There have been so many misconceptions about the Gospel and I am going to address what the Gospel is not because it has been taken it out of context. Some people term the ‘Gospel’ as prayers, faith in God, obedience to the will of God, forgiveness, keeping of the Ten Commandments, payment of tithes etc. The Gospel is not any of them.
The message of the Gospel is centred on four themes which are: the Death, Burial and Resurrection for the forgiveness of our sins and his Ascension into Heaven. If these four elements are not mentioned in the message, then it is not the Gospel.
Apostle Paul said in Romans 1:16 that the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation. Any message, that doesn’t preach about the saving power of God is not the Gospel.
Now, the word ‘Gospel’ means ‘good news’ which is translated in Greek as euangelion and when you hear good news, your normal response is to rejoice.
This is exactly what the message of the Gospel does for us because it is indeed beautiful to know our belief in it grants us salvation.
In this blog post, I will give an insight into 10 misconceptions about the Gospel.
What Is The Gospel?
It is God’s acceptance of Christ’s death, burial and resurrection, His ascension into Heaven where He is seated at the right hand of God and our belief in it for the forgiveness of our sins. If we know the Gospel but do not believe in it then our knowledge of the Gospel is incomplete.
Four Themes of the Gospel
The Gospel is based on the finished works of Christ which include: His death, burial, resurrection and ascension. Apostle Paul highlights the concepts of the Gospel in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4.
His Death:
The death of Jesus Christ is an integral part of the Gospel. The blood of Jesus Christ serves as the perfect atonement for sins. The wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life as Apostle said in Romans 6:23 The sins of who? It is our sins the scripture was referring to here.
On the cross, Jesus died for our sins in a bid for us to have everlasting life and be free from the consequences of sins. In John 3:16, we are informed that God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten son (Jesus) to die for the sins of the world to grant us eternal life.
The love of God is explicitly demonstrated in the death of Christ because while we were yet sinners, he died for us as seen in Romans 5:8. Through the death of Jesus Christ, God’s salvation plan has been fulfilled which is for us to reign with Christ forever as seen in John 3:16.
his burial:
The burial of Jesus Christ is another vital part of the Gospel. Paul indicated in 1 Corinthians 15:4 that He was buried and rose on the third day in accordance with the scriptures. His burial is proof of the resurrection power of God. On the third day of being buried, we can see that He was resurrected which means Jesus Christ conquered death in the grave. Death lost its sting in the grave.
His Resurrection:
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is another aspect of the Gospel. He rose on the third day in Glory, according to the scriptures as highlighted in 1 Corinthians 15:4. His resurrection is proof that on the last day we will rise as Jesus rose on the third day as shown in 1 Thessalonians 4:16.
His resurrection is the third stage of his finished works. The amazing part is that we partook in this resurrection process. We can see that from Ephesians 2:6; it made us sit in heavenly places with Christ Jesus.
His Ascension:
The ascension of Jesus Christ as narrated in Luke 24:50-53 is the final aspect of his finished work. Without the ascension of Jesus Christ, we would not be able to have everlasting life because it is proof that Jesus died, was buried, resurrected and ascended into heaven to be with God forever. We can see in Ephesians 2:6 that the finished works of Christ made us sit in heavenly places with Jesus Christ.
How to Receive the Gospel of Christ
The Gospel of Christ is received by believing in the message that God accepted the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ for the atonement of our sin and His ascension into Heaven.
This message should be received with a deep understanding that by ourselves, we couldn’t merit the grace of God but through the Gospel that has been fulfilled, we became saved man.
Ephesians 2:8 makes us understand that it is by Grace, we got saved and it was never or will never be by our works. In John 3:16, God said that whosoever believes in Jesus Christ shall not perish but everlasting life is assured for him/her. At the end of the day, know that it is faith over works and not works over faith.
Once we believed in the message of this Gospel we became a saved man and we were given an Identity In Christ The Gospel made us a new man in Christ as indicated in 2 Corinthians 5:21.
