The Gospel of Jesus

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The Gospel of Jesus

What does the Gospel of Jesus mean to you?
The word gospel means “good news,” so the gospel of Christ is the good news of His coming to provide forgiveness of sins for all who will believe To all who believe and submit to its demands, the promises of the gospel include forgiveness of sins, new life in Jesus Christ and adoption into the family of God.1
The word gospel means “good news,” so the gospel of Christ is the good news of Jesus coming to the Earth as a man, to provide forgiveness of sins for all who will believe in Him. The “bad news” is that all men have sinned and will go to Hell unless they receive God’s grace through faith in Jesus.
According to Manser, “To all who believe and submit to its demands, the promises of the gospel include forgiveness of sins, new life in Jesus Christ and adoption into the family of God.1
Charles Spurgeon gives the following illustration to make the point that the Gospel is useful even to those who forget what they hear:
300 Sermon Illustrations from Charles Spurgeon The Gospel Is Useful Even to Hearers Who Forget (Ephesians 5:26)

The Gospel Is Useful Even to Hearers Who Forget

Ephesians 5:26

Preaching Themes: Church: Leadership, Education, Gospel

The gospel may be useful even to hearers who forget what they have heard. A woman is called on by her minister on Monday, and he finds her washing wool in a sieve, holding it under the pump. He asks her, “How did you enjoy last Sabbath’s discourses?” and she says that they did her much good. “Well, what was the text?” She does not remember. “What was the subject?”

“Sir, it is quite gone from me,” says the poor woman. Does she remember any of the remarks that were made? No, they are all gone.

“Well then, Mary,” says the minister, “it could not have done you much good.”

But it had done her a great deal of good, and she explained it to him by saying, “I will tell you, sir, how it is. I put this wool in the sieve under the pump, I pump on it, and all the water runs through the sieve, but then it washes the wool. So it is with your sermon. It comes into my heart, and then it runs right through my poor memory, which is like a sieve, but it washes me clean, sir.”

You might talk for a long while about the cleansing and sanctifying power of the word, and it would not make such an impression on your hearers as that simple story would.

2

Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God 2 which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, 4 and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. 5 Through Him we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name, 6 among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ;

7 To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Desire to Visit Rome

8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. 9 For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of His Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers, 10 making request if, by some means, now at last I may find a way in the will of God to come to you. 11 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift, so that you may be established—12 that is, that I may be encouraged together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me.

13 Now I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that I often planned to come to you (but was hindered until now), that I might have some fruit among you also, just as among the other Gentiles. 14 I am a debtor both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to wise and to unwise. 15 So, as much as is in me, I am ready to preach the gospel to you who are in Rome also.

The Just Live by Faith

16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”

Pentz offers the following commentary regarding Romans 1:1-17:
Expository Outlines from Romans 1. The Gospel of Jesus Christ (Romans 1:1–17)

1 The Gospel of Jesus Christ

Romans 1:1–17

The gospel is the good news of salvation. It is first mentioned in Matthew 4:23: “Jesus went about—preaching the gospel.” It is last mentioned in Revelation 14:6. Power in the gospel to save, keep, heal and satisfy is ours for simply believing.

A. The People and the Gospel—vv. 1–7

1. The Servant—v. 1. Paul was called to be an apostle for the preaching of the gospel—Acts 9:1–6.

2. The Scriptures—v. 2. God promised the gospel through the prophets—Luke 24:44; Heb. 1:1.

3. The Son—vv. 3–6

a) Incarnation—v. 3 The Word became flesh—John 1:14; Phil. 2:5–8.

b) Infallible—v. 4. The perfect Son of God—Col. 2:9. In Him dwells the power of God.

c) Impact—vv. 5–6. When converted, we are commanded to share the good news—Mark 15:16.

4. The saints—v. 7. To all the saints at Rome, grace and peace. Note: “called to be saints.” See 1 Peter 5:10, the call of God.

B. The Preaching of the Gospel—vv. 8–15

1. Pleasure—v. 8. Paul was pleased with the renowned faith of the Roman Christians. This dedication spreads to others—Rom. 16:19.

