Doctrine of the Day: The Gospel - Part 2

Last week I introduced the gospel as the first doctrine I would write about. This week I want to begin to lay out what the gospel is piece by piece. 

Now, it is common to start a conversation about the gospel with either John 3:16 or with some other verse that goes directly to the Good News of what Jesus accomplished on the cross in purchasing salvation for those who believe in Him. That is certainly understandable when you consider that "gospel" literally means "good news."

However, in order to really understand the Good News of what Jesus did on the cross, and therefore proclaim that news to those who are lost, we must place the good news in its fuller context of God's entire "old redemption story." That means that we need to go back a little further, actually a LOT further back and talk about God's plan for creation. 

The five words that I use as a rough outline for the Gospel (God. Man. Sin. Christ. Faith.) are not original. They are meant to be helpful in placing the gospel in the right context that begins with God and not with man. There is a danger in beginning our gospel presentations with man's sin by starting with a verse like Romans 3:23. It throws the lost person into the story about sin's affront to the glory of God without giving a reason why the glory of God is a big deal. Therefore, I think it is helpful to begin with God and his purposes for creation to give a context for sin and the necessity of Christ's death on the cross.

• God

We start our explanation of the Gospel with the purpose for which God created the world: He created us for his glory. This is the supreme purpose and plan of God... to magnify and glorify himself.  

Isaiah 43:6-7

Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the end of the earth, every one who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory.

In fact, the Bible is replete with verses that say that He does everything for his glory:

He called Israel for his glory (Jeremiah 13:11)

He rescued Israel from Egypt for his glory (Psalm 106:7-8)

He raised Pharaoh up for his glory (Romans 9:17)

He spared Israel in the desert for his glory (2 Samuel 7:23)

He was faithful to his people for his glory (1 Samuel 12:22)

Jesus went to the cross for his own glory (John 17:5)

The list goes on, but I think these are enough for now. 

So the thing we need to communicate in setting up the Good News is that God is central and supreme; man is not. Everything God does is to glorify his Name because his Name is preeminent not ours. 

THE biggest problem every person has is sin. That sin manifests itself in everyone's life the exact same way... selfish pride. Every lost person thinks he is the center of the universe and lives in a way that reflects that. Every person acts out of a desire to satisfy their own desires. We do not acknowledge God or honor Him and we worship the god of self (Romans 1:18-25). 

We must begin a Copernican revolution in their lives by telling them they are not the center of the universe... God is. Once we lay this foundation we will be able to build on it with a more specific discussion of what our responsibilities are to this Supreme God of the universe who does everything for his own glory, even love us. 

But that is for next week. In the meantime, meditate on the truth that God does everything for his own glory and ask yourself "Do I give Him the glory He deserves?"