ESSENTIALS: The Gospel and its evidences.
I come across this question a lot. There are friends of mine who are unbelievers who ask this question and surprisingly, there are those who are already Christians that ask me this question as well: "What's the Gospel?” Its simple isn't it? We would give a cliff-note answer with a 5-line prayer. Except it just doesn't work as well as we think.
We are living in a post-modern era where a cliff-note answer or salvation prayer does not do an effectual work of the saving power of Christ in the individual. There needs to be dialogue and reasoning. But ultimately it is the love of Christ working in us, through the Spirit, mixed with our pestering prayers that leads them to repentance and life. Please note: I am not saying that it is methods that save a person because that is not true. However, the more information - that is Scripture saturated information - people have, the better they can weigh their current "truths" in light of the truths presented. David says in Psalm 119:130, "The entrance of your words gives light. It gives understanding to the simple." I noticed that people are just not interested in the gospel if you can't explain to them why you believe what you believe and why they do need a Savior. I grew up in a Christian home where Christ was preached all the time and yet I struggled to understand and explain what the Gospel was. It was not until I was challenged by my non-Christian friends about what I believed that I started becoming more aware of how uninformed I was. Please understand…people don’t just need information. They need something they can hold on to, something tangible, something to cling to, and something that is far better, precious, and beautiful than all the vain treasures they hold on to. Some of the questions I get asked is, “Why Jesus”? And some will say, “Sure I’ll take Jesus!” but holding on to all their other idols, thus proving that they haven’t found Christ as their greatest treasure. In the world we live in today, Jesus is just one of a thousand “menu” items. In a world of social media, endless entertainment, and sex-on-demand culture, there is a plethora of options. So why Jesus? This is a struggle even for the “Christian” person these days. They say they love Jesus but desiring God supremely and meditating on Scriptures feels like Doomsday to them! Why pray and read, when I have 10 seasons of a series that I haven’t watched yet on Netflix. And then when I am bored, Facebook never fails me with their ever-updating newsfeed, and then the twitterfeed, and all the hundreds of ‘feeds’ that are feeding me empty satisfaction and a joy that’s a means to an end. In today’s social media, everyone’s got multiple identities so that we can finally find some self-worth we couldn’t find in the real world. When I am bored with the feeds, I can hop into my car, go to one of my favorite restaurants and eat that meal that’ll make me happy. I can then call one of my buddies, go grab a beer, and let the world spin. The non-Christian would then say that they can hook up with a girl and have sex that night and that'll fulfill their joy. Some with families would say that they don’t have a rocky marriage…they’re happy! So why Jesus!?? “What about Jesus is going to make my life better? I am already having a blast!”
My goal here is not to answer or resolve the above problems but to point to why a proper understanding of the Gospel in light of the above context will certainly help your endeavors in personal evangelism. It'll also help the Christian do some self-inquiry if there are evidences of Christ's saving work in them. For the Christian, not all of the above stuff is wrong as I am guilty of a few of them. However, we must always keep watch the barometer of our faith, to see if we are where we’re supposed to be. If we're not, there needs to be soul-searching. The Spirit of our Lord Jesus Christ must testify with our Spirit about who we are, whose we are, and how we are to live life in view of the Gospel. We should encourage our fellow family in Christ to be equipped with the narrative of the Gospel as it will prove useful. Here’s how I make sense of the narrative of the Gospel and I would love to hear your narratives.
The Gospel is good news. The good news is Jesus Christ. We are a people who were marked for destruction and hell because of what Adam and Eve did that day in the garden of Eden.(Gen:3:6,7) They disobeyed the Lord and believed the lie that the serpent so deceivingly presented. Since then, the bridge between man and God was broken down. The faculty of our will and mind were fractured and darkened. Our hearts were dead and unable to wage war against the sinful nature that dominated our every being. Into our lives came the devastating effects of mortality through sickness, suffering, death, and eternal damnation.
