The Gospel of Christ Jesus

"I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes . . . For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: ‘The righteous will live by faith.'"  Romans 1.16-17.

"For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures."  I Cor. 15.3-4.

nd if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty.  Yes, and we are found false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ . . . And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!"  I Cor. 15.14-15, 17.  The resurrection of Jesus is a historical fact.  Both the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ are historically verifiable.  Men who have sought to disprove these events as historical come away changed, becoming followers of the Lord.  The evidence is insurmountable.  If men would give only a few serious hours of investigation, they would be confident of the truth of the matter.  "Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem."  Luke 24.46-47.  

Most men are unwilling to give even four hours of their life to such an undertaking to confirm for themselves that the events took place.  "That Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve.  After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep."  I Cor. 15.3-6.  Many evidences support both the death and resurrection of Christ Jesus:

• Both the death and resurrection of Jesus were predicted in the Old Testament
• Professional executioners ensured Jesus' death
• Pontius Pilate double checked the death of Jesus
• Pilate sent guards to secure the tomb from any deception
• The body of Jesus was embalmed and buried
• There were many, even hundreds, of eyewitness accounts for both Jesus' death and resurrection

And on and on and on.

We understand that "Christ is risen from the dead."  I Cor. 15.20.  And so, we await His coming again, and "then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power.  For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet."  I Cor. 15.23-25.  The reality of the resurrection of Jesus Christ is, in part, reflected by how men and women of all walks of life responded to this event.  The list that follows is only a glimpse at the numbers of people who were willing to die and who did die for following Jesus.  Most of the men named below were apostles of Christ.  For them to die for a lie, they would have to be deranged or mentally ill.  The better reasoning, however, is that these men witnessed Jesus risen from the dead. 

James son of Zebedee - executed by order of King Herod

Philip - scourged, thrown into prison, and then crucified

Matthew - killed

James brother of Jesus - killed by stoning

Matthias - stoned and beheaded

Andrew - crucified on x-shaped cross

Mark - dragged to pieces by people of Alexandria

Peter - crucified upside down

Stephen - stoned to death

Paul - beheaded

Jude - crucified

Bartholomew - beaten and crucified

Thomas - tortured and thrown into the flames

Luke - hung on a tree.[1]

The stories are countless.  "Crazy Christian," remarked one young man recently, speaking of his relative who is a Christian.  This particular young man rejects Jesus, and finds no rationale for following Him.  And so, from his perspective Christians are crazy.  I shared this young man's reasoning with a close family member in a candid way, in these words: "You must think Christians are lunatics - because you don't believe Jesus rose from the dead, your only conclusion is that Christians are following after a dead man, correct?"  She reluctantly agreed.  Those who are not Christians must, in the end, take the position that Christians are "crazy" to follow after a dead man.  The truth of the matter is that this historical event - Jesus' resurrection - is verifiable and irrefutable.  And this leaves only two options for all persons: either (1) ignore the    historical evidence for the Risen Lord; or (2) Surrender to the Truth and serve the Lord of Life.  Most people we encounter choose option (1) and will regret it in the end.  

Most men are unwilling to give even four hours of their life to a determination whether Christ rose from the dead, in order to confirm for themselves that the event took place.  If they understand the reality of the risen Lord Jesus, they will seek to reconcile with Him.  But as it is, most remain scoffers and reject the truth and the real need to know God.

Jesus is the centerpiece for the discussion of the gospel, for the discussion of our victory as identified earlier.  In our study, it is needful to have the proper understanding of the gospel, the good news of Christ.  Here we will explore the question of the definition of the gospel by reviewing the Gospel of John.

Jesus said that "he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life."  John 5.24.  Paul wrote, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes ...."  Rom. 1.16.  What is the gospel?  At a time when contemporary theologians are unable to agree on the answer to this question, can we understand the gospel?  The answer is yes.  

