya sa mga makasalanang tao
na nagpako sa kanya sa krus. [24] Ngunit binuhay siya ng Dios at iniligtas mula sa
kapangyarihan ng kamatayan, dahil ang totoo, kahit ang kamatayan ay walang
kapangyarihang pigilan siya. [25] Ito ang sinabi ni David na para rin sa kanya,
‘Alam kong ang Panginoon ay lagi kong kasama at hindi niya ako pinapabayaan, kaya
hindi ako nangangamba.
[26] Kaya masaya ako, at hindi mapigil ang aking pagpupuri sa Dios.
At kahit mamatay ako, may pag-asa pa rin ako.
[27] Sapagkat alam kong hindi mo ako pababayaan doon sa libingan.
Hindi mo rin hahayaang mabulok ang iyong tapat na lingkod.
[28] Itinuro mo sa akin ang daan patungo sa buhay,
at dahil sa palagi kitang kasama, masayang-masaya ako.’
[29] “Mga kababayan, malinaw na hindi tinutukoy ni David ang kanyang sarili, dahil
ang ating ninunong si David ay namatay at inilibing, at hanggang ngayon ay alam
natin kung saan siya nakalibing. [30] Si David ay propeta at alam niya na nangako
ang Dios sa kanya na ang isa sa kanyang mga lahi ay magmamana ng kanyang kaharian.
[31] At dahil alam ni David kung ano ang gagawin ng Dios, nagsalita siya tungkol sa
muling pagkabuhay ni Cristo, na hindi siya pinabayaan sa libingan at hindi nabulok
ang kanyang katawan. [32] Ang kanyang tinutukoy ay walang iba kundi si Jesus na
muling binuhay ng Dios, at kaming lahat ay saksi na muli siyang nabuhay. [33]
Itinaas siya sa kanan ng Dios. At ibinigay sa kanya ng Ama ang Banal na Espiritung
ipinangako sa kanya. Ang Banal na Espiritung ito ay ipinadala naman ni Jesus sa
amin, at ang kanyang kapangyarihan ang siyang nakikita ninyo at naririnig ngayon.
[34-35] Hindi si David ang itinaas sa langit, pero sinabi niya,
‘Nagsalita ang Panginoon sa aking Panginoon:
Umupo ka rito sa kanan ko hanggang sa mapasuko ko sa iyo ang iyong mga kaaway.’
[36] Kaya dapat talagang malaman ng lahat ng Israelita na itong si Jesus na
ipinapako nʼyo sa krus ang siyang pinili ng Dios na maging Panginoon at Cristo.”
(Gawa 2:22-36)
Men in the past have offered to God good works, sacrificial living involving self
denial, regular church attendance, moral lives (in societies' thinking), and other
good deeds to earn their salvation. This continues to happen today and even in the
future. It is not that these things do not have value in our society. They
certainly do. But before a holy and righteous God, they have what kind of value?
Isaiah 64:6 says all these are worthless — they are "human goodnesses" and are as
unclean things - even for the religious Israel. These are simply of no value
whatsoever in helping man reach God or please Him. They are as worthless as filthy
rags in pleasing Him.
To the religious Jews, Paul said:
[19] Ngayon, alam natin na ang lahat ng sinasabi ng Kautusan ay para sa ating mga
Judio na namumuhay sa ilalim ng Kautusan, para walang maidahilan ang sinuman na
hindi siya dapat parusahan. Ang lahat ng tao sa mundo ay mananagot sa Dios. [20]
Sapagkat walang sinuman ang ituturing ng Dios na matuwid sa pamamagitan ng pagsunod
sa Kautusan. Sa halip, ipinapakita ng Kautusan sa tao na makasalanan siya. (Roma
3:19-20)
Sin Brought Death to All Men
Death—the basic meaning of the word "death" is separation. There are at least six
types of death mentioned in the New Testament.
a. Physical death—the separation of the body from soul and spirit.
b. Spiritual death—the state of man who is unregenerate—apart from God.
c. Eternal death—the eternal separation of a man from God when he experiences
physical death while in the state of spiritual death.
d. Temporal death—being out of fellowship with God because of sin. This is the
opposite of temporal fellowship, Ephesians 5:14, James 1:15. (Remember death means
separation.)
e. Judicial death—Romans 6. This is God's decree that believers are dead to sin.
f. Sin unto physical death, James 5:19-20
No sin is ever forgiven. It is paid for either by the sinner or by Christ. This
brings us to God's provision for the problem of man and how He has brought about
reconciliation, Eph. 1:7.
