Category: The Gospel in a Nutshell

Gospel in a Nutshell: Listen Up, Everyone!

The first gospel proclamation after Christ’s ascension into heaven took place on Pentecost in Jerusalem. Peter and the other disciples came out of hiding after being filled with the Spirit and boldness. The following verse contains the first words of Peter’s address to the throngs in Jerusalem for the feast.

But Peter stood up with the eleven, raised his voice, and addressed them: “You men of Judea and all you who live in Jerusalem, know this and listen carefully to what I say. Acts 2:14 (NET1)

Principle: Listen up, everyone!

When we share the gospel, be aware that it is a divinely authorized proclamation, similar to a trumpet blast. Peter raised his voice to be heard. It is the announcement that Christ, the crucified One, has risen from the dead and is Lord of everything! He ascended into heaven, where he waits for the appointed time when he will return to judge the living and the dead. To him all will be held accountable before God for how they respond to this message.

The gospel announcement deserves to be heard. It deserves our best effort to properly present it and our listeners’ most careful attention.

We should be aware that we are providing people with the most important and consequential information that they will ever receive. It is life to those who believe and receive it, but a sentence of death to those who reject it. Let us reflect the seriousness of the message with our earnest presentation.

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Gospel in a Nutshell: Jesus Is Alive and Communicates with Us

Because Jesus actually rose from the dead, he is alive and communicates with us. The Star Wars series of movies presents its version of god in a Buddhist way as an impersonal force that includes both good and evil. That is not the God of the Bible.

The Bible reveals that God is a Person who is good and loving and who communicates with people.

The Bible records the history of God’s interactions with men and women in which he clearly communicated with them through direct words, visions, angelic visitations, prophets, the scriptures, and last, but certainly not least, by his indwelling Holy Spirit.

The eternal Logos became a human named Jesus who lived for some thirty-three years, interacting with his family, friends, neighbors, disciples, and even his enemies. He spoke as no one else had. (John 7:46) His personality and spirit magnetically drew those whose hearts were open to God, but repelled those who were hardened. When he met people, he often called them by name, as with his disciples and Zacheus. When Mary Magdalene searched for his body after the crucifixion, he appeared to her in a risen bodily form she did not immediately recognize until he spoke her name, “Mary.” Instantly she knew him and was overjoyed, running to tell the other disciples that he was indeed risen from the dead. Because Jesus is alive, he is still able to communicate with his disciples. Later, after his ascension into heaven, he appeared and spoke personally to the apostle Paul, bringing about his dramatic conversion.

He also visited me some fifty-three years ago. I was a seeker, who was not at all convinced in the truth of the resurrection, but I wanted to know. After I observed someone I loved and respected, now my wife, transform from being a standard Roman Catholic to becoming a “born again” follower of Christ, I asked the Lord, if he were real, to come into my life and reveal himself to me, too. That is just what he did.

Paul said that if we turn to the Lord, he will remove the veil that hides Christ’s identity from our eyes. (2 Corinthians 3:16)

Because I opened myself to him, the risen and living Jesus communicated with me via his Holy Spirit that he is indeed who the Bible says he is. I am not sure how he did it, but I sensed his presence so strongly that I was instantly transformed inside and filled with joy. My life was changed, moving me from doubt to faith in an instant. I now know that he is truly alive, and knowing and believing that gave me eternal life, too.

I tell you the truth, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life. John 5:24 (NLT)

You, too, can know the risen Lord. He is no respecter of persons. Anyone who comes to him will be received by him. He will not turn you away. (John 6:37) Will this be your day? Will you open your heart to the risen Lord and ask him into your life as I did some 53 years ago? Will you ask him to reveal himself to you so that you too can believe and be saved?

Prayer

Jesus, I want to know you. I ask you to come into my life and reveal yourself to me so that I can believe and be saved. I want to be forgiven for my many sins and experience what it is like to be in right standing with my Creator. I want to experience your love and life and be with you forever. I give myself to you. Amen.

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Christ’s Exaltation and the Outpouring of the Spirit on Pentecost Are Part of the Gospel Message

Jesus’ resurrection from the dead proved that God accepted his sacrifice for our sins as the Lamb of God. He rose in power as the Lord of Lords, having stripped Satan of his authority and power.

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 1:4 (NLT)

When our Lord ascended into heaven forty days after his resurrection, he vanished from his disciples’ sight. Ten days later, on the exact day of the feast of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit was poured out on the disciples in the upper room. This proved that Jesus had been enthroned in heaven, from where he kept his promise to send the Spirit. (Acts 1:4-8)

Peter included the outpouring of the Spirit in the first gospel message ever preached by the apostles, making it part of the gospel.

Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear. Acts 2:33 (NASB)

Jesus is now ruling from heaven as Lord of the Harvest, having commissioned his followers to preach the gospel and make disciples all over the world until his return. This fulfilled John the Baptist’s prophecy that Jesus would baptize people in the Holy Spirit and fire. (Luke 3:16) The Spirit baptism empowers and equips God’s people to be Great Co-Missionaries and is a promise God wants every child of God to receive. This is integral to the message of the gospel.

To read more about the baptism in the Holy Spirit, click here.

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Jesus’ Resurrection Fulfilled Prophecy

Peter went on to quote from Psalm 16:8-11, written by King David, to whom God promised that one of his descendants would reign forever over Israel. (2 Samuel 7:12-13)

"For David says of Him, 'I SAW THE LORD ALWAYS IN MY PRESENCE; FOR HE IS AT MY RIGHT HAND, SO THAT I WILL NOT BE SHAKEN.26  'THEREFORE MY HEART WAS GLAD AND MY TONGUE EXULTED; MOREOVER MY FLESH ALSO WILL LIVE IN HOPE;27  BECAUSE YOU WILL NOT ABANDON MY SOUL TO HADES, NOR ALLOW YOUR HOLY ONE TO UNDERGO DECAY.28  'YOU HAVE MADE KNOWN TO ME THE WAYS OF LIFE; YOU WILL MAKE ME FULL OF GLADNESS WITH YOUR PRESENCE.'29  "Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30 "And so, because he was a prophet and knew that GOD HAD SWORN TO HIM WITH AN OATH TO SEAT one OF HIS DESCENDANTS ON HIS THRONE, 31  he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that HE WAS NEITHER ABANDONED TO HADES, NOR DID His flesh SUFFER DECAY. 32 "This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses. Acts 2:25-32 (NASB)

Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection did not come out of nowhere. It had been prearranged in the counsels of God (Acts 2:23) and announced centuries before through the prophets, of which David was one. The gospel is the story of Jesus the Messiah, framed in the history of God’s dealings with the patriarchs and the nation of Israel. It is important for people to know that Jesus fulfilled prophecies made hundreds and sometimes thousands of years prior. This is part of God’s testimony of the truthfulness of the message.

Good gospel presentations frame the message in the history of God’s Old Covenant people fulfilled in Christ.

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Jesus’ Resurrection Conquered Death

The gospel message hangs upon one historical event – Christ’s resurrection. Peter was an eyewitness, having been with, touched, and spoken to the risen Jesus.

But God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power. Acts 2:24 (NASB)

Peter used a mixed metaphor in this verse. The world translated “agony” literally means “birth pangs.” Jesus’ death and resurrection inaugurated the birth of a new generation of people. Those who put their faith in Christ, according to Scripture, are “born again.” Through being “born again,” we become part of a new generation of human beings who are recreated in God’s image and part of his eternal family.

Satan made a major miscalculation when he orchestrated Christ’s crucifixion. His plan was to destroy the Messiah and nullify the promise made to Eve in the Garden that one of her descendants would crush the head of the serpent (Genesis 3:15). The resurrection exposed his folly and fulfilled God’s promise.

Through death and resurrection, Jesus destroyed the power of death and released all believers from its destructive grip.

Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, 15  and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives. Hebrews 2:14-15 (NASB)

Those who put their faith and allegiance in the risen Lord may die physically, but never spiritually, and our physical bodies will rise again at Jesus’ return!

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. 26 And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” John 11:25–26 (NKJV)

God asks us the same question Jesus asked Mary: Do we believe this? If we do, we participate in resurrection life through Christ!

that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Romans 10:9–10 (NKJV)
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The Gospel Provides Forgiveness for the Ultimate Betrayal

 

Peter told his Jewish audience that they had done the unthinkable – killed their promised Messiah!

But God knew what would happen, and his prearranged plan was carried out when Jesus was betrayed. With the help of lawless Gentiles, you nailed him to a cross and killed him. Acts 2:23 (NLT)

The Jews rejected the messianic claims of God’s only begotten Son and murdered him, just as Jesus had predicted.

But when the vinedressers saw the son, they said among themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.’ 39 So they took him and cast him out of the vineyard and killed him. 40 “Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vinedressers?” 41 They said to Him, “He will destroy those wicked men miserably, and lease his vineyard to other vinedressers who will render to him the fruits in their seasons.” Matthew 21:38–41 (NKJV)

Peter refused to “sugar coat” this ultimate betrayal. He let the full weight of what they did fall squarely upon their shoulders.

Adam and Eve betrayed their Creator and Friend in the Garden by choosing to follow Satan down in the pursuit of a self-directed life.

Faithlessness and betrayal is at the root of all sin, which found its ultimate expression at the cross. Nothing man will ever do can compare to killing God’s only begotten Son!

When we share the gospel, we should bring our hearers face-to-face with our sin of the betrayal of God’s Son, the Messiah King. Even though we did not personally nail him to the cross. the sin of humanity, Jew and Gentile, through the ages is the reason he sacrificed himself.

