WHAT IS THE GOSPEL?
This is the pertinent question is it not? What is the Gospel? Certainly, the Apostle Paul had the utmost importance of the Gospel when he said in Romans 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” So, if the gospel is the power of God for salvation, what is it? What is the substance and essence that makes up the definition of the “gospel?”
What is both convenient as well as relieving for us is that the apostle Paul gives us a definition of the “gospel” in his first letter to the Corinthians. He writes, “Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep.” (1 Cor 15:1-6).
Notice that Paul says that he is reminding the Corinthian believers of the gospel-- a gospel that he has already delivered to the believers by preaching and a gospel that they have already received. When we see that Paul says, “For I delivered to you,” we know that he is speaking of the same thing that he has preached, “the gospel.” Then, Paul gives the substance of what he had delivered- “Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.” Paul then says eyewitnesses can even testify to this fact, though, not all eyewitnesses because some have died (fallen asleep is the Christian colloquial phrase for death as we know that death will not have the last word as we see at the end of this very chapter).
We see from Scripture that the Gospel is the truth that Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again, all in accordance with the Scriptures. This is the definition of the Gospel, to deny any part of it is to not have the true gospel, and to add anything to it is to not have a true gospel.
What the Gospel Is Not
The Gospel is not something that you can live. Look again, what is the definition of the Gospel? Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again on the third day. None of this is something that anyone other than Christ Himself can do. We do not live the Gospel, we live in light of the Gospel.
The Gospel is not contradictory to works, but it is not your work. Again, looking at the definition, Christ did in fact work. The reason why Christ rose again is that His sacrificial death was accepted by the Father and this work is often called the Active Obedience of Christ. Thus, we can in fact say that we are saved by works--not by our works but the works of another.
The Gospel is not Jesus loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.
Without beating a dead horse, look at the definition again. Christ died for our sins and rose for our justification (Romans 4:25). The Gospel is not about us primarily, it is about Christ. We are simply the beneficiaries of the gospel truth. The idea that Christ has a wonderful plan for our life is not found in the Biblical definition of the Gospel. We see elsewhere in Scripture that sometimes the wicked actually prosper (Psalm 73), so we need to be mindful of how we define and present the Gospel so that it does not overpromise a happy life without suffering.
The Gospel is not about anything other than Christ’s person and Christ’s work.
Obviously this is correct, but I wanted to make it clear and a bit broader. The gospel is not about miracles, health, wealth, power, or works of confession/penance. The gospel is not about you, your friends, your family, or your church. Too often believers want to alter the gospel because friends or family do not believe it, or because we want to see something more tangible (i.e. money, success, miracles...etc.). The gospel was a tangible reality because Christ truly lived, died, was buried, and rose again. That is why Paul points to eyewitnesses. However, this is a reality that we rest in now. Although we do not see it, we rest in the historical truthfulness of it. We cannot alter it by adding various works nor can we alter it by making it about ourselves.
How Important Is It Really?
These points should help us focus on what the Biblical definition ought to be. Certainly, there are doctrines that are important but not foundational. However, the gospel is the foundational issue. Paul the Apostle says that to have “another gospel” is to be accursed, outside of the faith, and condemned (Gal 1:6-9) It is therefore absolutely vital to have the correct definition of the Gospel. To believe another gospel means that we are accursed and outside of Christ. Let us continue to understand and pursue the biblical gospel, the gospel which saves sinners through faith in the work of Christ alone.