THE CREATOR AND HIS CREATION
Sin resulted to blindness and unrecognition.
[10] Naparito siya sa mundo. At kahit na nilikha ang mundo sa pamamagitan niya,
hindi siya kinilala ng mundo. [11] Pumunta siya sa sarili niyang mga kababayan,
pero tinanggihan siya ng karamihan. (Juan 1:10-12)
[33] Muling pumasok si Pilato sa palasyo at ipinatawag si Jesus, at tinanong, “Ikaw
ba ang hari ng mga Judio?” [34] Sumagot si Jesus, “Sa iyo ba nanggaling ang tanong
na iyan o may nagsabi lang sa iyo tungkol sa akin?” [35] Sumagot si Pilato, “Judio
ba ako? Dinala ka rito sa akin ng mga kababayan mo at ng mga namamahalang pari. Ano
ba ang ginawa mo?” [36] Sinabi ni Jesus sa kanya, “Ang kaharian ko ay wala rito sa
mundo. Kung nandito ang kaharian ko, makikipaglaban sana ang mga tagasunod ko upang
hindi ako madakip ng mga Judio. Pero tulad nga ng sinabi ko, ang kaharian ko ay
wala rito.” [37] Sinabi ni Pilato, “Kung ganoon, isa kang hari?” Sumagot si Jesus,
“Tama ang sinabi mo na isa akong hari. At ang dahilan kung bakit ako ipinanganak at
naparito sa mundo ay upang ipahayag ang katotohanan. At ang lahat ng gustong
makaalam ng katotohanan ay nakikinig sa akin.” (Juan 18:33-37)
THE KING IS COMING SOON
[7] Sinabi ni Jesus, “Malapit na akong dumating! Mapalad ang mga sumusunod sa mga
pahayag ng Dios sa aklat na ito.” [8] Akong si Juan ang nakarinig at nakakita ng
lahat ng ito. Matapos kong marinig at makita ang lahat ng ito, lumuhod ako upang
sumamba sa anghel na nagpakita sa akin ng mga ito. [9] Pero sinabi niya sa akin,
“Huwag! Huwag mo akong sambahin. Sapagkat katulad mo, alipin din ako ng Dios at ng
mga katulad mong propeta, at ng lahat ng sumusunod sa mga nakasulat sa aklat na
ito. Ang Dios ang sambahin mo!” [10] Sinabi pa niya sa akin, “Huwag mong ililihim
ang mga propesiya sa aklat na ito, dahil malapit na itong matupad. [11] Ang masama
ay magpapakasama pa, at ang marumi ay magpapakarumi pa. Pero ang matuwid ay
magpapakatuwid pa, at ang banal ay magpapakabanal pa.”
Three Things Necessary for Saving Faith
Here are three things necessary for saving faith:
1. Knowledge—awareness of the plan of salvation: the Gospel.
2. Belief—giving mental assent—accepting it as true.
3. Volition—acting upon what you believe.
Much of the world believes that Jesus lived and that He was a good man. Many attest
belief in His resurrection and that He is the Son of God and died as a sacrifice
for the sins of man. This is not enough! There must be an appropriation of His work
for us and this is only accomplished through receiving Him as Personal Savior —
inviting Him into my life and confessing Him as Lord, Romans 10:9-10.
Reception of the Gospel
One of the important issues about this gospel message has to do with how one
receives the salvation offered in the gospel. The fact that God offers us salvation
from sin’s penalty and power with the glorious promise that this will one day
result in the glorious reign of Christ on earth with sin, death, and Satan as
vanquished foes is glorious news to be sure. However, the fact that God offers us
salvation as a free gift through faith in Christ is good news beyond description.
