Ken Jones ~Ligonier Ministries
The gospel is the good news that God sent His Son into the world. In His life, God’s Son met all the requirements of God’s Holy Law. In His death, Jesus has fully satisfied the demands of justice, and the wrath of God which was poured out on Him. In His resurrection, and in His ascension, Christ has right standing and full fellowship before God for undeserving, wretched, rebellious sinnerS.
Voddie Baucham ~American Reformed Baptist Pastor, Author, Educator
The gospel is “good news.” The good news is that fallen man, who is an enemy of God, has an Advocate with God. The good news is that God sent His Son to die in the place of sinners so that God might be both just in punishing sin, and the justifier who saves those who place their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. The good news is that sin has been dealt with on the cross. The good news is that we have hope of eternal life because of Christ who has died for sin and raised again on the third day. That is the gospel. The gospel is only good news when we recognize the bad news that we are sinners separated from God because of our sins.
C. H. Spurgeon ~English Baptist Pastor
The heart of the Gospel is redemption, and the essence of redemption is the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ. They who preach this truth preach the Gospel in whatever else they may be mistaken; but they who preach not the atonement, whatever else they declare, have missed the soul and substance of the divine message.
Consider
Initially, the gospel or good message preached by Jesus was that God’s kingdom had entered into the world (Matt. 4:23). Individuals were commanded to repent, believe that good news, and live a righteous life (Mark 1:15). Following the resurrection of Jesus, the gospel was presented in salvific terms. Paul told the Church at Rome that he was not “ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:16). Writing to Corinthians, Paul declared the gospel to be the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ (1 Cor. 15:1-4).
John Piper ~Desiring God Ministries
The gospel is the good news that God sent His into the world, the “God-Man”, really man, really God, really human, really divine, lives a perfect life, fulfills the whole Law, dies in the place of sinners intentionally, absorbs all the wrath of God against those who believe in Him, takes away all their guilt, forgives all their sins, rises from the dead, triumphant over death and hell and Satan,
ascends, rules with power from high, will come again, give eternal life, raise from the dead, gives eternal life, raise from the dead all those who have trusted in Him. There is no better news.
R. C. Sproul ~St. Andrews Church
“What is this gospel that was so important, so vital, and so controversial in the 16th century? Let me begin by saying what the gospel is not.”
The gospel is not our personal testimonies. Our personal testimonies may be interesting to some and used of God to introduce a conversation about Christ, but our personal religious experience is not the gospel.
The gospel is not a method of evangelism. As helpful as the Roman’s Road may be, as useful as Evangelism Explosion has been in starting a religious dialogue, care must be taken not to equate a methodology with the gospel. Many people have walked forward at a crusade, responded to an altar call, or repeated a “Sinner’s Prayer” without being converted or understanding the gospel. Music, emotion, atmosphere, psychological pressure, and manipulative techniques can produce a desired response, but that does not mean the gospel has been delivered.
The gospel is not a series of questions. Diagnostic questions – “Have you come to the place in your thinking where you know for sure when you die, you are going to heaven?” or, “If you were to die, and Jesus were to ask you why He should let you into heaven, what would you say?” or, “Have you been born again?” are not the gospel. To ask a question is not the same as preaching Christ crucified, buried, resurrected, and ascended into heaven.
The gospel is not a motivational statement to enhance a person’s self-esteem. It is not uncommon for people to share the idea that God loves them and has a wonderful plan for their life. That may be true, or, it may be untrue because God hates the wicked and plans to send them to hell for rejecting the gospel. The reprobate will not find the plan of God so great.
What is the gospel can be found on the pages of sacred Scripture.
There are two distinct objective aspects about the gospel. There is an objective facet to the gospel, and there is a subjective facet to the gospel.
First, the objective aspect of the gospel is simply this, it is Jesus as He is presented in Scripture.
The Bible says that Jesus was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, and died a substitutionary death at Calvary.