The gospel is "good tidings of the Kingdom of God and of salvation through Christ, to be received by faith, on the basis on His expiatory death, His burial, resurrection, and ascension."  Vines Complete Expository Dictionary, N.T. p. 275.  One reason the gospel is "good tidings" is that those who believe avoid "judgment" as indicated at John 5.24.  What is the gospel?  The Gospel of John gives us a clear understanding of the gospel of Jesus Christ, chapter upon chapter.

But before we go to the Gospel of John, it is prudent to again remind us of humanity's plight without Christ.  All men have the dilemma of sin in their lives.  To properly understand the gospel of Christ, we must have a proper understanding of our standing before God without Christ.  In chapter two we compared our situation to that of a leper's situation.  We are stained with sin.  We have failed to live a life worthy of a relationship with God.  Our sin keeps us from a relationship with God.  From the first man Adam to the very last man, we are a wicked people.  "The Lord saw how great man's wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time."  Gen. 6.5.  As God brought a flood on the earth in the days of Noah as judgment and punishment for their sin, so God is to bring final judgment and punishment for sin in the near future.  "[M]an is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment."  Heb. 9.27.

The situation is one of desperation and despair for every human being.    "We all ... have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way."  Isaiah 53.6.   All of us have rejected God for our own selfish way.  At the judgment, we have no excuse, as was discussed in chapters one and two.  Our destiny without Christ is eternity separated from God in a place called the "Lake of Fire."  All of us have rejected God for our own selfish way.  And at judgment, all who have rejected God and His offer of grace through Christ Jesus will have no excuse.  Their destiny without Christ is eternity separated from God in a place called the "Lake of Fire."

There is no good work we can do to earn our way into favor with God.  He is holy and righteous and altogether pure.  As many good works as we could do they would not undue our problem of sin.  "All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags."  Isaiah 64.6.  Nothing we do in this world can remove the fact that we fail to live up to God's standard of righteousness.  What we may believe are good works, if they are not done to glorify Christ, they are filthy rags in the sight of God.  All of humanity is in the same predicament:

"[F]or all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."  Rom. 3.23.  The passage in Hebrews 9 above is clear that we are all destined to die and after that to face judgment.  Because of this and because of the love of God, Christ was sacrificed to take away our sins.  "Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and He will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for Him."  Heb. 9.28.  The Bible tells us that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.  Heb. 9.22.  It was the blood of Jesus that brought forgiveness of sins.  If we die without our sins forgiven we are bound for the Lake of Fire.  If we deal with our sin by listening and responding in faith to the Lord Jesus Christ, we receive the forgiveness of sins and the salvation of our souls.  We will live with God forever in His wonderful grace.  We turn now to the Gospel of John for the proper perspective and understanding of the good news of Jesus Christ.  What you will see with your own eyes is that Scripture leaves no room for misunderstanding or miscommunication with regard to this most important topic.

Without any compromise, the Gospel of John instructs us with the truth of the gospel in simple terms.  Of course, the good news of the gospel has as its context the desperate plight of sinful man, deserving to be judged and condemned.  When we understand the gospel correctly, we will have the proper perspective of ourselves and of God, such that we will be forever grateful and at rest in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Chapter by chapter the Gospel of John confirms over and over the essence of the good news.  Jesus is the good news!  We are to delight in Him and in our salvation.  Specifically, what we see in the Gospel of John is the very clear and precise message to all of humanity.

Gospel of John

Chapter 1.  "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name."  John 1.12.  Repeatedly, the Gospel of John instructs us as to the gospel.

Chapter 2.  "This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him."  John 2.11.

Chapter 3.  "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life."  John 3.14-15.  "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."  John 3.16.  "He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God."  John 3.18.

John the Baptist testified that "whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him."  John 3.36.      

Chapter 4.  "Then they said to the woman, ‘Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world.'"  John 4.42.

Chapter 5.  "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life."  John 5.24.

