What Is The Gospel And What Is It Not
Blog Contents
What Is The Gospel?
What is the gospel and what is it not? Are you sure you know?
There are many misconception regarding what the gospel is and the reason it is important to deal with, is because if one doesn’t know what it is, how can one believe and be saved? If one believes in the wrong Gospel, or a “slightly off” Gospel, is one then saved? We urge you to make sure you know you have the Gospel right.
What The Gospel Is NOT
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It Is Not About Praying
Prayers don’t have the power to save, only believing in the Gospel does.
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It Is Not About Obedience To God
It is great to adhere to the instructions of God, but that’s not practicing the Gospel, or believing in it even. Furthermore, following the Ten Commandments while not believing in the Gospel, won’t get you anywhere. It is grace through faith, not works.
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It Is Not About Paying A Tenth Of Your Income (Tithing)
Tithing does not have the power to save you.
4. It Is Not About Faith In God
Faith in God and trusting in Him, are one thing, however, that is not the Gospel of Christ because it doesn’t save us.
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It Is Not About Forgiving One Another
It is great to forgive others and to not keep grudges, but that is not the gospel. If you are a “good person” and think that will save you … it won’t.
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It Is Not About Going To Church
Going to church is not a requirement to either attain or maintain one’s salvation. Many church-going Christians today who don’t know and don’t actually believe the Gospel, are not actually saved.
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It Is Not About Being At Peace With Everyone, Not Even Our Fellow Believers
The Gospel has nothing to do with being at peace with others, and that includes with fellow believers. Being at peace with people or not depends entirely on what Christ would have done in a situation and has nothing to do with the Gospel.
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It Is Not About Keeping The 10 Commandments, Feast Days, or Not Eating Certain Foods
The Ten Commandments are the law and were instituted for very specific reasons. If you follow every single one of them all the time to near-perfection, it cannot and will not save you. Nor will it keep you saved. The righteousness and works are Christ’s, not yours, and it is by His grace that we are saved. Through His sacrifice we have been empowered unto good works (Philippians 2:23). It is not by our efforts to empower ourselves.
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It Is Not About Fellowship
Great to fellowship with follow believers, but it won’t save you.
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It Is Not About You Doing Healing, Miracles or Speaking In Tongues
Works and “charismania” won’t save you. Also check out the New Apostolic Reformation. To learn more about them, read this article by Michael Heiser. There are many more resources which point out that “Charismania” is more “kundalini” (not from God) than from God.
The Gospel Has Four Themes
The Gospel is based on the finished works of Christ which include: His death, burial, resurrection and ascension. Apostle Paul highlights the concepts of the Gospel in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4.
His Death
The death of Jesus Christ is an integral part of the Gospel. The blood of Jesus is the atonement for our sins. The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life if one believes. On the cross Jesus died for our sins, he paid the wages. But to make use of that gift, one must believe.
His Burial
Paul indicated in 1 Corinthians 15:4 that He was buried and rose on the third day in accordance with the scriptures. His burial is pivotal as it is required to have taken place in order for the resurrection to have taken place, and that in turn is proof of the resurrection power of God. Jesus was resurrected on the third day, which means Jesus Christ conquered death in the grave. Not only did He conquer death for Himself, but He did it for us. He overcame death so that if we believe, we too may have eternal life.
His Resurrection
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is another aspect. IN fact, ALL of Christianity hinges on His resurrection – if it didn’t happen, Christianity falls flat. If it did happen, it makes Him God. And that’s the point. He is God. And the work was finished on our behalf. For those who of you who say, “it never happened”, perhaps delve into the works of Gary Habermas here.
His Ascension
The ascension of Jesus Christ as narrated in Luke 24:50-53 is the final aspect of his finished work. Without the ascension of Jesus Christ, we would not be able to have everlasting life because it is proof that Jesus died, was buried, resurrected and ascended into heaven to be with God forever.
In Conclusion
If you still don’t quite see what we are saying, perhaps watch this short 6 minute clip.
