The Gospel Message

WHAT IS THE GOSPEL MESSAGE

AS REVEALED BY GOD, CHRIST, AND THE APOSTLES?

READING MARK 1:1-15

MAR 1:14 “Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God,MAR 1:15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.”

What WAS this gospel message preached by Christ? We are here told that Christ “preached the gospel of the kingdom of God”; that he said that it was at hand, and they should “repent…and believe the gospel.” But again, WHAT WAS IT THAT HE WAS SAYING? Let each one of us answer this question to the best of our ability at this time – not to me, but to ourselves. What is the gospel message that Christ taught. For if we are to repent and believe it, as Christ commanded, we must understand what it is.

The word “gospel” as used here is from the Greek word ‘euaggelion’, and according to Strong’s Concordance (2098) means, “good news. This word is taken from the root word (2097) ‘euaggelizo’. This word and it’s root is translated, good news, gospel, glad tidings, etc.

So by going back to Christ’s original statement in MAR 1:14 it says, “Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel – the good news – of the kingdom of God, MAR 1:15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel- believe this good news, these glad tidings.

Christ said that they should believe the “gospel of THE KINGDOM OF GOD.” That is, there was some good news concerning God’s Kingdom that they should believe. The ‘Kingdom of God’ is therefore the aspect of Christ’s statement to which we are directed. As we will see as we proceed, it is impossible to understand the good news concerning the kingdom of God without understanding what the kingdom of God is.

Let us look at several other passages in the New Testament concerning this theme.

MAT 4:23 “And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.

LUK 4:43 And he said unto them, I must preach the kingdom of God to other cities also: for therefore am I sent.

LUK 8:1 And it came to pass afterward, that he went throughout every city and village, preaching and shewing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God: and the twelve were with him.”

We can see from these passages that the terms ‘the gospel of the kingdom of God, the gospel of the Kingdom, the kingdom of God, and the glad tidings of the kingdom of God’, are synonymous phrases.

And let us again note that the phrase ‘the Kingdom of God’ is emphasized.

In the quote from Luke 8:1 we saw that Jesus was “preaching and shewing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God: AND THE TWELVE WERE WITH HIM.”

The apostles therefore heard what Christ preached, and preached the same thing. In ACT 19:8 it says of Paul, “And he went into the synagogue, and spake boldly for the space of three months, disputing and persuading the things concerning the kingdom of God.”

In ACT 8:12 it says, “But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.” So that before men and women were baptized they had to believe certain things concerning both the kingdom of God and also the name of Jesus. Going down to Acts 8:25 we have Peter speaking, saying: “And they, when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, returned to Jerusalem, and preached the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans.”

Sometimes we hear traditional Christians referring to the gospel as “the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.”

But this is an inadequate definition as shown in Luke Ch. 18, beginning in verse 31. “Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. LUK 18:32 For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: LUK 18:33 And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. LUK 18:34 And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken.”

At this time, Christ’s disciples had been with him for about three and a half years while he was preaching “the gospel of the kingdom of God.” Still, at this time, just before his death, they had no understanding whatsoever that he must die and be raised from the dead. To quote again from Luke 18:33, Christ said, And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. AND THEY UNDERSTOOD NONE OF THESE THINGS.”

Let us at this time find out what the gospel message was that was taught by Christ and the apostles.

GAL 3:8 gives us the New Testament definition of the gospel. Gal 3:8 says, “And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed.”

“God…preached before the GOSPEL to Abraham.” Abraham, as we know lived in Old Testament times, actually about 2000 years before Christ was born. Abraham had a son named Isaac, Isaac had Jacob, and Jacob whose name was changed to Israel, had 12 sons from whom came the twelve tribes of Israel. So that back here, even before the 12 tribes of Israel came into existence, and about 2000 years before Christ was born, GOD himself preached the “GOSPEL” to Abraham. Now if we only knew what God preached to Abraham we would know what the gospel was. But wait, Gal 3:8 tells us, let’s read that again and see what it was. “God…preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, IN THEE SHALL ALL NATIONS BE BLESSED.” Here, we have the gospel message. Let us rephrase this, God gave Abraham the gospel, the good news, that through him, God was going to bless all the nations of the earth, including the Gentiles. This was the gospel message, the good news that Christ himself preached.

But what part did Christ play in this gospel message, we may ask? Christ played the central role. It was only through him that the

good news could come about that all the nations of the earth would be blessed. Let us consider a few other passages from Gal Ch. 3 to get a fuller understanding of this gospel message.