Paul clearly links the gospel with faith in Galatians 3:6-9.
3:6 Just as Abraham “believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,”
3:7 so then, understand that those who believe are the sons of Abraham. 3:8 And the
scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, proclaimed the
gospel to Abraham ahead of time, saying, “all the nations will be blessed in you.”
3:9 So then those who believe are blessed along with Abraham the believer.
If the salvation offered to us were dependent on our merit or our ability to keep
the law, it would not be good news because of our sinfulness and complete inability
to keep the law or any kind of righteous principles as a means of our justification
or right standing with God.
19 Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the
Law, that every mouth may be closed, and all the world may become accountable to
God; 20 because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight;
for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin (Rom. 3:19-20 NASB).
16 yet we know that no one is justified by the works of the law but by the
faithfulness of Jesus Christ. And we have come to believe in Christ Jesus, so that
we may be justified by the faithfulness of Christ and not by the works of the law,
because by the works of the law no one will be justified (Gal. 2:16 NASB).
Why is this element of grace such wonderful news? Because it guarantees
justification with God and the reason is that justification is based on the
accomplished work and merit of Jesus Christ.
4:13 For the promise to Abraham or to his descendants that he would inherit the
world was not through the law, but through the righteousness that comes by faith.
4:14 For if they become heirs by the law, faith is empty and the promise is
nullified. 4:15 For the law brings wrath, because where there is no law there is no
transgression either. 4:16 For this reason it is by faith that it may be by grace,
with the result that the promise may be certain to all the descendants—not only to
those who are under the law, but also to those who have the faith of Abraham, who
is the father of us all (Rom. 4:13-16, emphasis mine).
Warnings About
‘Another Gospel’ Which is Not a Gospel
One of the beautiful and joyful aspects of the message of salvation in Christ that
makes it such good news is the element of grace (Acts 20:24). Salvation is the free
gift of God to be received by faith alone in Christ alone (Rev. 21:6; 22:17; Rom.
4:4-5; Eph. 2:8-9; Tit. 3:4-5). But the message of grace goes contrary to the heart
and thinking of man who intuitively thinks in terms of merit. After all, you can’t
get something for nothing—at least not if its worth anything. Man has always had a
problem with grace and this is easily seen in the book of Acts. From the very early
days of the church, it has faced the problem of those who wanted to add some form
of works to the message of grace.
In Acts 15:1 we read these words: “Unless you are circumcised according to the
custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” Verse 5 tells us that these were men from
the sect of the Pharisees who had believed. From within its own ranks (they were
members of the church) a controversy broke out concerning the exact nature and
content of the gospel message. Later the apostle Paul had to deal with a similar
controversy in the book of Galatians. Writing regarding those who wanted to deny
the gospel of grace, Paul wrote, “Now this matter arose because of the false
brothers with false pretenses who slipped in unnoticed to spy out our freedom that
we have in Christ Jesus, to make us slaves. But we did not surrender to them even
for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel would remain with you” (Gal. 2:4-5).
So, the apostle warned of those who offer a gospel of works for salvation rather
than grace. We should remember, as Paul teaches us in Romans 4 and 11. If it is by
grace, it is no longer by works and if by works, it is no longer by grace (see Rom.
4:3-4; 11:6). So in reality, any time someone offers a gospel of works, it is not
the gospel—a message of good news. Instead it is bad news, it is false, and a
terrible distortion.
1:6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the
grace of Christ and following a different gospel— 1:7 not that there is another
gospel; but there are some who are disturbing you and wanting to distort the gospel
of Christ. 1:8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel
contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be condemned to hell! 1:9 As we
have said before, and now I say again, if any one is preaching to you a gospel
contrary to what you received, let him be condemned to hell! 1:10 Am I now trying
to gain the approval of people or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I
were still trying to please people, I would not be a slave of Christ (Gal. 1:6-10).
Therefore, if distorted by rejection of the truth that all God does for us in
Christ is by grace alone through faith apart from works or by a denial of who Jesus
is, then the “gospel” is a “different gospel, which is in fact, no gospel at all
(Gal. 1:7).”