Chapter 6.  After feeding more than five thousand with only five loaves and two fish, Jesus told those who pursued Him for another meal to labor for "the food which endures to everlasting life."  They asked Jesus what "shall we do, that we may work the works of God?"  The context was everlasting life, and so the question, in other words, was what must we do to have everlasting life?  "Jesus answered and said to them, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.'"  John 6.27-29.  "And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day."  John 6.40.

"Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life."  John 6.47.

Chapter 7.  "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."  John 7.38.

Chapter 8.  Speaking to the Pharisees, Jesus said, "You will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins."  John 8.24.

Chapter 9.  After giving sight to a blind man, Jesus asked the man, "'Do you believe in the Son of God?'  He answered and said, ‘Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?'  And Jesus said to him, ‘You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you.'  Then he said, ‘Lord, I believe!'  And he worshiped Him."  John 9.35-38.

Chapter 10.  "If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him."  John 10.37-38.

Chapter 11.  "I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.  And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.  Do you believe this?"  John 11.25-26.

Chapter 12.  "I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness....  He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him - the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day."  John 12.46, 48.

Chapter 13.  "Now I tell you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe that I am He."  John 13.19.

Chapter 14.  "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me."  John 14.1.

"I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me."  John 14.6.

"Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also."  John 14.12.

Chapter 16.  "For the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God."  John 16.27.

Chapter 17.  "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word."  John 17.20.

Chapter 20.  "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."  John 20.29. 

The general teaching of the Gospel of John is confirmed at John chapter 20:

"And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name."  John 20.31.

The gospel, the good news, is the message of the Gospel of John:

"Believe that Jesus is the Christ,

the Son of God, and that believing

you may have life in His name." 

John 20.31.

It should be evident to you that the Gospel of John has a message for the world: "believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name."  John 20.31.  Believing involves minimally the following:

• 1. Understanding who you are in relationship with the One Holy God. This involves understanding your need for the Savior of the world, and the hungering desire to know Him and be saved by Him. This understanding involves knowing that Jesus is deity and He is our only hope. "[I]f you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." John 8.24.
• 2. Understanding that you are incapable of saving yourself from your sins and from the judgment to come. This involves a personal helplessness resulting in a focused desire for Jesus to save you, whatever the cost to you.
• 3. Understanding that Jesus is the only way to reconciliation with the Holy God. This involves understanding that Jesus died on the cross for our sins, He was buried, and He was raised to life on the third day.
• 4. Understanding that turning to Jesus in belief, in faith, involves a willingness to follow Him as your Lord, as your God. This involves a genuine and passionate desire to go His way and not your way; to follow your Savior and Lord wherever He takes you.

The Gospel of John is not describing a compromised decision to believe, but a directed step towards God that is inspired and motivated.  There is no question about the person's willingness.  There may be questions of understanding, but willingness should not be in doubt.  In fact, there should be a growing willingness as clarity of the gospel truth comes.  As the genuine believer's understanding increases, so will willingness and commitment.  Excitement and thanksgiving will accompany genuine belief, genuine faith.  When Thomas understood Jesus to be truly raised from the dead, he exclaimed with excitement, "My Lord and my God!"  John 20.28.  The blind man who received his sight, when introduced to the Son of God, cried out, "Lord, I believe!"  John 9.38.  Meeting Jesus is exciting.  With street ministry, at times a person responds to the gospel without any emotional response at all.  The person would be more excited for an ice cold drink.  Either the person does not understand the need for a Savior, or, is giving a positive response to the gospel for another reason than for salvation.  Meeting Jesus will produce significant response.[2]   

Something supernatural occurs as a person believes in His name.  The person crosses over from death to life.  John 5.24.  He is baptized with the Holy Spirit, the true baptism of Jesus.  John 1.33.  This baptism transforms the person who believes "in His name," and he becomes a child of God.  John 1.12.  The person is born again, being born of water at physical birth but now born again by the Spirit of God indwelling the person.  John 3.3, 5.  Initially, the person may know very little about the things of God, even certain of the truth identified above as minimal understanding.  But, now that the Holy Spirit resides in the person, he will learn and grow as the Spirit moves and directs.  John 16.13.       

