The Gospel: Jesus Died and Rose from the Dead to Save Sinners

Overview

The heart of the apostolic message both to non-Christians and Christians was the gospel, which deserves our most careful attention and faithful proclamation. Put differently, it was central to both The Message: The Apostles’ Missionary Proclamation to Non-Christians and Sound Doctrine: The Teaching of the Church for Christians. The gospel must never be assumed, distorted, or compartmentalized. Without it, reconciliation with God is impossible, our faith is useless, and our hope of eternal life disappears (1 Cor. 15:13–19).

While we will explore the gospel in much more detail below (in five relatively distinct categories), we don’t want anyone to lose sight of the very heart of the gospel. In the words of the apostle Paul:

1 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you…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. (1 Cor. 15:1, 3–4)

The gospel is the good news that Jesus died and God the Father raised him from the dead to save sinners. The truth of the gospel, in Paul’s words, is “of first importance” (v. 3). If we miss this central piece of the Christian faith, we miss everything, and we have little to offer those to whom we minister. Why? Because Jesus’s death and resurrection created the only bridge to God the Father (Acts 2:23–24; Rom. 3:21–26; 4:25; 1 Pet. 1:18–20; 1 John 2:1–2)—a bridge we cross by turning from our sins and trusting in Jesus (Acts 3:19; 20:21; Gal. 2:16; Eph. 2:8-9). And, as we will see, the gospel is also the means by which Christians are transformed into the likeness of Jesus (Rom. 6:1–11; Gal. 2:20). So, for the rest of your life, commit yourself to being someone who cherishes, is transformed by, proclaims, explains, applies, and suffers for the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Detailed Explanation

The Gospel: From the Mind of God to Eternity with God

In Greek, the noun gospel means “good news,” while the verbal forms mean “to proclaim or herald good news.” While this brief document will focus on specific gospel words, we must always remember that the gospel is also a concept. For example, in Romans 4:25, we read that Jesus “was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.” Just because the word gospel does not appear in that verse, the concept of the gospel could not be more clear. We must constantly remind ourselves that the gospel is one of the most important and repeated truths in the Bible, whether the focus in a particular passage is on Jesus’s death, his resurrection, or both (Matt. 26:39; John 3:14; Acts 2:23–24, 32, 36; 3:13–15, 17, 26; 4:10, 19–20; 5:30, 32; 10:36, 39–41; 13:27–31; 17:31; Rom. 3:21–26; 4:25; 6:3–4; 1 Cor. 15:1–4; 1 Pet. 1:18–20; 1 John 2:1–2). For that reason, the gospel (both the word and the concept) should saturate our thinking and be one of the defining hallmarks of our ministries—to the extent that others notice our joyful and repetitive teaching about the gospel.

The gospel existed in God’s mind before he created the world. The book of Revelation teaches that Jesus is “the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world” (Rev. 13:8; see 1 Pet. 1:19–20). We know, at least implicitly, that Jesus’s resurrection was also in God’s eternal view, for God never intended to leave the slain Lamb, his Son, in the grave (Acts 2:27–32).

As we will see, most of the Bible’s gospel language is bound up with God’s saving activity on behalf of his people. Before the creation of the world, the gospel had obviously not been announced to humanity. But God unveiled the gospel in stages throughout human history.

By way of a metaphor, the gospel is a tower of light that pierces through the darkness of human sin and God’s judgment.[1] God the Father’s voice is the first one we hear: “I declare good news: I have intervened, I am intervening, and I will intervene to save my people!” For those with eyes to see and ears to hear, that is God’s sweeping summary of his gospel. But there are more details to come: from left to right in redemptive history, we see five shafts of light.

Shaft of Light #1: The Good News of God’s Salvation in the Old Testament

The Old Testament announced the salvation of God on behalf of his people (Isa. 40:9–11; 52:7–10 (see Rom. 10:15); 60:6; 61:1–3; Nah. 1:15; Gal. 3:8).[2] Isaiah proclaims, “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns”” (52:7). Here, Isaiah celebrates a herald of good news who announces God’s intervention to bring peace, happiness, salvation, and his reign to the center of his people. This announcement of God’s intervention to save is given glorious expression in Isaiah 52:13–53:12—one of the greatest atonement passages in the Old Testament. For example, in that passage we read:

“5 But he was pierced because of our rebellion, crushed because of our iniquities; punishment for our peace was on him, and we are healed by his wounds. 6 We all went astray like sheep; we all have turned to our own way; and the Lord has punished him for the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:5–6)

A glorious passage indeed, but one whose truth would not be clear until it was fulfilled in Jesus’s death on a cross (see Shaft of Light #3 below).