The gospel calls us to admit our betrayal and rebellion, ask forgiveness, and declare unqualified allegiance to the risen Messiah King of Israel, Jesus the Lord.

When we confess Jesus as the Lord, the Gospel begins to accomplish its purpose in our lives, converting us from devilish independence to surrender to our Creator-Sustainer-Redeemer. Water baptism, our formal declaration of allegiance to the Lord, is the next step, followed by the baptism in the Spirit and a lifetime of loving and serving the King.

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Jesus’ Crucifixion Is God’s Plan to Save the World

Peter declared that Jesus’ crucifixion was God’s master plan of redemption.

But God knew what would happen, and his prearranged plan was carried out when Jesus was betrayed. With the help of lawless Gentiles, you nailed him to a cross and killed him.Acts 2:23 (NLT)

If we read through the gospels, we quickly learn that Jesus firmly believed in God’s sovereignty in all things. He trusted that nothing could or would happen to him outside of his Father’s will. He told his disciples ahead of time that he would be crucified.

“The Father loves me because I sacrifice my life so I may take it back again.18 No one can take my life from me. I sacrifice it voluntarily. For I have the authority to lay it down when I want to and also to take it up again. For this is what my Father has commanded.” John 10:17-18 (NLT)

When John the Baptist pointed out Jesus among the crowds by the river Jordan, he identified him as the Lamb of God who would take away our sins.

The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! John 1:29 (NKJV)

Jesus is God’s promised solution to our sin problem that condemns all to eternal death. That is sin’s wages Jesus was not some poor itinerant teacher who got caught up in a political power play that he was impotent to stop. He willingly and knowingly went to the cross to pay for our sins. When he rose again, it proved that his heavenly Father accepted his sacrifice on our behalf.

All who believe that and confess that he is the risen Lord will be saved. (Romans 10:9-10)

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Healings and Miracles Testify to the Truth of the Gospel

Peter said that Jesus’ miracles proved that he is the Messiah.

People of Israel, listen! God publicly endorsed Jesus the Nazarene by doing powerful miracles, wonders, and signs through him, as you well know.Acts 2:22 (NLT)

Some people discount Jesus’ miracles and relegate them to the realm of mere legend, but the people of that day knew first hand that they were genuine. In fact, Jesus boldly challenged those who doubted his identity as the Messiah to believe in him because of his miracle.

...The proof is the work I do in my Father’s name. John 10:25 (NLT)

When we share the gospel, we have the opportunity to bring people face to face with Jesus’ miracle working power, which testifies to God’s love and the truth of the gospel. We should stay alert to the Holy Spirit, who may prompt us to pray for those around us.

If we boldly pray for healing and miracles in Jesus’ name, we give the Holy Spirit a chance to demonstrate God’s love and the truth of our message.

Paul understood that God wants the gospel to be our words accompanied by a demonstration of power through the Holy Spirit.

For when we brought you the Good News, it was not only with words but also with power, for the Holy Spirit gave you full assurance that what we said was true... 1 Thessalonians 1:5 (NLT)
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God is a real person who can and will respond to us.

 

Peter quoted the prophet Joel (Joel 2:32) in the following part of his gospel proclamation on Pentecost.

But everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved. Acts 2:21 (NLT)

What exactly does it mean to “call on the name of the Lord”?

The Star Wars movie series presents God in an Eastern religion way as an impersonal “force” that can be tapped into by those who have knowledge. The God of the Bible, the true God, is a real Person. Not a human, but a person. Humans are created in his image. We have personality because that is an important aspect of God’s being. Personalities can think and communicate.

God has no problem at all in communicating with us. When we seek him, he tells us that we will find him.

Calling upon the Lord means we pray or speak to him as a genuine personality who listens to us and will respond. Jeremiah the prophet wrote:

Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13  You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:12-13 (ESV)

When we share the gospel, we should encourage our hearers to engage Jesus on a personal level by “calling” to him in prayer. We have the sure promise that he will allow us to find him when we seek him with all our hearts.

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Silent Belief Reveals a Lot

Gospel in a Minute

Have you ever felt convicted by God’s Spirit because you chose to be silent about your faith in Jesus? If we have the courage to publicly confess Jesus, it reveals that we value God’s praise more than men’s. 

Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; 43 for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God. John 12:42–43 (NKJV)

Evil generally is unashamedly vocal and perfectly willing to vilify and shame anyone standing for truth. The Old Testament prophets usually were very unpopular because they spoke unwelcome words of truth. They had to choose between bowing to obedience to God or to the intimidation of men. The same is true for followers of Christ today. If we stand for biblical truth and Jesus, we will suffer persecution, sometimes from other believers, but usually from the world.

If we want the praise of God, we may have to forsake the praise of men by refusing to be silent.

Keep my soul, and deliver me; Let me not be ashamed, for I put my trust in You. 21 Let integrity and uprightness preserve me, For I wait for You. Psalm 25:20–21 (NKJV)
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