The hope laid up for you in heaven which you heard in the word of truth, the gospel.
Colossians 1:5
The Gospel! The “good news” of Jesus Christ. The message of the church. The gospel represents the salvation God has brought through Jesus Christ. One of the most quoted verses of the Bible that demonstrates the Gospel message, John 3:16, offers a precise and fundamental summary of the “good news”:
“for God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.”
And I find difficultly in quoting this verse without the next:
“for God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved” (John 3:17).
This one reference from the Bible proves that the gospel – the story of God sending Jesus to this world, is indeed the ultimate truth, the most significant proclamation, and the summary of the whole counsel of God’s Word.
The term gospel was not necessarily a theological term from the beginning, nor a term exclusively used in the Bible. The term from ancient origin simply means “a good announcement.” But the announcement of the story of Jesus has offered the greatest news ever, and thus there is now no other gospel (announcement) that can compare nor even come close to the announcement of man’s salvation in Jesus.
This word gospel (the Greek: euangelion) appears over 70 times in the New Testament. In many references of the Scriptures, the Gospel offers an encompassing perspective of God’s salvation through Jesus, signifying all aspects of salvation announced to all people. In the apocalyptic imagery of Revelation 14, John saw “another angel flying directly overhead with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on the earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people” (Revelation 14:6-7). The gospel can also express an encompassing summary of Jesus’ life and ministry. In Mark 1:1, the gospel writer introduces the story of Jesus with, “the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” In this reference, the gospel demonstrates specific teachings and works of Jesus that ultimately point to the salvation God has provided through the Son. These are examples of the larger perspective of the Gospel. Yet, the one message stands clearly proclaimed: God’s salvation through Jesus.
Along with the larger perspective of the Gospel comes a narrower application – the specific and personal impact of God’s justification. Paul wrote a genuinely personal summary of this impact of the gospel (I Timothy 1:15): “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance, Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the worst.” In the second letter to Timothy, Paul continued this personal transparency (2 Timothy 1:8-9, NIV):
So, do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner. Rather, join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God. He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given to us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time.
John Calvin reflected on this very personal impact of the Gospel when he wrote, “the Gospel requires only that men should bring faith in order to receive the grace of God.”
From this emphasis of the personal application of the Gospel comes a needed message for the moment. The gospel is indeed A Gospel of Hope. And as proven in every reference of the term Gospel in the Holy Scriptures, the message of the Gospel proclaims what God has done in Christ. What God has done! This is not of ourselves, nor of the law, nor of our good deeds or accomplishments, nor of our seemingly stellar reputations. This is of God and God alone. And this is the Gospel of hope! We have but one hope – Christ in you, the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27).
The Colossian congregation received a letter from the Apostle Paul wherein he acknowledged in the opening of his correspondence, “we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven which you heard in the word of truth, the gospel.” As evidenced in the history of the first century church, the gospel teaches the hope we have in Christ – a hope that significantly encourages faithfulness in the people of God.
So, how should the gospel affect the follower of Jesus every day? How does the Gospel of Jesus affect you at this very moment? Tim Keller, beloved pastor, author, and theologian, observed,
“Here’s the gospel: you’re more sinful than you ever dared believe; you’re more loved than you ever dared hope.”[1]
These two truths of the Gospel should indeed affect how we live every single moment as people of the Good News of Jesus Christ. We were once lifeless on the inside, without hope in this world. But God’s love broke through, and redeemed us when we could not save ourselves, even on our best days. And, in His love he demonstrated for us as sinners the free gift of salvation. In the glorious salvation made possible only through Jesus, God has relentlessly offered us the journey of sanctification that we might through His Holy Spirit in us live out the hope of our salvation.
This is the gospel, and this is what it means to be a “gospel people.”
So, how do you see yourself? Your life? I pray that you view yourself as a personal representation of the very Gospel that is spreading throughout the globe at this very moment. The Gospel of Jesus. The story of our salvation. The greatest message ever. The Good News. This is Jesus. This is His church. This is who you are as a Christian. Let’s go and live. And live to tell – the Gospel!
Blessings.
READ
Read Colossians 1:1-29 and be encouraged as a “people of the Gospel.”
[1] (Tim Keller, in the sermon Treasure Versus Money, PreachingToday.com)