2. Prayer—vv. 9–10. Paul prayed for their needs and for an opportunity to visit them. Note Jesus’ prayer for the church—John 17:20.

3. Plea—vv. 11–12. He wanted to impart spiritual blessings, to establish and encourage them in the Lord. Cf. Matt. 5:48.

4. Preaching—v. 15. Paul was ready to preach the gospel. Cf. Jer. 20:9.

C. The Power of the Gospel—vv. 16–17

1. Gospel of power—v. 16. It is the basis for salvation and transformation—Heb. 4:12; for all who believe—Rom. 10:13; first for the Jew, then for the Gentile (Whosoever!).

2. Gospel of pardon—v. 17. (See also Hab. 2:4.) “The man who finds life will find it through trusting God”—LB. We are saved by faith—Eph. 2:8–9.

After we experience the power of the gospel, we should share it. We are commanded as Christians to go into all the world and preach the gospel—Mark 16:15. If we are ashamed of our gospel, we will hide it from those who are lost—2 Cor. 4:3. Paul was not ashamed of the gospel of Christ—v. 16. Note the results of being ashamed of Jesus—Mark 8:38.

3

ceremonial act. Central to both uses is the notion of power. The hand, particularly the right hand, was often a symbol for power in Bible times (see ; ; ; ).2

FINAL POINT
Bless Your Children, But Don't be Afraid to Teach Them!
FINAL POINT
During your lifetime, the Gospel of Jesus is the best news you will ever hear. Once you hear the Gospel, you have a choice. If you ignore it, you will go to Hell. If you accept it, you will spend eternity in fellowship with God!
Jesus is calling you to have faith in Him and choose life!

Faith is the gift of God. So is the air, but you have to breathe it. So is bread, but you have to eat it. So is water, but you have to drink it.

So how do we accept this gift? Not by a feeling, for “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God” (Rom. 10:17). It is not for me to sit down and wait for faith to come upon me with a strong feeling of some kind. Rather, faith comes when we take God at his word

BARRY D HANEY / General
Works Cited
1. Manser, M. H. (2009). Dictionary of Bible Themes: The Accessible and Comprehensive Tool for Topical Studies. London: Martin Manser.
Manser, M. H. (2009). Dictionary of Bible Themes: The Accessible and Comprehensive Tool for Topical Studies. London: Martin Manser.
2. Ritzema, Elliot. 300 Sermon Illustrations From Charles Spurgeon. Lexham Press

Bless the Children, But Don’t be Afraid to Teach Them!

3. Pentz, Croft M. Expository Outlines from Romans. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House. pages 4-5.
1500 Illustrations for Biblical Preaching Children’s Perspective
In teaching your child, never overlook the obvious. Remember, they view life differently than you. One teacher told the following story: Some third-graders were studying a unit on patriotism. After a discussion about how France had given us the Statue of Liberty, the teacher asked how many of her pupils had seen the statue. Several children raised their hands. Anticipating a chance to be dramatic and to recite “Give me your tired, your poor …” the teacher asked if anyone knew what was written on the base of the statue. There was silence. Then one youngster raised her hand and said, “Made in France?”1
I was asked recently, should we bless our children or grandchildren by placing our hand on top of their head? From a biblical standpoint I see no problem with this because instances of this practice can be found in both the Old and New Testaments. When you do this, you are asking God to Bless the child.
The following excerpt was taken from homefrontmag.com regarding blessing a child:

How to Give a Blessing to Your Child

Drs. John Trent and Gary Smalley outlined five biblical steps for giving a blessing to children in their book The Blessing: Meaningful Touch, A Spoken Message, Attaching High Value, Picturing a Special Future, and An Active Commitment. I have expanded on these steps below.
1. Meaningful Touch. Before a word is spoken, there should be the laying on of hands, a hug, or a reaching out to touch. We see this throughout Scripture, both in the Old and New Testaments. Appropriate touch conveys in powerful, nonverbal ways our love and affirmation. Touch prepares the way for our words.
2. A Spoken Message. In biblical times, children weren’t left to “fill in the blanks” as to whether they were valuable to a parent or grandparent. Words were used, aloud and in writing. Today, words can place unconditional love and acceptance into the heart of a child or loved one.
3. Attaching High Value. But what words do you say or write? The word blessing carries the idea that the person you’re blessing is of incredible worth and value, even as an imperfect person. In short, you’re helping a child get the picture that you see things in his or her life today that make the child special, useful, and of great value to you.
4. Picturing a Special Future. With our touch and with our words that attach high value, the response in our children’s or loved ones’ hearts can be nothing short of transformational. The light goes on in their hearts and minds when they realize that, because of the way God made them, they can do more than they ever dreamed in living out a God-honoring future.
5. An Active Commitment. Blessing children doesn’t mean we never discipline them or point out areas where growth is needed. But children know at an incredibly deep level if they have their parents’ blessing—if their mom or dad, grandmother, aunt, uncle, or other loved one really sees high value in them—even during the tough times. Genuine commitment is an unconditional commitment to an imperfect person that says as long as I have breath, I’ll be there to see to build these five elements of blessing into your life story.
Excerpt from Becoming a Spiritually Healthy Family, by Michelle Anthony (page 115–116).”
Blessing children was often done by “Laying on of Hands” in the Old Testament. In the Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible, laying on of hands is described as follows:
Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible Laying on of Hands
Phrase used in the Bible to describe a gesture or a ceremonial act. Central to both uses is the notion of power. The hand, particularly the right hand, was often a symbol for power in Bible times (see ; ; ; ).2
In the old testament, laying on of hands may symbolize the following:
• Representation
• Participation
• Bestowal of Blessing
• Commission people for important service
• Bestowal of the Holy Spirit
• To Heal
An example of the bestowal of blessing in the Old Testament can be demonstrated in :
The New King James Version Chapter 48
9 Joseph said to his father, “They are my sons, whom God has given me in this place.” And he said, “Please bring them to me, and I will bless them.” 10 Now the eyes of Israel were dim with age, so that he could not see. Then Joseph brought them near him, and he kissed them and embraced them. 11 And Israel said to Joseph, “I had not thought to see your face; but in fact, God has also shown me your offspring!” 12 So Joseph brought them from beside his knees, and he bowed down with his face to the earth. 13 And Joseph took them both, Ephraim with his right hand toward Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh with his left hand toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them near him. 14 Then Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand on Manasseh’s head, guiding his hands knowingly, for Manasseh was the firstborn.
Jesus gave his blessing to children, by laying on His hands seen in :
The New King James Version Chapter 10
13 Then they brought little children to Him, that He might touch them; but the disciples rebuked those who brought them. 14 But when Jesus saw it, He was greatly displeased and said to them, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God. 15 Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.” 16 And He took them up in His arms, laid His hands on them, and blessed them.
FINAL POINT
The Bible tells us to bring up your children to know God in : “4 And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.”
By teaching our children about God’s gift of salvation, we will ensure their place in Heaven. The Bible states in , And how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.”
Prayer Today taken from Crosswalk.com:
Dear God,
We praise you for your love and faithfulness. We thank you for your protection and care over our families. Thank you that you give us the power to love well; the wisdom to lead and teach our children. We know you’re for us; that you fight for our families today. You are Redeemer, Restorer, and Friend, we believe you have good in store. We confess, some days, parenting is tough. Many days we can feel anxious or overwhelmed. We ask that you would make us more like you, more aware of your constant Presence in our lives. Help us to release our children to You, so that You are free to fully accomplish all that You desire, in them, through them. Please fill our families with your truth and cover us with your favor.
Lord, we pray for these blessings over our children, today, and every day…
Amen
Works Cited
1. Green, Michael P., 1500 Illustrations for Biblical Preaching, Grand Rapids, MI, page 46.
2. Elwell, Walter, Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible, page 1317.
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