What the Gospel is Not: 10 Misconceptions about the Gospel
Many people have different notions about what the Gospel is because these are doctrines they grew up to know and today I am going to address 10 misconceptions about the Gospel.
1. The Gospel is Not About Praying:
It is very vital to preach about praying but it is certainly not the Gospel. Prayers don’t have the power to save, only the Gospel does. We can be praying every time and every day but it won’t save us if we do not believe the Gospel. The Gospel is the power of God unto salvation.
2. The Gospel is Not About Obedience to God:
It is right to adhere to the instructions of God but it is certainly not where the Gospel lies. Obedience to the will of God is different from the message the Gospel preaches. Following the 10 commandments so we can be saved won’t grant us salvation because it is only an act to fulfil all righteousness. Our belief in the Gospel is what gets us saved. The Gospel is the power of God unto salvation.
3. The Gospel is Not About Paying of Tithes:
Payment of monthly tithes doesn’t have the power to save but it is an instruction that we ought to follow. It is best not to centre our knowledge of the Gospel around paying our tithes every month because it doesn’t preach the saving power of God. The Gospel is what preaches about the power of God unto salvation.
4. The Gospel is Not About Faith in God:
Having faith in God for something is very necessary because, in that sense, we trust him to do that which seems impossible. However, that is not the Gospel of Christ because it doesn’t save us. The Gospel is the power of God unto salvation.
5. The Gospel is Not About Forgiving One Another:
The Gospel is not about forgiving one another and it is right to not keep grudges and forgive those who hurt us but that is not the Gospel.
The Gospel is centred around the death, burial and resurrection for the forgiveness of sins and not forgiveness towards one another.
The Gospel message preaches about the forgiveness of God for humanity, through this forgiveness we have been saved as seen in Ephesians 1:7.
6. The Gospel is Not About Going to Church:
Going to church is necessary for our spiritual growth but that is not where the Gospel lies. We can go to church every Sunday but if we do not believe the Gospel then we are not saved. The Gospel is the power of God unto salvation.
7. The Gospel is Not About Being at Peace with Our Fellow Brethren:
The Gospel is not about being at peace with others. The Gospel presents a different message which is about the power of God unto salvation.
8. The Gospel Is Not About The 10 Commandments:
The Gospel is not about keeping the 10 commandments. The 10 commandments were based on laws but the Gospel is based on Grace. The 10 commandments were given before the advent of Jesus Christ.
Knowing the laws and keeping them doesn’t save us, the Gospel is what gets us saved. Through his sacrifice, we have been empowered by Grace unto good works (Philippians 2:13) and it is not by our efforts to empower ourselves.
9. The Gospel is Not About Fellowship:
The Gospel is not about fellowship with the brethren. It is right to fellowship with the brethren but it won’t save us because it is not centred on the Gospel’s message.
10. The Gospel is Not About Performing Miracles:
The Gospel is not about performing miracles. As a believer we can produce good works; perform miracles, signs and wonders etc. but it is not the power of God unto salvation.
Conclusion:
I hope you were blessed by this post. The 10 misconceptions about the Gospel here are things we ought to practice as believers but it doesn’t save us. There are many false doctrines around what the Gospel is in our day because everyone is presenting their version of the Gospel.
If the message preached doesn’t talk about the death, burial, and resurrection for the propitiation of our sins and his ascension into Heaven, then it is not the Gospel. Thank you for reading to this point, your feedback in the comment section will be highly appreciated.
Read also: What the Gospel is and Isn’t
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[…] God’s Grace is his unlimited favour towards us. It is not earned or merited but it has been freely given to us because of the finished works of Christ. […]
I really enjoyed my stay here, I have a knowledge about what the gospel is and what the gospel is not. I pray our knowledge help us to love Christ the more. amen
It is a great pleasure to know this. I thank God that your knowledge about the Gospel has been updated and it only gets better from here. Amen to your prayers!