GAL 3:16 “Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. 17) And this I say, that the covenant, (the “promise”- vs. 17) that was confirmed before of God in Christ…18) God gave it to Abraham by promise.GAL 3:26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. GAL 3:27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. GAL 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. GAL 3:29 And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”

Let us consider this. God made certain promises called ‘the covenant’, to Abraham and to a seed who would be born from him, even Jesus Christ. When we are properly baptized into Christ, whether Jew or Gentile, we then become one in him and are his. We thus become

” ABRAHAM’S SEED, and heirs according to the promise” that God gave to Abraham.

Once again, let us consider Gal 3:8 “And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the GOSPEL unto Abraham, SAYING, In thee shall all nations be blessed.” Notice again. THE GOSPEL was preached unto Abraham, SAYING, in thee

shall all nations be blessed. This is the gospel, the good news that Christ preached. And as we have seen in the rest of Galatians Ch. 3. This good news of all nations being blessed was to Abraham and to his seed Christ, and concerned all nations, Jew and Gentile. We become part of this promise by becoming part of that seed by being baptized into that seed, even Jesus Christ. So we become “Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”

Here in Gal 3:16 & 17 it speaks of promises made to our father Abraham confirmed in Christ. Let us consider these promises a little more fully by looking at

ROM 15:8 “Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers.”

Why we may ask would Jesus Christ be a minister (Strongs Concordance – “servant”, etc) of the circumcision. What did the circumcision have to do with the truth of God. And finally, how does the circumcision tie in with the promises made to the fathers.

Let us consider what promises were made to the fathers as it relates to circumcision. In Genesis Chapter 17 God commands Abraham, the father of the Jewish nation, to become circumcised. Let us read from this chapter. In verse 2 God says to Abraham,

“I will make my covenant between me and thee..4) a father of many nations have I made thee (notice how this compares with the ‘gospel’ quote in Galatians ‘saying in thee shall all nations be

blessed’…7 I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee…8 And I will give unto the, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, ALL THE LAND OF CANAAN, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God. 10 This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; every man child among you shall be circumcised…and it is a token of the covenant betwixt me and you.” And in GEN 12:3 God said to Abraham, ” and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”

GEN 13:14 “And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: GEN 13:15 For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.”

Bethel was a town about 12 miles North of Jerusalem and in a mountainous region. From here Abraham could see a great distance in all directions.

We can search the entire Bible and these are the only promises made to Abraham as they relate to circumcision. But if we consider again the quote from Romans 15:8 it said “the promises made unto the fathers” Notice that it says fathers – plural. These promises concerning the land of Canaan and blessing all the nations of the earth through them and their seed were also made to Abraham’s sons, Isaac, and Jacob.

To Isaac God said, in GEN 26:3 “Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father;GEN 26:4 And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.”

To Isaac’s son Jacob this promises is reiterated in GEN 28:13 “And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; GEN 28:14 And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.”

These are the fathers spoken of in the New Testament, and these are the promises. They were promised all of the land of Canaan for an everlasting, and promised that in their seed all families of the earth would be blessed. Once again let us be reminded that this is the gospel message spoken of in Galatians 3:16-17 “God…preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying in thee shall all nations be blessed.” This is the gospel.

These also are the promises to the fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,spoken of in ROM 15:8 where it says that Jesus Christ was a minister (a servant) of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm these promises made to these fathers.

All Jewish males, in their circumcision, would daily see in their

flesh the promises that God had made to their father Abraham – The promise to give them all the land of Canaan for an everlasting possession, and to bless all the earth through Abraham and his seed, even the Messiah.

This was the hope of all the Jews; a Messiah to give them the land and through whom all the earth would be blessed.

PSA 105:7 “He is the LORD our God: his judgments are in all the earth. PSA 105:8 He hath remembered his covenant for ever, the word which he commanded to a thousand generations. PSA 105:9 Which covenant he made with Abraham, and his oath unto Isaac; PSA 105:10 And confirmed the same unto Jacob for a law, and to Israel for an everlasting covenant: PSA 105:11 Saying, Unto thee will I give the land of Canaan, the lot of your inheritance.”

This is the same hope that Jesus Christ came to fulfill, and the same hope spoken of about Christ before his birth by Zacharias the father of John the Baptist. Let us quote from:

LUK 1:67 “And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied, saying, LUK 1:69 And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David; LUK 1:70 As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began: LUK 1:71 That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us; LUK 1:72 To perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant; LUK 1:73 The oath which he sware to our father Abraham.”

Let us consider another essential point relating to the gospel.

MAR 1:14 “Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, MAR 1:15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.”

