The Gospel

The Good News

The word “gospel” literally means “good news". Specifically, the good news of Jesus Christ, the Savior who has come. Our need for a savior began when sin entered into the world through Adam and Eve.

The Problem of Sin

Adam and Eve committed the first sin against God when they ate the forbidden fruit, and all of humanity inherited the consequences: distance from God, toil, pain, death, and a fallen, sinful nature (Genesis 3).

Sin is failing to meet God’s standard, or breaking His law. Scripture declares, “All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). By breaking the law, we deserve punishment by the law, “for the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). 

Jesus Christ: The Answer to Sin

Life

Jesus was born of a virgin, with God as His Father and a woman as His mother, making Him fully God and fully man. For more, see God's Nature.

Jesus is God manifested in the flesh (1 Timothy 3:16). He is the exact representation of God’s person (Hebrews 1:3), the image of the invisible God made visible (Colossians 1:15), and in Him all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form (Colossians 2:9).

He was tempted just as any other human being, yet he did not sin. During His life, he taught, healed the sick, and performed many miracles wherever he went.

Death

Despite all the good Jesus did, he was accused of blasphemy by Jewish leaders and was put to death by crucifixion for truthfully claiming to be the messiah. However, this was all part of Jesus' divine mission. These are passages written 700-800 years before Jesus was born:

"...he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities...He was oppressed, and he was afflicted...he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter...his soul an offering for sin" (Isaiah 53:3-5,7,9-10)

"I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel...for they shall all know me...I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. " (Jeremiah 31:31-34)

Just as under Moses' law, animals had to be sacrificed to atone for sin, Jesus became the spotless Lamb of God, the once and for all offering for sin (1 Peter 1:19).

Resurection

Three days after His burial, Jesus rose from the dead and appeared to His disciples and over 500 others (1 Corinthians 15:6). His final commands were to make disciples and baptize believers:

“Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.” (Matthew 28:19)

Responding to the Gospel

Faith

Faith is trusting in God enough to act on what He has said. Scripture describes faith as more than intellectual belief; it is confidence in God that produces obedience. Faith begins by believing who God is, but it is carried out by how we live in response to His Word. Scripture tells us that faith and obedient action are inseparable:

• “He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (1 John 2:4).
• “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also” (James 2:26).

Faith is a living, active response to who God is and what He has spoken. True faith produces repentance, obedience, love for others, and a transformed life empowered by the Spirit. As scripture teaches, those who walk by faith bear fruit to joy, peace, patience, and eternal life (Galatians 5:22, Romans 6:22)

Baptism

Jesus declared that baptism is imperative to our salvation:

• "Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. " (John 3:5)
  
• "Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. " (Mark 16:16)
  

In Acts chapter 2, the Apostle Peter, whom Jesus gave the "keys of heaven" to, preached a message that would open the doors to all who would enter:

“Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.” (Acts 2:38)

For a more in-depth study on baptism, and explanations regarding other views on it, see our article titled Baptism.

Conclusion

Jesus suffered the most undeserving death on behalf of humanity so that we could be saved from our sin. Through faith in Him, we receive eternal salvation and reconciliation with God. 

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. " (John 3:16)

This is the good news of Jesus Christ. It's not just history, but an invitation to know God today.