What is The Gospel?

It is absurd to think that leaders do not sometimes become very discouraged. They have days when it seems their entire life has been a failure or disappointment.

“All ye that are burdened and heavily laden; come and I will give you rest.” But the truth is, when the body and soul are tired, the enemy is able to communicate negatives which war against what you know to be the truth. The truth revives and restores the gladness to the soul. I was blessed and refreshed by the Word of the Lord. I knew I could continue the work. But I also heard something else that day.

I heard the sentiments of God regarding the necessity of bringing the Church to the mind of Christ by the preaching of the Gospel. If asked the question, “What is the Gospel?” Most members of the Body of Christ would say, “It is the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ as the Savior of the world.” This would be a correct answer. However, it is certain that most who respond to it don’t really have a clue as to what it truly means. The church has no problem seeing Jesus as the great Redeemer of man by the crucifixion. But the church is in some cases willingly ignorant of what it means for Him (Jesus) to be the Savior of mankind. Those of us who are truly born again, (having received the Holy Ghost), would be quick to sight the infilling of the Spirit as the manifestation of the Gospel. Sad to say, they would stop right there with the infilling of the Spirit; implying that the receiving of the Holy Ghost is a guarantee of a seat in the Millennium Kingdom. This is a gross deception. In all my studies I have come across several scriptures that I believe best define the Gospel of the Kingdom of God.

We will deal with each of them.

Romans 5:10

For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

According to the passage above we have been reconciled to God by the cruci-fixion of Jesus Christ. This simply means that we were given access to God again. In other words, after the sin in the Garden man lost his fellowship with the Father. God was no longer coming down in the cool of the day to talk with man. Thus, access to the eternal Kingdom of God, for all mankind perished with the sin. We shall be saved by his life… This is where the Church loses sight of what salvation truly is. I continue to teach the same message over and over again in the hopes that someone will believe and be persuaded of the mind of God. It is the life of Christ that is our salvation. Please take note of what I am saying here. It is the life. It is His life that is lived out in our bodies that is truly the salvation the Father has given us.

Galatians 2:20

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

We need to understand this passage for what it is trying to convey to us. The life of our flesh or body is that of Christ and it is His faith that performs the works of God. But for the trying of our faith, the works of Christ are only performed when we are in agreement with God or the Holy Ghost in which our life is hidden. This is the good news. We can cease from our labors and do the works of God through Jesus Christ who has thoroughly furnished us unto every good work. We are the witnesses that Christ truly lives; not because we read the Bible, but because He lives in us.

I want us to examine the term “lives”. He is not dead, nor sick, nor powerless. He neither slumbers nor sleeps. He is alive and willing to do the will of the Father as always. This time He is doing it through us. This was supposed to be the good news. We have entered into His rest. The Gospel is the proclaiming of the indwelling of Christ. It is telling the world that Jesus not only died for them, but that He has come back to transform them into sons of God, liken unto Himself. The church is quick to agree that Christ lives in them, but they are not embracing the fact that it is our willingness to allow Him to live His life in our bodies with all the character of godliness that truly saves us. It is by His life that we are saved.