What is the Gospel?

"For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures" - 1 Corinthians 15:3

The relentless fight that God calls us to is to remember the gospel. This is central. Strategies and tactics are great, but without the gospel we are toast. It is not primarily a fight against our sin, or to strive for holiness, but FIRST a relentless fight to REMEMBER the gospel, that Christ has already won the fight FOR US.

But what IS the gospel? What exactly is it that we are remembering? One pastor commented that the gospel is the great jewel of the Christian faith, and like every jewel it has many sides. There are many posts that could be done on each of these beautiful facets but let us focus in this post on the CORE of the gospel.

First, the word "Gospel" comes from the Greek word εὐαγγέλιον and means good news. The gospel is not good advice. It's not a bad announcement. It is the very good NEWS of what Christ has accomplished for us. And it is remarkably GOOD news!

Consider Paul's words in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4,
1 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, 2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,

Paul had already preached the gospel to those in Corinth, that is what birthed the church. Now he is writing a letter to REMIND them of that gospel again. They had received it, they are standing in it, and are being saved by it. BUT! He gives a call to hold fast this word of the gospel, and not to believe in vain. Our great danger is to give up, forget, and relinquish the gospel. It is so easy to replace it with our own efforts, or religious ritual, or worldly substitutes. The gospel should be the most obvious thing in the mind of a Christian, and yet Paul sees the need to restate the obvious. He goes on to state in verse 3 that the gospel is of FIRST importance. It is primary, central, #1, and nonnegotiable. 

Let's focus in and unpack the 5 words that Paul uses to summarize the gospel in verse 3, "Christ died for our sins". These are the most amazing 5 words in the world! 

• Christ: The man who died is Christ, the Messiah, the incarnate Word of God. The second person of the Trinity, the One who commands the dead to be alive, who walks on water, and tells the wind to stop. This is Jesus of Nazareth. 
• Died: This One, He died. Though He was innocent and undeserving of death, He was stripped naked, nailed to a Roman cross, and publicly executed as a common criminal. He was buried in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea. 
• For: This death was FOR something. It was not in a vacuum. It had purpose, meaning, it was intentional. It was the means to something better, something outside of just the event. This death accomplished something.
• Our: Christ did not die for His sins, because He had no sin. Rather, He died for the sins of those who have trusted in Him. The sins are OUR sins, the ones that we have done. This is where things get so magnificent. Christ didn't have to die for His sins, and at the same time we should have died for our sins. And yet there's this incredible exchange.
• Sins: The reason why Christ had to die was for our SINS. We have all transgressed and broken God's law. We have rebelled against His authority. We are corrupt, wicked, evil, and oppose God in His righteousness. This is what Christ died for. We deserved death, but Christ was the one who took this death upon Himself, in our place, FOR OUR SINS. 

Notice additionally that in verse 4 Christ was buried after death and RAISED back to life. The resurrection proves that God the Father was pleased with Christ's sacrifice on our behalf, and that He accomplished His mission! Paul also states in v3 and v4 that Christ's death and resurrection was "in accordance with the Scriptures", showing that God had predicted and planned from hundreds of years ago, recorded in the Old Testament, His plan of salvation through the death of Christ.

So this is the gospel: Christ died for our sins. Theologians call this "substitutionary atonement", meaning that Christ died in our place as our substitute, and that our sins were atoned for (paid for) by His death, satisfying the wrath of God. Therefore we are forgiven by God. This is the CORE of the gospel. But certainly there are many more facets and implications of the gospel! Here are just a few additional ways to describe the gospel, its implications, and some verses that explain the gospel:

• The 3 Circles Presentation: Watch this video that teaches about God's good design, how we have lost that in our broken world, and how the gospel restores us back to God's design. 
• Falling Plates: Watch this video about how God created you, loves you, and wants to rescue you through Jesus. 
• You are a New Creation: For those in Christ, they become completely new. They are brought back to life and walk according to the Spirit. Check out this blog post for more. 
• Jesus Heals our Shame: Jesus not only forgives our guilt, but He cleanses us of our shame. The shame of sins we have done, and the shame of sins done against us. Check out this blog post for more.
• Romans 4:5, And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness
• John 3:16, For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
• 2 Corinthians 5:21, For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
• Titus 3:3-7, For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. 4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

Yes! It is so good to hear the gospel. But we must do more than merely hear it. We must move beyond merely understanding it. Believe the gospel. Rejoice in the gospel! Remember the gospel. Share the gospel. Live out the implications of the gospel. Give thanks for the gospel. It is the most precious good news in history, and we give great praise to our Savior for His effective rescue, motivated by His great love for us. Thank you Jesus. 

Remember the gospel! 

The Relentless Fight

PS: For more on this, check out the great book by the same title, "What is the Gospel?" by Greg Gilbert.