The Bible says that Jesus rose from the dead, and ascended to heaven to sit at the right hand of the Father.
The Bible says that Jesus is the Son of God, and very God of very God.
The Bible says that Jesus and the Father are one in essence, a view which moved the Pharisees to charge Him with blasphemy and pick up stones to kill Him. “At this they picked up stone to throw at Him” (John 8:59).
The Bible says this same Jesus shall one day return to earth the second time for all who believe (Heb. 9:28). To tell others about Jesus is to tell them good news. Jesus is not a product of religious mythology. Jesus is Immanuel, God with us.
Second, as there is an objective aspect of the gospel, there is a subjective appropriation of the gospel, which was the focus of the controversy during the Reformation of the 16th century. The controversy centered on this question. “How does the life of Christ, how is the work of Christ and its benefits appropriated to us?”
Catholic theologians answered this question by teaching that the benefits of Christ’s life are appropriated through Seven Sacraments administered by the Church. These Sacraments are:
- Baptism: Initiates a person into the Christian faith.
- Confirmation: Strengthens the grace received at baptism.
- Eucharist: Celebrates the body and blood of Christ.
- Penance (Reconciliation): Offers forgiveness of sins.
- Anointing of the Sick: Provides healing and comfort to the ill.
- Holy Orders: Confers the authority to serve in the Church.
- Matrimony: Sanctifies the union of a husband and wife.
To substantiate their position, and place it in an epistemology or world view, an appeal was made within Catholicism to the Greek philosopher, Aristotle (b. 384 BC – d. 322 BC, age 61 or 62). Of special interest to Aristotle was the question, “What is motion?”
Aristotle noticed that everything in the world was subject to change, mutation. The Second Law of Thermodynamics supports this observation for the Law of Entropy notes that everything goes from order to disorder. Aristotle rightly concluded that change itself was motion, and, there was a cause for motion. In fact, there are several different causes for motion.
To simplify and make the different causes for motion understandable, Aristotle used the illustration of a statue. A question was postulated. “How does a statue come into being?” A statue is something that results from tremendous change from the original matter out of which the statue is made.
There is the material cause of a statue. Stone, clay, marble or some physical substance is needed to make a statue.
There is the efficient cause of a statue, which is the sculptor. The sculptor moves and forms the material, the matter, into a beautiful piece of work.
There is a sufficient cause in making a statue, which means there was the ability in someone to actually do the work and bring it to completion.
There is a formal cause in making a statue, which is the plan or blueprint on paper or in the mind of the sculptor. Later on Michelangelo created a series of unfinished statues which he called the Prisoners because he would take a block of marble, begin the form a statue and then leave it unfinished. Michelangelo believed he was simply releasing the form that was already in it.
There is the final cause, or the purpose for which these changes take place.
There is the instrumental cause for the statue, referring to the tools or the instruments essential to producing the statue.
Catholic theologians, influenced by Aristotle’s logic and language, concluded that in matters of a religious life, the instruments God uses in conveying the benefits of Christ to individuals are the sacraments.
Rome believed this answered the question, “What is the instrumental cause of our justification?”
Again, the answer is that the Sacraments are the instruments of justification, or being declared righteous in the sight of God.
Specifically, the sacrament of baptism (ex-opera operato, meaning by the “working of the works”) brought justification, as did the sacrament of penance, which was called “the second plank of justification.”
These two sacraments infuse grace to the soul to justify and to save. If a person did not commit a mortal sin they remained in a state of grace.
Mortal Sin was defined as sin so severe, so egregious, that it killed or destroyed the grace of justification in the sinner, so that the person who was baptized, if he died with unconfessed sin and without performing acts of penance, would not enter heaven.
Some Mortal Sins in Roman Catholicism
Idolatry and False Worship: Worshiping false gods or engaging in superstitious practices.
Blasphemy: Speaking disrespectfully about God or sacred things.
Murder: Taking an innocent life intentionally.
Adultery: Engaging in sexual relations outside of marriage.