Shaft of Light #2: The Good News of Jesus’s Appearance—including His Arrival on Earth, His Inauguration of God’s Kingdom, and His Ministry before the Cross

As we look one shaft of light to the right, we see the good news of God’s saving intervention into the world in the person, words, and works of Jesus. He declared, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the gospel!” (Mark 1:15). These words marked the beginning of Jesus’s public ministry, well before his death and resurrection. Jesus called his listeners to believe the good news of God’s saving intervention—Jesus himself! More broadly, Jesus’s arrival, the approach of the kingdom of God, and Jesus’s ministry on earth were all good news for the world. When Jesus arrived on earth, God’s saving intervention on the plane of history escalated intensely; the light of the gospel got much brighter.

Shaft of Light #3: The Good News of Jesus’s Death and Resurrection

We arrive at the blazing center of the tower of light—the very heart of God’s intervention into the world to save. In the apostle Paul’s words:

“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.” (1 Cor. 15:1–4)

Jesus’s death and resurrection is essential to our understanding and faithful proclamation of the gospel. Now that Jesus has been exalted to God’s right hand and has sent the Holy Spirit into the world, any proclamation of “good news” that subtracts from or adds to the death and resurrection of Jesus is no gospel at all. Such false gospels merit eternal condemnation for all who preach and receive their distorted messages—sobering words from God that should drive us back to God’s Word to study the gospel with greater urgency and intensity (Gal. 1:8; 3:10). The stakes of correctly understanding and proclaiming the good news of Jesus’s death and resurrection could not be higher.

Shaft of Light #4: The Good News of Jesus’s Ascension and Reign at the Right Hand of God

The good news of Jesus’s death and resurrection (viewed together) flows seamlessly into his ascension and reign at the right hand of God. Each of those events are tightly connected in the unfolding plan of God. Jesus’s reign in heaven is good news for the people of God, not least of which because he is the head of the church; he is our Lord and Savior (Eph. 1:20–23; Col. 1:18). Jesus said, “This good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed in all the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” (Matt. 24:14). The good news of God’s saving intervention in and mediatorial reign through Christ—a reign inaugurated through Jesus’s death and resurrection—must be proclaimed until Jesus returns.

Shaft of Light #5: The Good News of Jesus’s Final Salvation of His People and Eternal Life with God

“God intervenes to save; God intervenes to save; God intervenes to save”—surely that is one of the most prominent drumbeats throughout the Bible. And that drumbeat continues to the very end of history as we know it. While there may be no explicit reference to the “good news” of Jesus’s return using that Greek noun, in Revelation 14:6–7 we hear about an “eternal gospel” (a final offer and declaration of salvation) until the very hour of God’s judgment. The apostle Paul outlines what will happen at the end of history:

“24 Then comes the end, when he [Jesus] hands over the kingdom to God the Father, when he abolishes all rule and all authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he puts all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be abolished is death.” (1 Cor. 15:24–26)

When Jesus returns to earth, he will vindicate his people and destroy God’s enemies, thereby completing the work God gave him to do. Surely Jesus’s return to earth and transfer of the kingdom back to his Father is good news indeed. Salvation accomplished and kingdom secured.

Then, for all eternity, we will join the angels in worship as we celebrate Jesus for what he accomplished at the cross:

“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing!” (Rev. 5:12)

To summarize, it is useful to view the gospel of God as a series of points—beginning in the mind of God before the creation of the world (Rev. 13:8), predicted and partially fulfilled in the Old Testament (Isa. 52:7), dawning in the arrival and ministry of Jesus before the cross (Mark 1:15), rising to full brightness in Jesus’s death and resurrection (1 Cor. 15:1–4), and then continuing to shine brightly in this age and the age to come (Matt. 24:14).

The Gospel: Saving and Transforming Lives

Any discussion about the Christian gospel would be incomplete without addressing how the gospel saves and transforms people.

