The Gospel
Literally “Gospel” “εὐαγγέλιον” (euaggélion) in Greek and “בְּשֹׂרָה” (bsora) in Hebrew means : ”good news” and corresponding verbs mean “to bring good news”. At its core, the Gospel proclaims the redemptive work of Jesus Christ. It embodies the belief that humanity, burdened by sin, can find forgiveness, reconciliation, and eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ. This central message resonates across the entire biblical narrative, from Genesis to Revelation.
The Gospel Message
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Humanity's Condition: The Bible teaches that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). Sin separates humanity from God, leading to spiritual death and condemnation (Romans 6:23).
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God's Solution: Despite humanity's rebellion, God, in His love and mercy, provided a way of reconciliation through His Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus, fully divine and fully human, who lived a sinless life, died on the cross as a substitutionary atonement for sin, and rose from the dead, defeating sin and death (1 Corinthians 15:3-4).
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Response of Faith: Salvation is received through faith in Jesus Christ. By acknowledging Jesus as Lord and Savior, repenting of sin, and trusting in His finished work on the cross, individuals can experience forgiveness, justification, and new life (Ephesians 2:8-9).
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Implications of the Gospel: The Gospel not only promises eternal life but also transforms lives in the present. Believers are called to love God and others, pursue holiness, and participate in God's mission of reconciling the world to Himself (2 Corinthians 5:17-20).
Gospel in the Old Testament
Although the term "gospel" is predominantly associated with the New Testament, its roots can be traced back to the Old Testament. Throughout the Hebrew Scriptures, various prophecies, types, and symbols prefigure the coming of the Messiah and the salvation He would bring. For instance, Isaiah's prophecies of a suffering servant (Isaiah 53) and the promises to Abraham (Genesis 12:3) anticipate the fulfillment of God's plan of redemption through Jesus Christ.
We can find direct key prophecy of the Gospel in Isaiah Isaiah 61:1-3. It is the passage that Jesus started his ministry with in Luke 4:18. The word “anointed” in this verse comes from the Hebrew word "מָשַׁח" (mashach) which is the root of the word "מָשִׁיחַ" (mashiach) meaning “messiah” or “christ”. This passage gives us the summary of Messiah’s ministry, so we can see how the good news are about the Messiah.
The Spirit of the Lord Yahweh is on Me, because Yahweh has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners, to proclaim the year of Yahweh’s favor and the day of our God’s vengeance, to comfort all who mourn, to console the mourners in Zion—to give them a crown of beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, and a garment of praise for a spirit of despair. So they will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of Yahweh, that He may be glorified.
Go up on a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news. Raise your voice loudly, O Jerusalem, herald of good news. Lift it up, do not be afraid! Say to the cities of Judah, "Here is your God!"
How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, "Your God reigns!"
Below are the key points of the good news in the book of Isaiah:
Messiah will be anointed to:
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bring the good news to the poor
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heal the brokenhearted
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proclaim liberty to the captives
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proclaim the year of Yahweh’s favor
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proclaim the day of God’s vengeance
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comfort all who mourn
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bring in righteousness, peace and salvation
Gospel in the New Testament
The New Testament opens with four accounts of the life, teachings, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, commonly known as the Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Each Gospel writer presents a unique perspective on Jesus' ministry while harmonizing on the central message of salvation.
Good News in the Gospels
In the book of John we can clearly see that the essence of the Gospel is the promise of eternal life:
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life. Whoever rejects the Son will not see life. Instead, the wrath of God remains on him."
For it is My Father's will that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day."
Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me will live, even though he dies.
Other apostles add some context to this:
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gospel is about God’s kingdom
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gospel comes with healing
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gospel will be preached to all before the end
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gospel comes through straight path (repentance)
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gospel requires sacrifice which God rewards in this life
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gospel is about repentance and forgiveness of sins
Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.
And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, Son of God. As it is written in Isaiah the prophet: “Behold, I will send My messenger ahead of You, who will prepare Your way.” “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for Him.’ ”
After the arrest of John, Jesus went into Galilee and proclaimed the gospel of God. “The time is fulfilled,” He said, “and the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe in the gospel!”
Then Jesus called the crowd to Him along with His disciples, and He told them, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and for the gospel will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and to lose his soul?
Jesus was saying, "Truly I say to you, there is no one who has left house, or brothers, or sisters, or mother, or father, or children, or lands for My sake and because of the gospel, who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time--houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions--and in the age which is coming, eternal life.
And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
…in His name repentance and forgiveness of sins will be proclaimed to all nations, beginning in Jerusalem.
