DEFINING THE GOSPEL. CLARIFYING OUR SALVATION

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” Rom1:16

For many of us the word gospel has come to mean anything that is preached on the pulpit. However that is so far away from the truth. Paul tells us here that the gospel of Christ is the power of God unto salvation. This is a very rich statement in every way. Let us take some time off to examine it.

1)      Gospel. (euaggelion)

The word gospel simply means good news or a good message. Thayer defines it simply as glad tidings of the kingdom of God…

This might seem like a simple thing but it has profound ramifications to us if it be true indeed. The gospel is Good News.

First it has got to be good. It can’t be bad or condemning or judgmental. If what is being preached to you isn’t good, it’s not the gospel! It must be good. Isaiah calls it good tidings of good.

“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!” Isa52:7

Secondly it has got to be news. The dictionary defines news as ‘a report of recent occurrences; information of something that has lately taken place or something before unknown…’

That means that it is in the past. It has already happened. It has already occurred. It has taken place already. It is done. It is finished. It is accomplished.
It is not a prophecy of what is going to happen, that wouldn’t be news technically, or a warning. The gospel is news. Good news.

When a preacher stands on a pulpit, their message should first of all be good and it should be news. It must be about a finished work. That is what the gospel is; glad tidings of good things.

2)      Of Jesus Christ

The gospel is all about Jesus. It is the good news concerning Jesus Christ and what He has done, accomplished and finished on the Cross. It is the good news of Christ and His kingdom which has already come.

The gospel does not proclaim your works and your efforts. The gospel proclaims the work of God in Christ. Today we love to stand on the pulpits and tell the people what they should be doing for God. We give them formulas, steps and methods to get God to do things for them or to please God. We are at the center of the messages we preach.  None of that is gospel. The Gospel is the good news of Jesus Christ. He is at the center of it all.

3)      It is the power of God unto salvation

“When I came to you, brothers and sisters, I did not come with superior eloquence or wisdom as I proclaimed the testimony of God. For I decided to be concerned about nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and with much trembling. My conversation and my preaching were not with persuasive words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not be based on human wisdom but on the power of God.” 1Cor2:1-5NET

The gospel is power. It is not rhetoric, it is not just talk, and it is not clever arguments and wise sayings. Today most preachers are experts at sounding clever, making wise quotes, telling very captivating stories and telling very funny jokes. Many preachers have become inspirational and motivational speakers. We should not be deceived. Talk is cheap. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation.

The word for power here is the word dunamis. It’s the word from which we get the English words dynamo, dynamic, dynamism etc. it means the following; force, ability, abundance, might, strength, violence. Thayer defines it as inherent power, power residing in a thing by virtue of its nature, or which a person or thing exerts and puts forth etc.

In a nutshell Paul is saying that the gospel is the ability, the dynamism, the working, the strength, the might of God that leads to or produces salvation is us.

The way that God has ordained for us to partake and enjoy the salvation that He worked in Christ on the Cross is the gospel. Through hearing and believing the gospel of Christ God is able to produce His salvation in every area of our life.

The gospel is the power of God that releases the effects of salvation in our lives. The problem today is that the truths of the gospel are not commonly preached or understood in many churches. This is the reason that so many Christians are not walking in all the benefits of their salvation. They don't have the power of the gospel working in them.

The law and its works are not the power of God unto salvation. The law and its works never produce salvation. Fasting, praying, giving, tithing, philanthropy, attending church and any other works of the law will never produce salvation in us. Only hearing and believing the gospel will produce salvation in us. Only the gospel is the power of God unto salvation.

4)      Salvation (sōtēria)

For many of us salvation means going to heaven. However the scripture doesn’t teach that. Salvation refers to everything that Jesus accomplished through His death, burial, resurrection and glorification. 

In fact the Greek word used for salvation here is the word sōtēria and it means rescue or safety (physically or morally), deliver, health, salvation, save, saving. Thayer defines it as deliverance, preservation, safety, salvation, deliverance from the molestation of enemies.

Another common word used throughout the New Testament to convey the same meaning is the Greek word sōzō which is translated as saved in Rom10:9

“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Rom10:9

This word means to make safe, to save, that is, deliver or protect, heal, preserve, to do well, be (make) whole etc.