For years, mediums such as high priests and sacrifices were established by God to keep a limited dimension of communication with His remnant. The people that God had separated for Himself, could not live up to the standards of His righteousness. They constantly failed and rebelled against God. Prophets were anointed by the Lord to call the people of God back to repentance because of the condemnation they had stacked up for themselves. It is important to note that the fact God still had a remnant, established the law, created a sacrificial system, and called upon prophets, were all signs of God’s everlasting mercy. And in His great mercy, God was carrying out a plan which was conveyed piece by piece to His people, from Abraham to the prophets. This plan would bring salvation to the corners of the world. This plan would allow for God’s word to be written on our hearts. This plan would establish a kingdom that will last forever. However, this plan would not come without a great cost to God, the Father because it would mean sending His only Son, Jesus to this broken world of ours to be broken for us.
So it happened as it was said by the prophets. The Messiah was born to be our Emmanuel. He was born a man, yet also fully God. He was tempted but without sin and lived a life without blemish, which was meritorious for His journey to the cross. He was a “man of sorrows”, broken and despised by the world as He bore the weight of all our sins and condemnation. “He was bruised for our transgression; He was crushed for our iniquities…yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him…” (Isaiah 53:3-10) In this horrific act towards our Lord Jesus Christ, He took on our punishment as He imputed to us His righteousness. He loved us while we were enemies with Him, as we nailed Him to a cross to die the death that we deserved. This plan of mercy and grace, which was initially filled with grief, bought our redemption and salvation. He became the second Adam, who obeyed His Father, reversing the chaos laid by the hands of the first Adam.
For those of us who are awakened to this reality can now put their trust in Jesus and what He accomplished on the cross. The bridge that was broken between us and God is now repaired, reconciling us to the Father, who is always for His children. As He rose from the dead three days later, He is now alive to us. He put a new spirit in us, awakened our dead hearts, and gave us a new faculty that is of His will and His mind. Now, our new Spirit-filled nature dominates our every being, waging war against the weakened carnal nature that has no power over the new man. The Word is not just on tablets but in our hearts, which is at work in us “to will and to act in order to fulfill His good purpose.”(Phil 2:13) We are no longer in bondage to the sin that destroyed us, but controlled by the Spirit, enabling a true freedom to sin no more. In Jesus, we can now know God. And not in a way that Abraham, Moses, or David did but in a better way! Hebrews 11:40 says that, “God had provided something better for us.” This “something better” is Jesus and the promise we have in Him. This is the good news! This is the gospel!
I remember the first time I was able to talk this out with myself. The Holy Spirit used the Gospel, enveloped by His Word to soften my heart. I need to tell myself of this Gospel as it helps me walk head-on strong with whatever trials or temptations that may befall me on that day. A proper understanding of the Gospel warns me of the false realities around me and encourages me to trust God’s timeless truths.
The evidence that a person is filled with the truths of the Gospel and that they really are Christians will display: - a complete dependence on the joy and satisfaction that Christ gives. - Affections that magnify Christ highly that the things of this world grow dim - a trust in His sovereignty and glory over my sovereignty and glory. - a peaceful rest in what Christ says about my worth and who I am. Not looking to what others say or what worth we think social media provides.
Do you see some of these evidences in your walk with Christ? Are you resting in the Gospel and what it means for us? Do you really believe that his joy is better?
Are you bored, weary, and downcast? David says, “My soul is weary with sorrow: strengthen me according to your word.” Are you tired of lying and living a lie? David says, “Keep me from the way of deceit. Grant me your law graciously! I have chosen the way of truth. I have set your ordinances before me.” Where is your ultimate delight? David says, “I will delight myself in your commandments, because I love them.” Do you rejoice more in what God has given you materialistically? David boasts, “I have rejoiced in the way of your testimonies, as much as in all riches.”
Press in to the Lord and see if these evidences exist.
I’ll leave with some more words of David in Psa.119: “I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you;” “… “…I will delight myself in your statutes. I will not forget your word.” “…I will delight myself in your commandments, because I love them.” “…You are good, and do good. Teach me your statutes.”