One day a 5-year-old daughter asked her mom, “Am I going to die if I accept Jesus?” What a big theological question! As they talked more, the mom learned that her daughter had recently heard the Gospel at church, and in her mind, that message boiled down to one simple message: "When you ask Jesus into your heart, you go to heaven." Apparently her daughter hadn't prayed to accept Jesus because she didn't want to die just yet.[1]
What the Gospel Is
What the Gospel Is
So what is the gospel? The gospel literally means “Good News.” In today’s scripture, the conclusion of the letter, basically Paul tells us two things: what the gospel is and what the gospel does.
So first, what the gospel is. In verse 25 Paul says, “Now to the one who is able to strengthen you with my gospel and the message that I preach about Jesus…” (ISV). In other words, the gospel is the message about Jesus. In Romans 1:3-4 Paul describes what the gospel is wonderfully well: [Let’s read it together] “The Good News is about his Son. In his earthly life he was born into King David's family line, and he was shown to be the Son of God when he was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. He is Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 1:3-4 NLT). In a word, the gospel is about his Son… Jesus Christ our Lord!
Now let me explain this same message in a different way. This morning I brought this to show and tell. It’s called a “Gospel Cube.”
Scene 1: As we sang this morning, our God is a Maker. He is a Creator. And he is good. Everything good comes from God – love, kindness, lovely plants and animals, beautiful sunrise and sunset. Out of his beauty and goodness, God made humans – Adam and Eve – in his image. God had a plan to have fellowship with them and live with them forever. But Adam and Eve chose to disobey God’s will for their lives. They ate the fruit of the tree of knowledge because they themselves wanted to be like God. And sin entered. You see this separation between God and man? Sin is anything that separates us from God.
But God still loved Adam and Eve. And he clothed them with animal hides. That’s a symbol of how death is necessary to pay for humanity’s sins. (cf. Heb 9:22) Since then, humans made animal sacrifice to pay for their sins. But God always had a better, perfect plan for forgiveness. When the time had fully come, God sent His Son, Jesus, to die and pay the penalty for our sins.
Scene 2: Here we need to remember Adam and Eve are not just the oldest ancestor. They are us. We all are separated from God. We all need forgiveness. The Bible says, “All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the Lord laid on him [Jesus] the sins of us all.” (Isa 53:6, NLT) I still remember the day when my mom cried. When I was young, I told lies to my parents. I forgot exactly what it was, but one day I told a huge lie. My dad was very upset and was about to cane me. So I hid behind my mom. And I thought, “Now I am safe.” Do you know what happened next? My mom got the cane instead of me. My dad caned my mom. I was shocked. This experience made me stop and think, “Wow, wait a minute! Telling a lie is serious stuff!” Jesus was punished instead of us. He died in our place.
Scene 3: Then he was in the tomb for three days. Jesus was in the tomb, in the dark, all alone for three days. Have you sat in the dark, feeling alone, sad, rejected, abandoned? Jesus knows your feelings, because he has been there.
Scene 4: After three days, what happened? Yes, Jesus was raised from the dead. He conquered death! He conquered sin! Jesus’ resurrection is so important, because by his resurrection God proved that Jesus was indeed the Son of God, the Messiah.
Scene 5: And Jesus bridged the gap between God and humans. He opened the door of salvation to everyone who believes.
Scene 6: Now we have a choice. The Bible says, “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (Jn 1:12, NIV). So if you haven’t yet, this is the day. Open the door of your heart, and accept Jesus. Trust him. Believe him. And you will become children of God.
Why don’t we read John 3:16 and put our names in the blank spaces?
So first, what the gospel is. In verse 25 Paul says, “Now to the one who is able to strengthen you with my gospel and the message that I preach about Jesus…” (ISV). In other words, the gospel is the message about Jesus. In Romans 1:3-4 Paul describes what the gospel is wonderfully well: [Let’s read it together] “The Good News is about his Son. In his earthly life he was born into King David's family line, and he was shown to be the Son of God when he was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. He is Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 1:3-4 NLT). In a word, the gospel is about his Son… Jesus Christ our Lord!
Now let me explain this same message in a different way. This morning I brought this to show and tell. It’s called a “Gospel Cube.”
Scene 1: As we sang this morning, our God is a Maker. He is a Creator. And he is good. Everything good comes from God – love, kindness, lovely plants and animals, beautiful sunrise and sunset. Out of his beauty and goodness, God made humans – Adam and Eve – in his image. God had a plan to have fellowship with them and live with them forever. But Adam and Eve chose to disobey God’s will for their lives. They ate the fruit of the tree of knowledge because they themselves wanted to be like God. And sin entered. You see this separation between God and man? Sin is anything that separates us from God.
But God still loved Adam and Eve. And he clothed them with animal hides. That’s a symbol of how death is necessary to pay for humanity’s sins. (cf. Heb 9:22) Since then, humans made animal sacrifice to pay for their sins. But God always had a better, perfect plan for forgiveness. When the time had fully come, God sent His Son, Jesus, to die and pay the penalty for our sins.
