This is what we mean when we say the word "Gospel"


The Gospel is a pretty hip and cool term these days.

Sometimes we hear it so often and even use it so often that we forget what it really means. We want everyone of our shows to be about the Gospel or the hope that we have because of the Gospel. 

This is why we made this episode.

We aren't afraid of using the word "Gospel." We hope you hear it on this podcast a lot but in that we hope you know what we mean when we say the word "Gospel." The Gospel is culminated in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. In his resurrection he defeated the greatest effect of sin, death and in resurrecting he showed his supremacy over all things. 

To get to the resurrection though one might ask the question, why did he die? If he died, how was he killed? The story really begins in Genesis 1 with God's supremacy over everything and his intimate creation of everything. Light, sun and stars, animals and ultimately his image bearers Adam and Eve.

These two historical figures enjoyed the very presence of God for a season until they rejected the plan of God. When Adam could have killed the serpent, he chose not to. In that disobedience sin entered the world and we are all damned in Adam. Conceived in iniquity and totally incapable of saving ourselves. Totally depraved, totally falling short, totally in need. God showed his love to us though while we were still in sin. 

God sent Jesus.

We love Jesus. Jesus came, miraculously born of a virgin and lived the life we could not live. He showed in his life his supremacy over wind and water, sight and sickness. He raised the dead! More than that, he did not sin and therefor proved to be the perfect lamb. Beaten and bruised for many, he laid down his life. Or, he became humble, even to the point of death, death on a cross. He made the atoning sacrifice for our sin. He paid the punishment in full. The perfect sacrifice had come! 

Jesus rose again. 

After being in the grave dead for 3 days, Jesus Christ came out of the grave. HE IS RISEN. Death could not hold him. He conquered these things so that those who would believe would have a redeemer, a savior. We sin not only because we aren't moral or perfect. Even our best good actions can be done for the wrong purposes, but we don't cling to our own righteousness, we are given his. 

This is the hope we have.

We roll out of bed because of the practical hope we have in Jesus. We go to work because of the hope we have in Jesus. We lead our families because of the hope we have in Jesus. We seek community with others who have hope in Jesus. We love the Church because it points us to Jesus. We can give hope to those who have cancer because Jesus conquered death! We can give hope to parents of rebellious teens because Jesus can penetrate the most formidable spiritual scales we have ever experienced... he can raise the spiritually dead! 

This is what we imply when we say Gospel... and we hope to say it a lot.


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