If asked this question, I would respond: It’s a long story about a short message. I’m serious; it’s as simple as that.
The word Gospel stems from the Greek word, ‘Euangelion. There is an interesting piece of history behind the Greek word.[1] In its simplest form, it came into use in the 12th century and means ‘Good News or Good Story.’ More than anything else, it concerns the purpose and life of Jesus Christ. It is interesting that in a world where 55% of people are not Christian, the word Gospel is often used by all as a measure of truth. ‘It’s the Gospel truth,’ you doubtlessly heard it said.
The sum of the teachings and life illustration of Jesus is the Gospel. There is only one Gospel in four different accounts that are harmonious with each other. As to who physically wrote the Gospel, there is no single and uniform agreement among those who have studied the scriptures over the years. Most commonly believed that various people wrote for the apostles and evangelists Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
In my teachings on this site, I have referred to the fact that my words and particularly my interpretation of the Bible are not cast in stone, as it will always remain the responsibility of each of us to search the heart of God to find the answers to our questions.
Back to business, what was the good news that Jesus brought to the earth? Jesus said many things in his 3-year ministry here on this planet. What is it that He said and did that made the word, Gospel, stand out in this world, enduring all manner of mockery and abuse but continuing to bring hope to lost souls through to eternity?
According to the Gospel recordings, Jesus came to fulfill the law of Moses. His strategy was to live a life that exemplified God’s purpose for humanity in their stay on earth. He did this by teaching twelve men about how to live on this earth via a system, which he referred to many times, called the Kingdom of God. Jesus taught these men not only verbally but also by practical example. Every word He spoke, and action He performed demonstrated what it is like to live according to God’s purpose (or according to the kingdom principle/The Gospel.)
Considering all that had taken place in the Old Testament, you might be asking whether the arrival of Jesus was necessary. I’ll tell you why in the shortest possible way. God created humanity as an image of Himself and then saw them fail to maintain His purpose. They paid the price of their failure in terms of God’s purpose and fell victim to a lawless way of living. The more they lived like this, the worse things became for them. God raised a prophet, Moses, who gave them guidelines for living a life where they would accomplish God’s purpose. God gave them leaders who led them to a land of blessings. Even in this place, they failed and called out to God for a king to show them how to live on earth.
God gave them a king – in the end, 42 kings! Of these kings, only eight were Godly, and 34 were evil.[2] After this scenario, the Israelites fell into a depression, and this was their state at the time of the arrival of Jesus. You don’t need to be rocket scientists to see that their lives were in a mess. They lived as captives of a Roman emperor with a puppet king – Herod.
Many mistook Jesus’s, saying that he was the Messiah[3], the person who was to free them from Roman rule. Finally, the Scribes and Pharisees tricked Jesus into a place of what they called blasphemy and put Him to death. So, after three years of Godly living and teaching a powerful salvation message, a few people followed His teachings, even to death. The majority did not.
Those who did follow and practice His teachings became baptized as an outward expression of their belief and received the Spirit of Jesus hidden within them. They then began to witness Jesus’s fruit revealed through them in a new-found freedom to live God’s purpose on this earth. They started to lead others toward salvation. All these understood that death was not the end for them but rather the manifestation of the glorified spirit within them into a new life – no longer earthbound.
Jesus’ last words before giving up His Spirit were: “It is finished.”
So, what was finished? The work that Jesus had come to accomplish here on earth, in short, heralding the coming of the Kingdom of God on Earth (in other words, The Gospel.) The works of Jesus freed all of humanity willing to accept and apply the purpose of God on earth. Is this not too marvelous for words?
Go ahead now if you haven’t accepted His gift – do so. And above all, apply what you have received.
Love and Blessings to every one of you. Oh, and remember to send us your comments and suggestions about the material you read on this site.
Peter-James.