I promised last month we would start looking at the Gospel, the Good News to be shared with the world, so you would know what to tell people who don’t know the Lord.
How do you share your faith so others understand the Gospel? There are several key aspects to the Gospel you don’t want to leave out:
- Jesus is the center of the Gospel just as He is the source and center of all things.
- The holiness of God is essential. God is just. He is good. So good that He must condemn evil.
- Man is sinful. Corrupt. Lost. Rebellious. He is under a just condemnation for his rebellion against God and his breaking of God’s moral law.
- The death of Jesus for sin is the only way provided by God for man to be reconciled to God. In Jesus, God satisfies the demands of His own justice. There is nothing arbitrary about this. It is the real and the only solution to the human predicament.
- The resurrection of Jesus is the foundation of our faith and the proof of His victory over sin and death.
These are the elements of the Gospel. If you haven’t shared these things, you haven’t really shared the Gospel. Eventually, you want to share all of this with as many people as you can.
Jesus as a therapist or a heavenly friend is not the Gospel.
Often, when we encounter someone going through hard times, or trapped in a destructive sin, we want to help them. We know they need Jesus. The best person there is to help is Jesus, so we share that Jesus is there to help them. Is this true? Yes. Is it the Gospel? No. It may be a beginning, but Jesus as a therapist or a heavenly friend is not the Gospel. In fact, for Jesus to help them, He must be their Lord and Savior. The rebel needs to submit to the King, and receive the wonderful salvation He provided.
Let’s begin with point #1: Jesus is the center of the Gospel.
Don’t be shy about Jesus. He is what it is all about. He is the best and most wonderful thing this world has ever seen. You can talk persuasively and clearly about Him without using a lot of complex theological language.
In fact, for Jesus to help them, He must be their Lord and Savior.
He is God as a true man. The Creator coming among rebellious creatures to save them. The King who serves the undeserving out of love. He is compassionate and holy. Kind and uncompromising. There has never been anyone like Him. And He came to save us!
You can tell someone how wonderful your church is, but they need Jesus. You can tell them to live Christian principles for a better life, but they need Jesus. People don’t need moral reformation, they need to meet the One who can change them.
The Gospel is about Jesus Christ. Next time: God is holy.
Yours in Christ,
Originally printed in The AFBC Pony Express. Vol. XII, No. 9, September 2019.