What is the Gospel?
The word “Gospel” comes from the Greek word εὐαγγέλιον, euangelion (eu- “good”, -angelion “message”). The first books of the New Testament in the Bible were written in Greek which was the common language in and around Jerusalem during the time of Jesus which was under the rule of the Roman Empire at the time. So “Gospel” means the good message or the good news. Most people refer to the first 4 books in the New Testament (the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) as the Gospel. These 4 books are all accounts of the life of Jesus. Most people fail to understand that the Gospel is not just the name of the first 4 books in the New Testament, but the Gospel is the “Good News” or the “Good Message” that is found in those books. What is this good news? Before we dive into what the Good news is we first must understand why we need this good news and why it’s so important. To understand we must start at the beginning.
Sin
In the beginning God created Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. God lived among them and they talked to God and God talked to them. They lived in fellowship with God. There was no sin, no sickness, and no death. There was freedom in the Garden. The Bible says “The man and his wife were both naked, and felt no shame.” They did not feel shame and did not know they were naked because they did not know what evil was. They were sinless.
God planted 2 trees in the Garden of Eden, the Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. God told them they could eat from any tree in the garden except from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil because if they do they would die. God loved Adam and Eve and because he loved them he wanted to give them free will. The free will to choose between good and evil. The freedom to choose God, not because they had to or because they had no other choice but because they wanted to.
Satan deceived Adam and Eve into desiring and eating from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. When they ate of the fruit, their eyes were open to sin, they saw their nakedness and shame came upon them. As a result of sin, sickness and death came to the lives of men. Since then, sin came into the world and men became a slave to sin. Men became a slave to addictions, immoralities, and sinful desires of the flesh. How many times have you tried to stop an addiction, tried to keep a diet, tried to manage your finances, tried not to lie, tried not to sin and you couldn’t. You keep coming back, you keep failing. Why? Because sin is in you and you are a slave to sin.
The 10 Commandments and the Law
During the time of Moses, God brought the Israelites out of slavery from the land of Egypt because of the covenants He made with the Israelites through Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. On Mount Saini, God gave Moses the 10 commandments and the laws to give to the people which include instructions to worship only God, to honor our parents, and to keep the Sabbath; as well as prohibitions against idolatry, blasphemy, murder, adultery, theft, dishonesty, and coveting. God told them that if they followed all these laws they would be blessed and if they disobeyed they would be cursed.
From that time until now men have tried to live up to the law on their own and keep coming up short. James 2:10 says “For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.”
Lets pretend that a technology company invented a helmet that, when you put it on your head, it downloads to your smartphone a video of all the thoughts and memories everything you’ve done ever since your were a child. You buy this helmet and use it. You decide to separate the bad thoughts and memories from the good ones and you put the bad ones on a file because your going to delete them from your phone later. Now lets imagine you are planning your next birthday party and you’ve decided to invite all your friends, family and coworkers. You send out an email invitation to everyone in the group. In the email you realize that you accidently sent the video file that you were going to delete!
How ashamed, embarrassed, afraid and humiliated would you be if your parents, family, and close friends saw that video of all the sins you committed or the evil thoughts you had since you were a child? What if they found out about all the evil and immoral things you have ever done when you were all alone and you thought no one was looking?
So why are you ashamed? Why are you embarrassed and humiliated? Do you feel like you offended these people? Do you feel like you hurt them or you let them down? Are you embarrassed that they see your true nature? Did they see you lie? If yes, that makes you are a liar. Did they see you steal something? If yes, that makes you a thief. Jesus says in Matthew 5:28 that if you look at a woman in lust then you are an adulterer in heart. Have you ever looked at a person in lust or looked at pornography? If yes, then you are an adulterer.
If it was your friend, son or daughter that saw the video they would probably just be disappointed in you. If it was your wife, she might divorce you. If it was your boss and he saw you steal something from work or lie about something at work, he might fire you. A police officer might arrest you and a judge can sentence you to prison. As you can see the higher the authority that the person has in your life, the more severe the punishment. The truth is that the highest authority is God and if you stand before him and you are guilty the punishment for sin is hell.
Many people do not understand the severity, seriousness and enormity of their sin because they have been sinning for so long that they have become numb to it. We live in a world where almost everyone is sinning and considers it normal life. You compare yourself to other people in the world and think you are not so bad because you see people doing the same or worse sins. When you compromise your way of thinking about your sins or try to justify it then you deceive yourself.
God’s holiness and divinity is beyond our comprehension. If you try to enter into His presence and you are not clean from sin you will know you are guilty and you will surely die. God already knows all of the things you have done. He knows all the things you have done when you thought you were all alone and thought no one was looking. He knows all the evil thoughts you ever had. You cannot hide from God. You’re already guilty.
When you die you will have to give an account not just for every sinful deed, but also for every sinful thought, every evil motive and intention. God is Holy, God is Righteous, God is just, God is unwavering, and God is Faithful (meaning He will keep his word). Because God is all these things then he will bring judgment and punishment for sin. God will judge and punish sin not because he doesn’t love you or because He is a mean God but because He is holy, righteous, faithful and just and we are evil and have sinned against him by breaking His law.
Leviticus 5:17 “If anyone sins and does what is forbidden in any of the Lord’s commands, even though they do not know it, they are guilty and will be held responsible. Romans 6:23 says “for the wages of sin is death”
The Good News !!
There is Good News. Jesus was born. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Jesus is the Son of God. He was born of a virgin and conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit. He lived among men healing the sick, casting out demons, doing good and preaching the Good News. What is the Good News? The Good News is that Jesus came to this world, lived a sinless life, and sacrificed His life to die for the sins of man. Jesus loved us so much that He sacrificed His life on the cross so that we can have the opportunity to be saved!
What are we saved from?
We are saved from sin. We no longer have to be a slave to sin. Because Jesus died on the cross for our sins and rose from the dead 3 days later he gave us the opportunity to have the same Holy Spirit that was living in him now is able to live in us. This is what is referred to as “The Kingdom of God” or “The Kingdom of Heaven”. We can now live by the same Spirit guiding us, the same Spirit teaching us and showing us right from wrong. We no longer have to lose our fight against our fleshly desires, addictions, and sins. By having the Holy Spirit living in us we now have dominion over sin. Sin no longer controls us. We are free. Free from sin, free from addictions, free from death so we can now have the chance to be with the Father and live eternal life in Heaven.
God spoke through the prophet Ezekiel regarding the releasing of God’s spirit in chapter 36:26-27, it says, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.”
The prophet Joel says in chapter 2:28-29, “And it shall come to pass afterward That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your old men shall dream dreams, Your young men shall see visions. And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days.”
This is the Gospel, this is the Good News, and this is what it means to be saved. Because of the love of God our father and the blood of His son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, you now have the opportunity to have the Holy Spirit live in you. By having the Holy Spirit living inside of you, teaching and guiding you every day. Then you will have dominion over sin, addictions, the flesh and death. Since you are no longer a slave to sin you now have an opportunity to be with the Father in Heaven.
Amen.
How can I be saved and receive the Holy Spirit?
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