ET Session 3 - "What Is Not The Gospel?"

What is not the Gospel?

Some Examples:
a)Personal experience or personal relationship.
b)Personal testimony.
c)Arguing from subjective experience –vs.- objective historical truth.


We must be careful with how we define “the Gospel”. When our definition of the Gospel is explained in terms of personal relationship or in a manner that is abstracted; in other words if our answer to “what is the Gospel” focuses on our experience, our relationship, our obedience and our explanation of “what is the Gospel” does not get you to blood, cross, and resurrection in about 2” it is not a Biblical explanation of “the Gospel”. The Gospel stands outside of us, the Gospel does not need us in order to be the Gospel – therefore our personal experience or personal testimony is not the Gospel. Our testimony should be Christ and Him crucified and resurrected. “Asking Jesus into your heart” as an answer for what is the Gospel does the Gospel no justice and really trivializes a biblical understanding of faith which we will discuss later. “Following Jesus” was not the Gospel message of the 1st century church. They preached “the Gospel” knowing this message would transform their hearers which in turn would create in them a desire to follow Jesus. The good news was they could be saved from the wrath of God, not that they could follow Jesus and be persecuted – that is part of dying to self and living the crucified life.

Your personal testimony is not the power…

(Rom 1:16) For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

Your personal testimony does not create faith…

(Rom 10:17) So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

John Piper on "The Gospel"

ET Session 2 - What is the Gospel?

(1 Co 15: 3-4) (3) For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, (4) that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,

Sin must have a blood sacrifice God’s wrath must be satisfied. “in accordance with the Scriptures”, Jesus is our sacrifice.

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

(Gal 1:3-4) Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, (4) who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father,

(1Pe 2:23-25) When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. (24) He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. (25) For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

(1Pe 1:17-21) And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one's deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, (18) knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, (19) but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. (20) He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you (21) who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

Rom 8:32) He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?

"In accordance with the Scriptures" He is both law keeper (righteousness) and sin bearer (sacrifice).

(Rom 3:21-26) But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it-- (22) the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: (23) for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, (24) and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, (25) whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. (26) It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

"Suprising Insights From The Formally Unchurched And Proven Ways To Reach Them" By: Thom Rainer

Dear Fellow Laborers In The Gospel,

Thom Rainer (PhD Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and President and CEO of LifeWay) has given us an incredible tool for understanding the formally unchurched and ways to reach them. I've just begun reading the book and I am hooked! The book and his research are incredibly insightful and informative.

Here are a few quotes: "The formerly unchurched in our study left little doubt as to the importance of personal evangelism in reaching the unchurched. Over one half (53%) indicated that someone from the church they joined shared Christ with them." "While the building of relationships with the unchurched is critical, we heard repeatedly that an evangelistic visit even by a stranger from the church, had an eternal impact."

Should these insights surprise us? No! The Bible teaches us that the power of God unto salvation is the Gospel. Did you realize that for every 85 church members in America there is only 1 convert annually! What does this tell us? It tells me that those who profess Christ do not evangelize the lost. God save us from religion and help us to focus on the Gospel and actively pursue a lost and dying world.

In Christ,

Jimmy

Mark Driscoll on "The Gospel"

ET Session 1 - What is the Gospel?

(1Co 15:1-11) Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, (2) and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you--unless you believed in vain. (3) For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, (4) that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,


1.Quite simply it is the good news about the person and work of Jesus Christ.
2.Isaiah 53: 1-12 is another great example.

(Isa 53:1-12) Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? (2) For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. (3) He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. (4) Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. (5) But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed. (6) All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned--every one--to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. (7) He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth. (8) By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people? (9) And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth. (10) Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. (11) Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities. (12) Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.


“In accordance with the Scriptures” He is both law keeper (righteousness) and sin bearer (sacrifice).

“The Law is what God demands, the Gospel is what God gives. And what God demands in the Law He gives in the Gospel”.

“The Law demands perfection (perfect righteousness), sacrifice and punishment (penalty for not keeping the law perfectly)”.


(1 Co 15: 3-4) (3) For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, (4) that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,

“in accordance with the Scriptures”, Jesus is our righteousness.


(1Co 1:30) And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption,

(Rom 10:4) For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.

(2Pe 1:1) Simeon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:

(Php 1:11) filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.


(Gal 2:21) I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.

(2Co 5:21) For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

(Rom 5:17-19) For if, because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ. (18) Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. (19) For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous.

(Rom 4:5-8 ) And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, (6) just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works: (7) "Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; (8) blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin."

(Php 3:8-9) Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ (9) and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith--

Evangelism Training

Evangelism Training begins Monday the 14th of September at 5:45PM, we will meet in the fellowship/gym area of Bethel Baptist Church (East 86th St N Owasso, OK 74055 -- 272-2229). Stay tuned to this blog for updates and lesson posts.