Conclusion
In summary, what is the gospel? It is the message of the good news of salvation,
the word of truth offered to mankind by grace through faith in the finished work of
Christ on the cross. It is a message not only of eternal life, but one that
encompasses the total plan of God to redeem people from the ravages of sin, death,
Satan, and the curse that now covers the earth.
The world is blinded to the gospel by Satan who wants to keep people from seeing
the glorious nature of the gospel of Christ (2 Cor. 4:3-4), but the Christian
should never be ashamed of the gospel nor reticent to share it because the gospel
is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes for the righteousness
of God is revealed in the gospel (Rom. 1:16-17).
Furthermore, the gospel does not come simply in words. “For our gospel did not come
to you merely in words, but in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full
conviction (in much assurance) (1 Thess. 1:5).
Of course, the gospel is a message of words since words are basic to the
intelligent communication of God’s truth. As a message, the gospel is a witness to
the historical work of God in the person and work of Christ for which the right
words are crucial. However, this message is not merely a message of words. Words
can be very eloquent, persuasive, and entertaining and they may move people
emotionally and intellectually, but such can not save them and bring them into the
family of God (see 1 Cor. 2:1ff). Thus, the apostle added, the gospel came “also in
power.”
In contrast to mere words, the gospel came “with power.” Some would like to relate
this to miraculous works as authenticating signs, but normally, the plural,
“powers,” would be used if that were meant (see Matt. 13:54; 14:2; 1 Cor. 12:10;
Gal. 3:5; Heb. 2:4; 6:5). Others would relate it to the inward power in the
messengers as a result of the filling of the Spirit, but this important
characteristic is brought out by the next prepositional phrase mentioned in 1
Thessalonians 1:5, “with” or “by the Spirit.” Rather, could it not refer simply to
the inherent power of the gospel as the “Word of God which is alive and powerful”
(Heb. 4:12)? It is not just a message of words, but a message which is living,
active, powerful and able to bring people into a saving relationship with the
living God for one simple reason: It is God’s Word and it is truth. It is the true
revelation of God’s activity in Jesus Christ. See also the apostle’s comment in 1
Thessalonians 2:13.
But Paul quickly adds, “and in the Holy Spirit.” This takes us to the second of the
positive elements that gave these missionaries their boldness in presenting the
gospel. Paul and his associates knew they were indwelt by the Spirit as their
helper or enabler for ministry (John 14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7f; Acts 1:8). The Spirit
of God, as the third person of the Trinity, is called “the Spirit of Truth” because
of His role in taking the truth of the Word and revealing it to men (see John
14:17; 15;26; 16:8-13; 1 John 4:6; Acts 1:8; 1 Cor. 2:6-16). Because of the
blindness and hardness of men’s heart, they are powerless to even desire, much less
grasp the life-giving truth of the gospel (cf. Rom. 3:11), but by the powerful pre-
salvation ministry of the Spirit who led the missionaries (see Acts 16:6-10), who
prepares hearts (Acts 16:14), and who convicts and draws men to God (Rom. 2:4; John
12:32; 16:8f), some will listen, grasp, and believe the gospel and experience its
saving power (see also 2 Thess. 2:13).
Thus, the apostle added a third positive element concerning the gospel which they
brought to the Thessalonians—“and with full conviction.” This point us to the faith
and confidence of the missionaries. It was not in their looks, in their beaming
personalities, in their eloquence or oratorical skill, nor in their methodology
that they trusted. They preached the gospel with conviction resting in the fact
they were preaching the powerful, life-giving truth of God fortified by the
powerful ministry of the Spirit of God who worked both in the missionaries and in
their hearers.
May we realize with Paul that the gospel is a sacred trust (1 Tim. 1:11). Thus, may
we with the apostle be under divine compulsion to proclaim it (1 Cor. 9:16), and
seek the prayer of others that we may carry out the task of sharing the gospel with
boldness (Eph. 6:19). This will often involve us in opposition (1 Thess. 2:2) and
affliction (2 Tim. 1:8), but the gospel of salvation is “the word of truth” (Eph.
1:13).