Gospel in the Book of Acts and Epistles
The rest of the books give us a few more points:
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gospel is God’s grace
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gospel is the power of God for salvation
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not obeying the gospel leads to eternal destruction
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through believing the gospel we are sealed by the Holy Spirit
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we are called to suffer for the gospel
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gospel is eternal
But I make my life neither dear nor any account to myself, so as to finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus: to testify fully the gospel of the grace of God…
I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, then to the Greek. For the gospel reveals the righteousness of God that comes by faith from start to finish, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”
And in Him, having heard and believed the word of truth—the gospel of your salvation—you were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the pledge of our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession, to the praise of His glory.
5 All this is clear evidence of God’s righteous judgment. And so you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. 6 After all, it is only right for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, 7 and to grant relief to you who are oppressed and to us as well. This will take place when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels 8 in blazing fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9 They will suffer the penalty of eternal destruction, separated from the presence of the Lord and the glory of His might, 10 on the day He comes to be glorified in His saints and regarded with wonder by all who have believed, including you who have believed our testimony.
So do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, or of me, His prisoner. Instead, join me in suffering for the gospel by the power of God. He has saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works, but by His own purpose and by the grace He granted us in Christ Jesus before time began.
Then I saw another angel flying overhead, with the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on the earth—to every nation and tribe and tongue and people. And he said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come. Worship the One who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and the springs of waters.”
Sharing the Gospel
Understanding how to share the Gospel in line with biblical principles, is essential for believers. It begins with understanding the message of salvation, relying on the Holy Spirit for guidance, building genuine relationships, sharing your testimony, using Scripture, speaking with love and wisdom.
Understanding the Gospel
Below are samples of the Gospel in the scriptures:
1 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of Yahweh revealed? 2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. 3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and Yahweh hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. 7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth. 8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. 9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. 10 Yet it pleased Yahweh to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of Yahweh shall prosper in his hand. 11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. 12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
34 Then Peter began to speak: “I now truly understand that God does not show favoritism, 35 but welcomes those from every nation who fear Him and do what is right. 36 He has sent this message to the people of Israel, proclaiming the gospel of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. 37 You yourselves know what has happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee with the baptism that John proclaimed: 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, because God was with Him. 39 We are witnesses of all that He did, both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem. And although they put Him to death by hanging Him on a tree, 40 God raised Him up on the third day and caused Him to be seen— 41 not by all the people, but by the witnesses God had chosen beforehand, by us who ate and drank with Him after He rose from the dead. 42 And He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that He is the One appointed by God to judge the living and the dead. 43 All the prophets testify about Him that everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins through His name.”
9…Jews and Greeks alike are all under sin. 10 As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one. 11 There is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. 12 All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.” 13 “Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.” “The venom of vipers is on their lips.” 14 “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.” 15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood; 16 ruin and misery lie in their wake, 17 and the way of peace they have not known.” 18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.” 19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. 20 Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin. 21 But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22 This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25 God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— 26 he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.
1 Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, and in which you stand firm. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. 3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that He appeared to Cephasa and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, He appeared to more than five hundred brothers at once, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 And last of all He appeared to me also, as to one of untimely birth.
Using Wisdom in Sharing the Gospel
So, who do we go to and what do we say to them? Notice that Jesus came to bring the good news to the broken people and to rebuke the proud ones, so we can use it as an example for us:
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
24 But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort. 25 Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will hunger. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep. 26 Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers treated the false prophets in the same way.
Relying on the Holy Spirit
How much depends on what we do and what part does God play in one’s salvation? We are commanded to preach the gospel, make disciples, teach obedience to God’s commands and to baptize, this is our part:
15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: In My name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up snakes with their hands, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not harm them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will be made well.”
18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Here is where God comes in and we can see that to be able to preach the Gospel you have to be called by God:
12 For there is no difference between Jew and Greek: The same Lord is Lord of all, and gives richly to all who call on Him, 13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” 14 How then can they call on the One in whom they have not believed? And how can they believe in the One of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone to preach? 15 And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”
But ultimately it is God who does the work:
And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall loose none of those He has given Me, but raise them up at the last day.
“No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.
“The One who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed represents the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. 40 As the weeds are collected and burned in the fire, so will it be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will weed out of His kingdom every cause of sin and all who practice lawlessness. 42 And they will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.
We can conclude that the gospel may be difficult to define since it’s not just one thing, it is the story of God’s redemption starting in the book of Genesis and ending in the book of Revelation, but at the core of the Gospel is life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and it’s effect on all creation.