"Believing" means more than factual acknowledgment.  "You believe that there is one God.  You do well.  Even the demons believe - and tremble!"  James 2.19.  The verse here in James is directed at a belief that is mere knowledge.  "Believe" and "faith" are interchangeable in regards to salvation belief and salvation faith.[3]  Perhaps the shortest verse with the greatest instruction on the topic of genuine faith is James 2.20: 

"Faith without works is dead."[4]

Jesus said that we would know false prophets "by their fruit."  Matt. 7.16.  He then said, "Every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.  A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.  Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.  Therefore by their fruits you will know them."  Matt. 7.17-19.     

Believing will result in the person following after Jesus.  The Gospel of John confirms rather than contradicts the truth of James ("faith without works is dead"), and indicates that the following will take place in the believer's life:

He will keep His word.  "Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death."  John 8.51.  Genuine belief in Jesus, genuine faith, will result in the person keeping His word.

He will worship Him.  True believers will worship Jesus.  For example, the blind man whom Jesus gave sight believed in the Son of God and worshiped Him.  John 9.38.

He will follow Him.  Jesus is the good shepherd.  John 10.11.  "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me."  John 10.27.  True believers follow after Jesus.  This truth is echoed in the Gospel of John.  "If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me."  John 12.26.  Jesus told Peter to "follow Me."  Believers in Jesus become followers of Jesus. 

He will obey Him.  "He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me."  John 14.21.  Genuine believers will seek to obey Jesus; they will fail, but obedience will be the growing trend in the believer's life, through faith.  Obedience will involve abiding in Him.

He will abide in Him.  "Abide in Me, and I in you....  If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned."  John 15.4, 6.  Abiding is remaining.  True believers will remain with Jesus, following Him.  Again, believers will fall and fail many times, but the general theme of the overall life of a believer is that the believer will abide in Christ.

He will love Him and others. "If you love Me, keep My commandments."  John 14.15.  "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word."  John 14.23.  "These things I command you, that you love one another."  John 15.17.              

The Gospel of John instructs us to the truth of the gospel of Christ.  The gospel is faith in Jesus, believing in His name.  Jesus accomplished everything for us: the righteous life, the perfect sacrifice, the death, the punishment, the resurrection.  The work of reconciliation necessary for us to be brought back to God was accomplished by Jesus.  On the cross, Jesus cried out, "It is finished."  John 19.30.  "In English this is only three words, in Greek just one.  Yet this word sums up the greatest work that has ever been done.  Spurgeon said, ‘It would need all the other words that ever were spoken, or ever can be spoken, to explain this one word.  It is altogether immeasurable.  It is high; I cannot attain to it.  It is deep; I cannot fathom it.'"  James Montgomery Boice, Expository Commentary on the Gospel of John, p. 1537.  The work of Jesus satisfied all requirements for us to be reconciled to God our Maker.  And so, the work we must satisfy is to simply believe. 

Again, Jesus said this, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one He has sent."  John 6.29. 

We need to rest in this truth.

Believing will result in genuine change and action toward God.  The gospel includes the truth that faith without works is dead.  Jesus confirmed this truth in His commands to keep His word, to follow Him, to obey His commands, and to love.  For the genuine born-again believer, Jesus' commands are not burdensome but rather are a way of life as the Holy Spirit assumes more and more control of the believer's life.  We will discuss this later in chapter eight.  The work of God is to "believe in Him whom He sent."  John 6.29.  Do you understand these things?  Do you understand that God calls us to enter into a rest, His rest?  Jesus' work was sufficient and effective.   

