The Gospel (literally “Good News”) is God’s proclamation of His total, undeserved, unrepayable, one-way grace and forgiveness of all our sin, together with our redemption and adoption as His children, all because of what Jesus Christ accomplished for us on the Cross and through His Resurrection.
In the Gospel, we come face to face with the tough truth that our sin is so great that the Son of God had to die for us, but the heartbreakingly beautiful truth that God’s love for us is even greater in that He wanted to die for us.
The Gospel means that, in and because of Jesus Christ and His Cross, there is nothing we need ever do to make God love us more, and there is nothing we could ever do to make God love us less. In the Gospel, we are set free to live lives of humble, joyful gratitude, grounded in the knowledge of God’s unfathomable love for us in Christ.
How to Respond to the Gospel
Mainly, just be thankful! That’s ultimately it. There’s nothing else you need to do. Embrace the fact that in what Jesus did on the Cross everything that ever need to be done to make things right between you and God was done once and for all.
That said, however, most people want to respond in some way when they really understand the pure goodness and grace of the Gospel. Being new to the Gospel is an exciting time, and most folks find themselves bursting with enthusiasm.
Some good first steps include asking other Christians to pray for you, to pray that the Gospel seed that the Holy Spirit has planted in you would establish firm roots. You’ll definitely want to join in worship with your church family every Sunday to be reminded of the Gospel truth for you. (It’s so easy to forget God’s goodness.) You might pick up a bible—we use the English Standard Version (ESV)—and ask one of clergy for some good places to start reading around. If you are not baptized, talk to one of clergy about getting baptized. (Don’t think you’re ready? Remember, baptism is just the starter’s pistol of the Christian walk, not the finish line.) If you were baptized at some point (regardless of denomination), you might even consider re-affirming your baptismal vows to mark the beginning of a new life of faith in Jesus. In terms of serving and helping others to discover this Good News you have heard, don’t worry, the Holy Spirit tends to nudge and prompt in the right directions when it’s time!
Connect with Us
Want to talk more about this Good News about Jesus? We’d love to chat with you more about it in person, on the phone, over email, whatever you’re most comfortable with. Feel more than free to contact us, with no strings attached. Or just come worship with us one Sunday morning. This is news definitely worth talking about and we’d love to explore it more with you.