1. What is the gospel?
2. Why was Jesus’ sacrifice necessary?
3. What is the hope of the gospel?
What is the gospel?
The gospel (“good news”) is the story of God’s love, sacrifice, and redemption of humanity through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
The good news is not just that Christ died, but that he was resurrected, and has conquered death by the power of God, so that we may also conquer death if we choose to repent of our sins and believe in him, remaining loyal to the One true King, who is King of kings.
Why was Jesus’ sacrifice necessary?
Adam (a son of God) and Eve, the first humans, were created to be in the family of God and to govern the earth. However, they chose to rebel against God, wanting to become like him and obtain his wisdom and power. Because of this, Adam and all his descendants (us), were cast out of Eden, prohibited from access to the tree of life, cursed with increased pain, toil, mortality, sin, & death.
The sin of humanity’s rebellion could not be appeased. The Father, being a God of order and principle, required the ultimate sacrifice in order to bring us back into the family of God. So, he sent his preeminent Son, Jesus. Because of his love for us, he came to earth as a man in order to lay down his life in sacrifice, so that our rebellion could be forgiven and that we may be redeemed, rectified, and made capable of enjoying eternal life in the future.
“Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep.” 1 Corinthians 15:1-6 ESV
“In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” 1 John 4:9-10 ESV
What is the hope of the gospel?
If we are redeemed, but still currently cursed with death, what exactly is the good news?
If God sacrificed himself for us, why do we still get sick, endure suffering, persecution, and death?
We must understand this essential point: The hope we have been given is in the resurrection of humanity at Christ’s return to earth.
The hope is that we will be raised from death in new physical (and spiritual) bodies! Bodies very similar to what we have now, but without flaws or mutation, upgraded to Adam’s original design. It’s in hope that we will be given access to the tree of life.
“If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death.” 1 Corinthians 15:19-26 ESV
“Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.” John 5:25-29 ESV
“And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.” Daniel 12:2 ESV
“For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.” Romans 6:5 ESV
“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.” Revelation 2:7 ESV
“Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates.” Revelation 22:14 ESV
The hope of the church is not salvation from death in this life. One thing is certain; we are all going to die (except the small number still left alive at the time of his coming).
The hope is not to be healed from sickness in this life. Christians around the world still suffer disease, sickness, and death as a result of that sickness. This is not due to lack of faith. Like everyone else, Christians maintain mortal bodies, even when they come to faith. Sometimes people do get healed, but this is certainly not always the case.
The hope is not to feel happy, get rich, avoid persecution, or become alleviated from suffering. Many Christians have been, are now, and in the future will be tortured and killed for their faith. In fact, the bible says we will be persecuted:
“Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” 2 Timothy 3:12 ESV
“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake.” Matthew 24:9 ESV
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:10 ESV
“and you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” Matthew 10:22 ESV
“And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.” Revelation 12:11 ESV
The hope is not that we will suddenly appear in “heaven” after we die and float around as bodiless spirits.
The hope of the gospel IS: Through the resurrection promised to us, we will be brought back to life, as sons of God. And more specifically, brought back into physical bodies. Physical bodies that are in union with our spirit, created directly by the spirit of God and not through man’s procreation. We will eat, drink, sing, play, talk, govern, and rule just as we do now.
This hope is profound! This hope is incredibly exciting!
“So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.” 1 Corinthians 15:42-49 ESV
“we shall also bear the image of the man in heaven.” The man in heaven being, Jesus Christ.
There’s a very important distinction here I am attempting to convey.
This resurrection of humanity at Christs return is rarely taught in modern western churches. Many Christians, even those that have lived in the faith for decades, don’t know about our own coming resurrection. But this is explicitly the method by which we are saved and receive eternal life.
Why is this important? Because the resurrection taught by Jesus, the prophets, and apostles, throughout the bible, contradicts the traditional modern western understanding of salvation, heaven, and hell. These places have been perceived and taught by churches to be spiritual & ethereal / non-physical realms where we go when we die and live in for eternity. This takes away from the significance and profound meaning of Christ’s sacrifice, resurrection, and judgement.
Early Christian apologist, Justin Martyr, in Dialogue with Trypho (around 150-160 AD), stated, “For if you have conversed with some that are indeed called Christians, and do not maintain these opinions, but even dare to blaspheme the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, and say that there is no resurrection of the dead, but that the souls as soon as they leave the body are received up into heaven, take care that you do not look upon these as Christians…But I and all those Christians who are really orthodox in every respect, do know that there will be a resurrection of the body.”
The idea of ethereal heaven has caused a lot of confusion among Christianity. It’s not logically sound or biblically accurate.
As Justin stated, oftentimes, even in Christianity, the resurrection (of humanity) is not considered doctrine. He went as far to say those that don’t believe in the resurrection are not Christian. We should also note that it’s one or the other (directly to heaven or brought back at the resurrection), not both.
The biblical texts are very clear: the resurrection is the truth.
When the concept of ethereal (non-physical) heaven is laid out next to the resurrection, it’s incoherent: Upon death, we are brought back to life, either in heaven or hell, somehow having circumvented God’s final judgement, to live in non-physical bodies, in non-physical realms (We should also ask by what means we would experience life without a body). Then we are brought back to life a second time (the resurrection) to face our judgement or live in heaven yet again, but the second time in a physical body.
Because of this popular misconception, the physical resurrection is often given little to no attention or thought of importance. What would be the point of another resurrection if we’ve already been brought back to life after death?
We should remember that Jesus is currently, in this moment, living in his physical, resurrected body, in the Kingdom of Heaven. Is he the only physical being in this ethereal / non-physical realm?
If you find this confusing, you’re not alone. But it doesn’t have to be this way. The gospel of Christ has been laid out with one clear message: the resurrection of Jesus, and the resurrection of humanity at his return.
We do not go to heaven or hell upon death. When we die, we are dead (or “asleep”), as repeatedly stated throughout the bible, and then we are brought back to life at the return of Christ, some to face judgement, and others to eternal life with God.
"No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man." John 3:13 ESV
Heaven and earth are here in this physical universe. At the resurrection, on the last day, we are going to be brought back here. For further analysis on the physical location of heaven, refer to my article of the physical reality of heaven, flesh, & spirit.
The hope of the early church was not to live out of the body (“unclothed”) in ethereal heaven. It was specifically the resurrection, to be further clothed in a new body.
“For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.” 2 Corinthians 5:1-4 ESV
“There are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is of one kind, and the glory of the earthly is of another.” 1 Corinthians 15:40 ESV
“that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.” Philippians 3:10-11 ESV
'But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. '
'For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. ' 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17 ESV
The resurrection is the gospel of Jesus Christ!
This physical resurrection contradicts the conventional understanding of salvation throughout the majority of modern-day Christianity, that we go to heaven immediately after death. However, coming to understand the profound significance of the resurrection will strengthen our faith, draw us closer to the truth, and quell our fear of persecution and death.
This article will undoubtably raise questions.
For a more in-depth analysis, aside from reading the bible for yourself, the book Immortal by Lex Meyer, is a good resource. The author answers questions on specific bible verses and addresses topics such as near-death experiences, the rapture, the thief on the cross, Enoch, Elijah, and more.
Let us go out proclaiming the One true gospel, that Jesus has been raised from the dead, and will raise us up on the last day.
“For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” John 6:40 ESV
‘Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live’ John 11:25 ESV