From one book, the Gospel of John, we have the gospel truth.  Though certain words used to describe man's responsibility in response to God's offer of the gospel are not present specifically in the Gospel of John, the essence of the gospel is present and is complete.  The Gospel of John presents perfectly the gospel message itself and the reality of the change which takes place in the born-again child of God as the Holy Spirit creates and  develops a "want-to" for God and the things of God.  The gospel message is simple: "believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name."  John 20.31.  This is not mere intellectual assent to the factual truth, but a repentant, heart response to Jesus and His offer of eternal life.  The reality of the transformed life is abiding in Jesus in love and obedience through faith.[5]

This truth is a freeing experience.  "And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."  John 8.32.  But in order for the truth to be a freeing experience, it is vital that we understand gospel truth and experiential truth and the difference.  Gospel truth is clear: "he who believes in Me has everlasting life."  John 6.47.  Experiential truth also is clear: the genuine believer will keep Jesus' word, worship Him, follow Him, obey Him, abide in Him, and love Him.  "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."  John 7.38.  The genuine believer will live a progressively sanctifying life of thanksgiving and praise with obedience to God.  It is impossible not to do so, as a child of God with the Spirit of God in him.  The good news is that "His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue ...."  II Peter 1.3.

When a person believes unto salvation, his sin dilemma is removed, his sins are forgiven, Christ's righteousness is imputed to him, and he is fully justified in the sight of God.  Look at the words in Colossians chapter one describing the result of faith in a person's life:

"But now He has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation." Col. 1.22

God's grace makes this possible.  For our purposes, "grace" is the word used by Scripture to describe God's mercy and love toward sinners who were undeserving of God's goodness.  God's grace is sufficient for our salvation without any working of man.  Man's responsibility, if you will, is to believe God for salvation.  Faith is man's responsibility, and yet Scripture indicates that even man's faith is a gift from God, for Jesus is the author of man's faith.  Remember, all salvation is by grace, "And if by grace, then it is no longer by works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace."  Rom. 11.6.  "It is because of God that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God - that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.  Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord."  I Cor. 1.30-31.  There is no boasting in what man has done.  No one can boast because "it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works."  Eph. 2.8-9.  God's grace is not only sufficient in the sense that it is ample, plenty, and adequate for man's salvation, but it is the compelling, credible, and single cause of man's salvation.  Man does not cooperate by working with God for his salvation.  Scripture is clear on this.  We are to simply believe God for our salvation.    

[1] Christians during persecution under Nero faced the following - sewn inside animal skins, so that dogs would tear at them and bite them to pieces; others dressed in wax, tied to poles, and then set on fire at Nero's parties.  Many of these accounts are from Foxe's Book of Martyrs.  The persecution continues today.

[2] A gradual understanding of our sin problem and the love of Christ usually occurs in a Christian home with children who are blessed by gospel teaching and preaching from a very early age.  Many people who have this experience cannot testify of one particular day on which the truth of the gospel penetrated their hearts, and yet they are born-again.  A primary indicator of a genuine believer is a grateful heart.  The believer should present a grateful spirit for the love of God in Christ.  So, whether the experience of meeting Jesus is a mountain-top experience or a gradual enlightenment of the truth, a primary indicator of a saved soul is a grateful soul.

[3] "'[B]elief in His name' involves much more than intellectual assent.  Belief includes trust and commitment to Christ as Lord and Savior.  We have an obligation to share the full gospel as we have opportunity, which would include our unworthy and sinful plight, God's holiness and perfect standards for judgment, Jesus' deity, His virgin birth, His sinlessness, His perfect sacrifice, the gift of God is eternal life through faith, born again truth, and a changed life of walking in the Spirit as fruit of faith. 

[4] There is a chronological explanation and exegesis of the entire letter of James, but in this context the passage discussed also supports the teaching of the Gospel of John in regard to the reality of fruit in the believer's life.

[5] Whether a person believes in the name of Jesus cannot be the standard for many persons.  Many persons did not hear of Jesus while they lived their lives.  However, all persons are "without excuse," for "since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead."  Rom. 1.20.  The Book of Romans tells us that "although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened."  Rom. 1.21.  Speaking of Jesus, the "true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world."  John 1.9.  "This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.  Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.  But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light . . . ."  John 3.19-21.