Notice again, that Jesus was preaching “the gospel of the KINGDOM OF GOD.” Rephrasing this we could say, the good news of the kingdom of God’.

What was this Kingdom of God spoken of by Jesus, for as we can plainly see, it is part of the gospel message.

According to the American Heritage Dictionary, a kingdom is “A government, country, state, or population that is nominally or actually ruled by a king…” So then a kingdom has a territory or land area over which it is ruled. It has a set of laws by which the people are governed. It has people which live in the kingdom and are subject to these laws. And It has a king, who oversees all aspects of this kingdom.

Let us next consider the Lord’s Prayer as given to us by Jesus Christ.

MAT 6:9 “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. MAT 6:10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.”

Here Christ told us to pray for God’s kingdom to come to this earth, so that then His will would then be done on this earth as it is now done in heaven. This is what we are commanded by Jesus Christ to pray for. Not that we die and go to heaven, but rather that God’s kingdom comes to this earth. The Jews accurately understood this. This was their hope and this is what they were waiting for and what they were expecting Christ to immediately do. They did not understand that Christ must first die and go to heaven before returning and fulfilling this promise.

But let us go back again to the Old Testament. In 1 Chronicles, David through the Holy Spirit, is speaking. He says,

1CH 28:5 “And of all my sons, (for the LORD hath given me many sons,) he hath chosen Solomon my son to sit upon the throne of the kingdom of the LORD over Israel.”

At the time of David and his son Solomon, God had a kingdom. The land of Canaan was God’s Land, the Jews were His people, the laws they were given to follow were His laws, the king he gave them was His king. This was God’s Kingdom. The Jews however, generally speaking were wicked, so that in time God took His Kingdom from them. This occurred about 600 years before Christ was born when God, through Nebuchadnezzar, removed Israel’s Kingdom, and her last king Zedekiah. This is spoken of in

EZE 21:25 “And thou, profane wicked prince of Israel, whose day is come, when iniquity shall have an end, EZE 21:26 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Remove the diadem, and take off the crown: this shall not be the same: exalt him that is low, and abase him that is high. EZE 21:27 I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it: and it shall be no more, until he come (i.e. Jesus Christ) whose right it is; and I will give it him.”

HOS 3:4 “For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim: HOS 3:5 Afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness in the latter days.”

LUK 21:24 “And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.”

This is why Christ’s message was understood so well by the Jews. They had been without a king for almost 600 years. So that when Christ walked among them saying MAR 1:15 “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.”

They knew what he was speaking of. But this was not yet the time for God’s Kingdom to be established on the earth. The Jews had to fulfill their final act of disobedience in killing their King, their Messiah. This opened the door for the Gentiles, but it never changed the promises that God had given.

After Jesus had been crucified and risen from the dead, and before he was taken up into heaven his apostles asked him a question in

ACT 1:6 “Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? ACT 1:7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.”

They knew that the promises of God would be fulfilled, but even then they did now know when.

What will this coming kingdom of God be like? Let us consider a few aspects of it.

One aspect of this kingdom is that it will fill the whole earth.

PSA 72:8 “He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth.”

Another aspect is that the laws and the government of the whole earth will come from God.

ISA 9:6 “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. ISA 9:7 Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.”

Another aspect is that all the nations of the earth will submit to this righteous rule.

PSA 72:11 “Yea, all kings shall fall down before him: all nations shall serve him.”

Another aspect is that Jesus Christ will sit upon this throne and be king over the earth.

LUK 1:30 “And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. LUK 1:31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. LUK 1:32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: LUK 1:33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.”

Another aspect is that righteousness and peace will fill the earth.

PSA 72:2 “He shall judge thy people with righteousness, and thy poor with judgment. PSA 72:3 The mountains shall bring peace to the people, and the little hills, by righteousness.”

This is the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, as given to us by God’s Holy Word. This is what Jesus Christ himself referred to when it was said in

MAR 1:14 “Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, MAR 1:15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.”

This is the gospel message one needs to believe before they can be saved.

MAR 16:15 “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. MAR 16:16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.”

ROM 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”

Again we ask, What is the gospel message, as taught by the Bible. God’s Word has given us the answer. The Gospel of the Kingdom of God, is the Good News that God Himself is going to establish His kingdom on this earth, as He promised to the fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; that His Kingdom will have His King Jesus Christ, who will return to the earth and take over the government of the whole earth, and establish God’s Laws in the earth, resulting in justice and righteousness and peace. At this time, all nations of the earth will be blessed in Abraham and his seed, Jesus Christ.

Remember the words of Christ, for they also apply to us. ‘the time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand, repent ye, and believe the gospel’.
CY