Theft: Stealing or taking what does not belong to you.
Not attending Mass on Sundays: Failing to participate in the Eucharist without a valid reason.
The Sacrament of Penance in Roman Catholicism
Confession: This sacrament involves contrition, confessing sins to a priest, receiving absolution, and performing assigned penance.
Fasting: Fasting is a traditional form of penance, especially during Lent. It involves abstaining from certain foods or meals to foster spiritual discipline and reflection.
Works of Satisfaction: Almsgiving, giving to those in need is another form of penance. It expresses love for others and a commitment to social justice. The giving of alms paved the way for Indulgence which could be used to buy God’s grace and favor.
Prayer: Increased prayer, including reciting specific prayers or engaging in personal reflection, is encouraged.
Through the instrument of penance, grace and friendship with God is restored. Acts of penance allowed the congruous or renewed harmony with God to be enjoyed. Once more a person could be in a state of justification.
In contrast to Rome, Marth Luther, John Calvin, Ulrich Zwingli, and other Protestant theologians argued that the benefits of the life of Christ, His sinlessness, atonement, resurrection, and glorification are appropriate by faith alone. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Eph. 2:8-9). “The just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:17). Their ideas were systematized in the Five Sola’s of the Reformation:
Sola Scriptura: Scripture alone is the ultimate authority in matters of faith and practice.
Solus Christus: Christ alone is the mediator between God and humanity, and salvation is found only in Him.
Sola Fide: Justification is received through faith alone, not by works.
Sola Gratia: Salvation is by grace alone, a gift from God, not earned by human effort.
Soli Deo Gloria: All glory is to be given to God alone for salvation and all of life.
The Reformers clashed with Rome by insisting that the instrument of justification is not found in the sacraments but in faith. The grace of God is extended to those who are unworthy. “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8). Faith is the sole instrument by which people are justified in the sight of God. To say that a person is justified by faith is to say that the instrumental cause by which a person is saved is Christ. Christ is the meritorious cause of our salvation. That is the good news.
“Come, ye sinners, poor and needy,
weak and wounded, sick and sore;
Jesus ready stands to save you,
full of pity, love, and pow’r.Come, ye thirsty, come, and welcome,
God’s free bounty glorify;
true belief and true repentance,
every grace that brings you nigh.Let not conscience make you linger,
nor of fitness fondly dream;
all the fitness He requireth
is to feel your need of Him.Come, ye weary, heavy laden,
lost and ruined by the fall;
if you tarry till you’re better,
you will never come at all.Lo! th’incarnate God, ascended,
pleads the merit of His blood;
venture on Him, venture wholly;
let no other trust intrude.”~Joseh Hart
Stanford E. Murrell ~Redeeming Grace Ministries
Many years ago, a Welsh minister, beginning his sermon, leaned over the pulpit and spoke with a solemn air.
“Friends, I have a question to ask. I cannot answer it. You cannot answer it. If an angel from heaven were here, he could not answer it. If a devil from hell were here, he could not answer it. The question is this. ‘How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation.?’”
The answer is that we cannot escape divine judgment. It is a great salvation we are to proclaim to others.
This is the gospel that we must preach.”
Summary Themes of the Gospel
The gospel is the good news that a sinner can be saved from eternal punishment for sins committed and restored to fellowship with God.
The glorious gospel, or good news, brilliantly shines more against the black backdrop of sin.
Man is a sinner by nature and by choice.
Fellowship with God has been broken.
The wages of sin is death.
Despite sin, man can be reconciled to God.
God in love has given His only begotten Son to satisfy divine justice.
Christ is the Redeemer.
Christ died a subsidiary death.
Christ rose from among the dead to live forever more.
Christ ascended on high to function as Prophet, Priest, and King.
Christ gives eternal life to all who call on the name of the Lord for salvation and then lives as a disciple of Jesus.
Christ alone is the instrumental means by which we are saved.
The Collected Works of Stanford E. Murrell 