Salvation is much more than just being born again. It refers to every benefit to which the believer is entitled through Jesus. It refers to every work and good thing that Jesus has obtained for us on the Cross. This means that it is as much a present thing as it is a done reality.

Therefore, if we are not experiencing the abundance that Jesus provided for us in any area of our lives then we are having a problem understanding and/or believing the gospel. If you need healing, it's in the gospel. If you need deliverance, it's in the gospel. Prosperity, answered prayer, joy, peace, love; they are all found through understanding and believing the gospel.

Paul the apostle was writing some last words to his dear son in the faith Timothy before his death. At this time Timothy was already pastoring a church. However look at what Paul told him;

“But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; And that from a child thou hast known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” 2Tim3:14-17

Paul admonishes timothy to continue in the scriptures which are ‘able to make thee wise unto salvation…”. Now why would Paul say this to Timothy well knowing that Timothy was already saved and was in fact pastoring a church at this time? Didn’t Paul know this? Of course he did. But Paul also knew that salvation meant much more than getting born again and going to heaven. He knew that salvation meant being safe, healed, delivered, healthy, prosperous, and victorious and every other good work that Jesus has accomplished. He knew that whatever Timothy needed or lacked physically, emotionally and any other way was contained within salvation. All he needed was to continue in the scriptures (including the gospel) which would enable him receive and partake of all of this. The gospel would be unto Timothy the power of God unto salvation. The good news is unto you today the power of God unto salvation.

Another time as Paul bids farewell to the elders of the church at Ephesus he gives them a similar admonition;

“And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified.” Acts20:32

What is this ‘word of his grace’ that Paul was speaking about? It is the gospel. It is the one which is able to build us up and to give us an inheritance among the sanctified of the Lord.

The apostle James also has something to say about this;

“Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.” Jam1:21-25

What is this ‘engrafted word’ which he also calls the ‘perfect law of liberty’ and which he encourages us to receive with meekness and to do? It is the gospel of Jesus Christ. The proclamation of the liberty we have in Christ as Galatians 5:1 says;

“Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage” Gal5:1

We can see from all of these scriptures that salvation is much more than going to heaven. It is everything that Jesus has accomplished for us on the Cross. The gospel is much more than telling you about going to heaven, the gospel is about bringing the kingdom of heaven right here, right now. In your life, in your family, at your work place, at school, at your church. Everywhere. That is what the gospel is. The power of God unto salvation right now.

SAVED SPIRIT, SOUL AND BODY

“And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.” 1Thes5:23-24

An easy way to understand our salvation is to first of all understand that we are made up of a spirit, a soul and a body. Each of these experience something different at salvation. Let us examine this a little bit;

We are already saved in our spirit, being saved in our soul right now through sanctification and will be saved in our body at the second coming of The Lord Jesus Christ.

a)      We are saved in our spirit

The spirit man has been saved already. It is a done deal. When Jesus died on the Cross He accomplished a full salvation for us. When we believe on Jesus we receive a brand new spirit that is completely in union with God and perfect. Our spirit man does not need to be saved. He is saved already and completely perfect. He is completely new. This is what Paul tells the Corinthians;

“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” 2Cor5:21

This verse is speaking about our spirit man. When we get born again we are brand new in spirit. Everything in the spiritual realm becomes new. It becomes fresh. God gets rid of the old corrupted sinful spirit and his world and replaces it with the spirit of His Son crying Abba Father in our hearts. He replaces the sinful atmosphere in our hearts with the heavenly, holy presence of the kingdom of God. We become heavenly, holy and righteous. We become the house of God, the Holy temple of God.

After God has done this, He seals us from all sin, corruption and impurity. He insulates our brand new spirit from the corruption of sin. The born again spirit, the new creation has been sealed off completely from the corruption and impurity of sin. He does this by the Holy Spirit who comes to live in our new spirit.

“In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.” Eph4:13-14

The word sealed basically has two meanings;

First it indicates ownership. It is a mark that is placed on something to show who the owner is. God has marked us as His own. We belong to Him. We have been sanctified and set apart.

