It is nice to think that “the gospel” is a fixed, well-defined message, which is easily summarized in 5 minutes or less. A message essentially about getting into heaven. If it could be that then those who preach it are free to dance around it and point people to it when they are ready. Like it is a final convincing sales call, or a tool with which to close sermons or homilies.
This is Not So At All !
This may even seem to be the case in the New Testament. But I think this is because the New Testament is mostly letters from apostles written to the people who had embraced their particular gospel. And these letters were apostles who were still discipling and helping particular groups of Christians.
At the time there were dozens of other gospels circulating about God. Just like today. However, the apostles from the New Testament had their’s given to them by Jesus Christ himself.
That gospel has since been scrambled today, and the versions of Christian gospels are many today, even in evangelical churches. Of varying accuracy and fidelity to that of the New Testament. But I believe that we are gradually finding our way back to that original story of the kingdom of Jesus Christ.
The Christian Gospel is not fixed, even across “evangelical” churches.
When we hear the word the gospel, we should think of a preachers entire message, taken as a whole over time. Not just the theology of Salvation (Soteriology), the “ABCs”, or the “Romans road” to heaven.
In truth, a preahcers entire message is their gospel, spoken and unspoken. Also, any Christian who reaches out, his/her entire message is their gospel. Some gospels we here in churches today, I believe, compared to that of the apostles gospels are trash. Some are partially true, and some are great. We can measure them by the standard that is Jesus Christ himself. Without him, without truth itself, anything is valid, pick what you like to hear.
A gospel is not only communicated with what is taught or preach, but it is also how preachers behave in Christian meetings, and even in private. What happens in Christian gatherings meetings, who is allowed to dominate. Who is told to sit down, who is told to give, what words to repeat to their pew-neighbor. All of that comprises a Christian gospel, it is a message, sometimes spoken with words, sometimes spoken with acts, sometimes spoken by what is left out. About God and about Jesus Christ himself and about his kingdom.
And the particular gospel that we do embrace early on, often makes our Christian lives.
- If its money centered, so will we be money-centered and will measure others, our own, and everyone’s spirituality by money issues.
- If it is church-centered so will we be church centered judging others accordingly. With little depth beyond our church situation of the moment. Sometimes with our groups altogether backsliding as a team, drifting away from the Lord. Accepting whatever is taught without question, like loyal groupies.
- If its legalistic, obesessed with sin, and in blocking sinners, so will we be legalistic, judging all the sinners and libertine Christians harshly.
- If it is libertine and indifferent toward sin so will we be, judging all the legalist Christians harshly.
- If it is making the world a better place for poor old God, then that’s our focus and often our obsession.
But if it can be Jesus Christ
BUT if it can be Jesus Christ, if we can handle him, if we can accept Him. If it is the story of Jesus Christ since before the foundation of the world. If it is the story of Jesus Christ starting a new humanity (his ecclesia) and his new creation. If it is the story of the kingdom of God.
Then our gospel is founded on a real spiritual rock. And we judge everything and every one by him alone, (not money, not church, not sin). And we become able to spiritually understand and handle anything that comes our way because he is the increasing and gradual summation and center of the entire universe.
And other Christians become precious sources of Him, they are not competition. They are not just someone to try to disciple and lead around. And extract a salary from. They are not someone to gather around ourselves and make a part of our church kingdom. What we think of other Christians is a good measure of the particular gospel that we have embraced.
The gospel of the kingdom begins before creation (Eph 1, John 17.) explaining WHY God created us and everything else.
It continues with the creation event (how we got here.)
The fall of man and the nefarious spiritual powers affecting us and the world system.
The selection of Abraham and his Hebrew descendants.
The coming of the messiah the perfect human, the new Adam intended to get humanity back on track to the original intent, the eternal purpose, his enduring resolve.
It includes the suffering and resurrection of Jesus Christ, killing off the old humanity from Adam & Eve and starting a fresh and new humanity.
And the new humanity the beginning of the new creation. The body of Jesus Christ sitting (for now) within the midst of the old creation which is in decline and is experiencing eviction from the earth.
This gospel story, thrills and excites me, it has changed my life and it continues to do so. I trust it will you as well.
A great book on teh gospel of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ according to the Apostle Peter.
