...which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord...
A question that begs to be answered: what exactly is the "gospel of God" that Paul was set apart for?
I was asked once to write down what the gospel was in my own words. I realized very quickly that I didn't have an exact, precise answer to this question. The gospel can be described in many different ways. A person's culture, upbringing, life experiences, mentors...a lot of things can affect the way a person views and describes the gospel.
I liken it to fingerprints or snowflakes...no two are alike but a fingerprint is always a fingerprint and a snowflake is always a snowflake, no matter how you describe it. The point is this: if God's purpose for Paul, and for us, is to live out and spread the gospel, we need to know it's foundation...the truths in scripture about the gospel that never change, no matter how we describe it.
The verses today shed a lot of light on the truth about the gospel:
"promised before hand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures": The gospel is a big deal. God planned it long before it came to pass, and He points to it throughout the Old Testament.
"concerning his Son": the gospel is all about God's Son
"who was descended from David according to the flesh": God's Son was fully man, a descendent of King David (prophesied in the Old Testament, which the readers of this letter would have recognized)
"declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead": God's Son was fully God, as proven by His victory over death.
"Jesus Christ our Lord": When we proclaim Jesus as Christ, we proclaim Him as our Liberator, our Savior, freeing us from bondage to sin. When we proclaim Jesus as Lord, we proclaim Him as our Supreme Authority, our Master.
I encourage all of us today to take some time and talk to God about His gospel. How would you describe it? Is it all about God's Son, as our Liberator and Supreme Authority. Has our view of the gospel become cluttered with an earthly perspective? Now is the time for all of us to take a deep look at the foundational truths of the gospel, and form our beliefs accordingly!
I look forward to any other thoughts on these verses, as well as any ways
these verses have played a role in your life. Most of all, I pray that
anyone who reads this will take a moment to meditate on these verses and
allow God to work in your heart!
Andrew, I appreciated your thoughts here; it has brought good reflection of too much to write.
ReplyDeleteOne thing it reminds me of is early this summer when I read a book by Scot McKnight called, "The King Jesus Gospel." Early in the book, it prompted many thoughts, I remember asking two questions, "what is the gospel," and "how would I explain the gospel to someone who didn't know anything about the Bible." (I remember the conversation at an extended family evening when I asked the question, "what is the gospel?" "How would you explain it?" The conversation was wonderful!)
I was challenged by the book in several ways. In Scot's writing of the book he asked many people what the gospel is, who preached the gospel, and a few other questions. One point I thought was interesting was that he had pastors telling him Jesus didn't preach the gospel, Paul did.
I think the most concise explanation of the gospel we can give is written in 1 Co 15:1-4. The most comprehensive/complete explanation is found in the four accounts. "The gospel according to"... Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
My own words: The gospel is held in the significant, and purposed, nature of Christ's: birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension. Each is an integral and inseparable part of the whole.
How would you explain the gospel, Andrew?
Calvin Teubel
I like how you explained the gospel, I don't know if I could state it that well! I would describe it as the good news of Jesus Christ and everything that He was and did - from the virgin birth to the perfectly sinless and perfectly righteous life He lived to his victory over sin and death, which has allowed me to enjoy a restored relationship with God that I could never deserve or earn. As you noted all of this is laid in in great detail in the four gospels in the Bible.
DeleteYou summed it up very well in how you worded it! It's all about Jesus Christ, and in every way possible points to Him!