Described as “the gospel of God” in Romans, the message of the gospel begins with God. Elsewhere, it is named “the gospel of Christ”. He is the core of the good news because of who He is and what He has accomplished. We also read of “the gospel of peace” because sinful mankind can know peace with God through Jesus Christ our Lord. When we read about the gospel, we’re reading about the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ that is available to all.
The gospel begins with the character of God. His holiness and righteousness speak of His moral standard – absolute perfection. This means that He delights in that which is truly good, and is intolerant of anything that falls short of his moral glory. This was displayed in Genesis chapter 3 when Adam and Eve rebelled against God in an act of wilful disobedience. We learn this – all sin is against God. As a result, His divine justice and righteousness meant that mankind was separated from God, physically and spiritually. There was a great gulf fixed. A holy God could not dwell with sinful man. So Adam and Eve were cast out of the garden that God had made. Total separation from God was not the only outcome – there also came sin upon all and therefore death upon all.
Sin passed upon all men and death by sin. This means that mankind has inherited a corrupt core from Adam, a sinful nature that renders us spiritually dead before God and will eventually lead us all (after death) to hell and the lake of fire. The evidence of this sinful nature is seen in the sins that we all commit. From the smallest ‘white lie’ to murder, all sins are abhorant to God and worthy of condemnation. In the court of God, the conclusion of the sinfulness of man is clear. The whole world is guilty before God “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God”. The sinful nature that we have inherited from Adam, along with the sins we therefore commit mean that in the sight of God, we are sinners by nature and practice. In the court of God we are guilty, condemned already and utterly lacking righteousness. Every man, woman, boy and girl is in this desperate position before a holy and righteous God.
But God commendeth His love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. This is the wonderful and good news of the gospel! While being righteous and holy, God is love. He has made a public display of His love in sending his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to die for us on the cross – making a way for us to be saved from our sins. The Bible says The Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. The Bible also says Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. These verses clearly show the intention and action of God in response to the fall of mankind. While God could have consigned us all to hell in an instant, instead He has graciously provided a way of salvation through His Son – the Lord Jesus Christ. As a drowning child in their utterly helpless situation needs a willing and able lifeguard, we need a saviour. God has provided one! The Lord Jesus is the Saviour of sinners, but what did He actually do?
He shed his blood. While nailed to the cross, the Lord Jesus shed His blood. This is crucial because His blood served as the only payment to God that would legally and righteously pay the price for the sins that have been committed against God. The blood of Christ can have a cleansing effect on us. Our sins are likened to a deep crimson stain. The blood of Christ serves as a cleansing agent. Because the Lord Jesus shed His blood, we can have the price for our sins paid in full and the abundant stain of sins removed. Furthermore, we can be forensically declared righteous in God’s sight by His blood. Those that believe on the Lord Jesus for salvation are eternally forgiven. They have their guilt removed and are declared righteous by the Judge!
He died. While the blood of Christ deals with the crimes we’ve committed against God, His death deals with the core issue – who we are. We commit sins because we are sinners by nature. We need to have our sinful nature dealt with if we are to be truly freed from the power of sin and be reconciled to God. Because of the death of the Lord Jesus, we can be dead to sin and alive to God. Furthermore, the Lord Jesus offered Himself without spot to God. This means that He offered Himself as a perfect sacrifice to God. As a result, God’s righteous judgement toward sin was exhausted. God was satisfied with the perfect sacrifice of His Son. Only those that have put their trust in the Lord Jesus for salvation are freed from sin and have true peace with God.
Having shed His blood and died, He was buried and rose again from the dead! It is amazing to know that the only Saviour of sinners, isn’t dead but is alive today. Before His ascension, He was seen by over 500 people. He is alive and living in the power of an endless life. The resurrection of the Lord Jesus is absolutely pivotal to the gospel message. Since He lives forever, those that believe on Him for salvation are promised unequivocally eternal life by God. Believers have the earnest hope of seeing the Lord Jesus face to face. Having ascended, He is in the presence of His Father. We read in Hebrews these triumphant words. But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God. The Lord Jesus is victorious over sin and death! He is the only Saviour of sinners.
As sinners, there is nothing of worth that we can do to win God’s favour. Salvation is never earned. Consequently, good works, charitable giving, education, money, church-going, religion, being a good person and an upstanding citizen of noble repute – none of these things can save us. The Lord Jesus Himself put it simply: I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, No man cometh unto the Father but by Me. Our response should be simple: Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. You can know the joy of peace with God, a relationship with God and a future with God through simple faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation.