Secondly it means to protect from corruption and impurity. To seal off to the outside world and influences. We have been sealed from the corruption and impurity of sin and this world. When you sin, the sin doesn’t affect or corrupt your spirit. It can only go as far as the soul. Look at this verse;

“Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.” Eph4:29-30

b)     We are being saved in our soul on a daily basis through sanctification

“Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your soulsWherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear” 1Pet1:9-17

The soul is being saved everyday by the present grace of God, and the Word of God and the renewing of the mind as we continue to hear and believe the gospel.

When we got born again it is our spirit that was changed and perfected to be just like God. Our soul wasn’t saved. This is the reason many of us still struggle with sins and habits and addictions that plagued us as sinners. These are still resident in our soul which comprises of our mind, our will and our emotions. It is commonly referred to as our ‘personality’. This needs to be changed by daily sanctification though the gospel which is able to renew our mind and to cleanse our conscience.

Every day as we hear and believe the good news of Jesus Christ, it becomes the power of God unto salvation in our souls. In other words it delivers, makes safe, heals, makes us whole in our corrupted minds, unstable emotions, broken hearts, bad decision making and in every area where we need salvation to work in our soul. The gospel of Jesus Christ releases God’s power into our soul to make us whole and spiritual as God is. This is what the bible calls renewing the mind and being transformed;

“And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” Rom12:2

The Greek word that was translated "transformed" here is the word "metamorphoo" and it’s the word from which we get the English word "metamorphosis". It is used to describe the process of a complete change or transformation. Like when a caterpillar transforms into a butterfly.

This word ‘metamorphoo’ was also used to describe Jesus' transfiguration when His garments became white as the light on the mount of transfiguration.

“And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.” Mat17:1-2

When our mind is renewed by the gospel, this is what happens to our soul. It is transformed and transfigured. There happens a complete transformation in us. We shine and radiate with the glory of God.

This is an important point for us to understand. God through the power of the preaching of the gospel begins to transform our soul from an earthly perspective to a heavenly reality. He transforms us from an ugly caterpillar into a beautiful butterfly. how does He do this? By the preaching of the good news of Jesus Christ.

“Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.” Rom5:9-10

c)      Our body will be saved at the second coming.

“… Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” 1Cor15:42-55

This incorruptible body will put on incorruption at the second coming of the Lord. Our body (the purchased possession) will be redeemed. At that moment, our body too will be saved.

5)      To everyone that believeth

This is not for a special few. It is for everyone that believes. It doesn’t matter who you are, as long as you believe. The gospel will work salvation unto you and into you. It does not say to those who pray a lot, who fast a lot, who give a lot, who serve diligently, who don't sin etc. This is a faith issue. It is to those who believe.

The Greek word that was translated "believeth" here, is in the present participle tense which expresses the idea of a continuous and repeated action. It means that we believed once and have continued to believe ever since. We didn't stop believing at the point of getting born again. We have to continue believing the good news of Jesus Christ. We must always have a present active faith in the work that God has done on the Cross. 

You must continue to believe on a daily basis for you to continue to receive the results of the Cross and to continue having the experience of salvation working in your life. 

Jesus spoke about taking up your Cross and following Him daily. The scriptures present true Bible faith as an ongoing experience, not a one-time action.

The word believeth carries the idea of an act or process which continues. So, the man that "believeth" is a man who has believed and is continuing to believe.

“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.” Rom5:8-10

We see Paul speaking about our salvation as a future occurrence and that we shall be saved from wrath through him. Again he says that we shall be saved by His life.


In conclusion we have learnt that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the good news of what Jesus has done for us on the Cross through His death, burial, resurrection and glorification at the right hand of God the Father. We have also learnt that this good news about what Jesus has accomplished is the power and ability of God that works salvation, safety, healing, health, deliverance, prosperity and wholeness in us. Finally we have discovered that all we have to do is to continue hearing and believing the gospel and it shall produce salvation in our lives and in every area that needs saved.

Believing the good news of Jesus Christ is what produces salvation (healing, prosperity, blessing, deliverance, protection and so forth. May we continue to hear and believe the good news of Jesus Christ.

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