1. The gospel is the power of God for salvation. It is not merely a set of historical facts, and the gospel does not merely make it possible for people to know God. It is power from God that accomplishes the salvation of his people (Rom. 1:16; Gal. 3:13; Rev. 5:9). The death and resurrection of Jesus brings into existence what God intended: the salvation of his people.

2. The gospel calls for a response. In Romans 10:16, we learn that all people are called to obey the gospel, though not all do. “To obey” the gospel means to receive its saving benefits by turning from our sins and trusting in Jesus (Mark 1:15; Rom. 10:16).

3. The gospel is the heart of Christian proclamation and teaching, both to non-Christians and Christians. According to God’s plan and foreknowledge, he delivered up Jesus to be killed on a cross by sinful men to atone for sins, and God raised him from the dead to vindicate him (Matt. 26:39; John 3:14; Acts 2:23–24, 32, 36; 3:13–15, 17, 26; 4:10, 19–20; Rom. 3:21–26; 4:25; 1 Cor. 15:1–4; 1 Pet. 1:18–20; 1 John 2:1–2). It is hard to imagine a more prominent theme in the New Testament.

4. The gospel is the means by which we live and mature as Christians. The gospel enables us to come to God initially, and it is also the foundational reality that allows us to stay in relationship to God. We receive it (Gal. 1:9), are entrusted with it (1 Thess. 2:4), are strengthened by it (Rom. 16:25), proclaim it (Eph. 6:19), and suffer for it (2 Tim. 1:8). Ultimately, the gospel leads to holistic life change—in our hearts, words, and actions. Because of the gospel, we die to sin and live for God, walking in the newness of life, all by the power of the Holy Spirit (Rom. 6:1–11; 8:10–11; Col. 2:12).

What is the Gospel? What isn’t it?

We conclude with five critically important truths that help us as we proclaim and explain the gospel, whether to non-Christians or Christians:

  1. God the Father is not the gospel (which, in the most narrow sense of the word, is the death and resurrection of Jesus), but he is the great architect and source of the gospel.

  2. Sin and judgment are not the gospel, but they necessitate the gospel if we are to be saved.

  3. God’s intervention in the world to save his people is the gospel—expressed most spectacularly in Jesus's death and resurrection.

  4. Repentance (turning from sins) and trust in Jesus are not the gospel, but they are the necessary responses to the gospel in order to receive its saving benefits.

  5. Internal transformation and good works are not the gospel, but they are the fruit of the gospel as it transforms the lives of Christians.[3]

God help us, we pray, to cherish the gospel and live in its light—
both now and throughout eternity.

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

  1. Prior to reading this document, how would you have defined the gospel?

  2. “The Center and Most Important Truth of the Gospel”

    Do you believe Jesus’s death and resurrection is the heart (or center or supreme manifestation) of the gospel? If so, why? If not, why not? Why did Paul say that the gospel was “of first importance” (1 Cor. 15:3)? How do we, as church leaders, prioritize the gospel in accordance with those words from Paul so that the gospel is never merely assumed (whether in our own lives or in the lives of those who follow us)?

  3. “The Five Shafts of Light” (which outline how gospel truths unfolds throughout the Bible)

    Where do you agree with those statements? Where do you disagree? What questions do you have?

  4. “The Gospel: Saving and Transforming Lives”

    What information there did you find helpful? Anything you would add, subtract, or modify?

  5. “What is the Gospel? What isn’t it?”

    Summarize those statements in your own words. Why is it so important to distinguish between what the gospel is (particularly the death and resurrection of Jesus) and the proper responses to the gospel? Or do you believe those categories should be indistinguishable in our preaching and teaching? Explain.

  6. What concepts from this document, if any, might we incorporate into the life of our church or network of churches? What would implementing those concepts look like in practice?

  7. What other questions or comments do you have about this document?


[1] Here I am indebted to Doug Moo’s insight that the apostle Paul’s gospel can be usefully viewed as a series of concentric circles, with Jesus’s death and resurrection at the center (Moo, The Letter to the Romans, 58).

[2] Edwards, The Gospel according to Mark, 24–25; Moo, Galatians, 78.

[3] l learned these truths from D.A. Carson’s preaching, teaching, and writing ministry about the gospel. See, for example, Carson’s book Prophetic from the Center and his chapter “What Is the Gospel?—Revisited” in For the Fame of God’s Name: Essays in Honor of John Piper (edited by Storms and Taylor). Essential reading for younger and older pastors alike.