Scene 2: Here we need to remember Adam and Eve are not just the oldest ancestor. They are us. We all are separated from God. We all need forgiveness. The Bible says, “All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the Lord laid on him [Jesus] the sins of us all.” (Isa 53:6, NLT) I still remember the day when my mom cried. When I was young, I told lies to my parents. I forgot exactly what it was, but one day I told a huge lie. My dad was very upset and was about to cane me. So I hid behind my mom. And I thought, “Now I am safe.” Do you know what happened next? My mom got the cane instead of me. My dad caned my mom. I was shocked. This experience made me stop and think, “Wow, wait a minute! Telling a lie is serious stuff!” Jesus was punished instead of us. He died in our place.
Scene 3: Then he was in the tomb for three days. Jesus was in the tomb, in the dark, all alone for three days. Have you sat in the dark, feeling alone, sad, rejected, abandoned? Jesus knows your feelings, because he has been there.
Scene 4: After three days, what happened? Yes, Jesus was raised from the dead. He conquered death! He conquered sin! Jesus’ resurrection is so important, because by his resurrection God proved that Jesus was indeed the Son of God, the Messiah.
Scene 5: And Jesus bridged the gap between God and humans. He opened the door of salvation to everyone who believes.
Scene 6: Now we have a choice. The Bible says, “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (Jn 1:12, NIV). So if you haven’t yet, this is the day. Open the door of your heart, and accept Jesus. Trust him. Believe him. And you will become children of God.
Why don’t we read John 3:16 and put our names in the blank spaces?
“For God so loved ___________ that he gave his one and only Son, that ________ believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (Jn 3:16). Amen! That is the gospel in a nutshell.
What the Gospel Does
What the Gospel Does
Now we move on to the second part of Paul’s message: what the gospel does. In verse 25 he says, “Now to the one who is able to strengthen you with my gospel…” (ISV) This is very important. Not only does God save us with the gospel, but also he strengthens us with the gospel. In other words, the gospel is the power of God to save and strengthen us. Like Timothy Kelly said, the gospel is not just the A-B-C’s of the Christian life, but the A-Z of the Christian life. Some people begin their Christian journey with the gospel, and then leave the gospel behind and try to get stronger with something else. No! We never outgrow our need for the gospel. God saves us with the gospel. Not only that, but also he strengthens us, changes us, shapes us, grows us with the gospel.
Let me give you an illustration from my own life how God strengthens us with the gospel. In 2010 I went on a mission trip to China with the church members. The mission trip schedule was heavy, and we had to travel a long distance each day. One of the members was pregnant at that time. One night she discharged blood heavily and had several other symptoms of miscarriage. One member said, “My wife had exactly the same symptoms like this, and finally she had a miscarriage. So we have to prepare for the worst.” As I heard what he said, my heart was so heavy. I didn’t know what to do. The word, “miscarriage” was ringing in my ears all night. Early the next morning I ran to God and poured out my heart like water before him. God did speak to me through the psalm of the day, Psalm 27:13-14, “I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living! Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.” As soon as I read this passage, my fear, my anxiety, my burden was gone. Instead, God gave me new hope, new faith, that was resurrection hope, resurrection faith – “God will save this child. But if not, it wouldn’t make any difference. If Christ is exalted in this situation, whether by life or by death, I will rejoice.”
There are times when we hear those voices:
Let me give you an illustration from my own life how God strengthens us with the gospel. In 2010 I went on a mission trip to China with the church members. The mission trip schedule was heavy, and we had to travel a long distance each day. One of the members was pregnant at that time. One night she discharged blood heavily and had several other symptoms of miscarriage. One member said, “My wife had exactly the same symptoms like this, and finally she had a miscarriage. So we have to prepare for the worst.” As I heard what he said, my heart was so heavy. I didn’t know what to do. The word, “miscarriage” was ringing in my ears all night. Early the next morning I ran to God and poured out my heart like water before him. God did speak to me through the psalm of the day, Psalm 27:13-14, “I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living! Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.” As soon as I read this passage, my fear, my anxiety, my burden was gone. Instead, God gave me new hope, new faith, that was resurrection hope, resurrection faith – “God will save this child. But if not, it wouldn’t make any difference. If Christ is exalted in this situation, whether by life or by death, I will rejoice.”
There are times when we hear those voices:
- being a pastor isn’t worth it; preaching the word isn’t worth it;
- being a wife and mother isn’t worth it; being a husband and father isn’t worth it;
- being honest at work isn’t worth it;
- spending my time, my money, my gifts for church mission and ministry isn’t worth it;
- teaching this class of boys and girls isn’t worth it;
- obeying my parents and teachers isn’t worth it.
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[1] Ann Vande Zande, “How to Share the Gospel with Your Child,” https://www.focusonthefamily.com/parenting/spiritual-growth-for-kids/how-to-share-the-gospel-with-your-child
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