Survey: Majority of American Christians Don’t Believe the Gospel
The gospel according to Paul is simultaneously an affirmation of who Jesus is (Rom. 1:3-4) as well as of what he has done (1 Cor. 15). In Romans 1, Paul says he was “set apart for the gospel of God 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 . . .” Then, in 1 Corinthians 15, Paul adds:
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.
Simon Gathercole summarizes the Pauline definition of the gospel as: God’s account of his saving activity in Jesus the Messiah, in which, by Jesus’s death and resurrection, he atones for sin and brings new creation. Our faith in Jesus, not our works, makes us right with God (Rom. 3:28).
There is, of course, more to the gospel than the good news about our salvation being purchased by Jesus and through faith in him sinful men and women are reconciled to a holy God. But if you do not believe that aspect of the gospel you do not believe the gospel. And if you don’t believe the gospel you should stop calling yourself a Christian.
This survey shows that too many Christians aren’t Christians at all. They are not relying on the finished work in Christ but trusting that their own works will be judged worthy by God. There are many reasons why this belief is prevalent among self-identified Christians, but a primary cause is that they likely haven’t heard the gospel.
This may seem like an absurd claim since Christian leaders in America appear to be constantly talking about the gospel. But this is partially due to self-selection bias: if you’re the type of person who would visit the website of The Gospel Coalition to read an article about how American Christians don’t believe the gospel, you probably assume most Christians are also familiar with the gospel. Even in gospel-centered churches, though, we can’t take for granted that the good news has been fully heard. As my friend and pastor Eric Saunders says, when you get tired of talking about a subject is usually when your audience is just starting to pay attention to your message.
This survey should be a reminder how easy it is for people to slip back in to relying on themselves, and how we need to constantly proclaim the gospel—to ourselves and our neighbors—until we fully realize that we can only be rescued from our sin through what Jesus accomplished by his life, death, and resurrection.
hope this helps !!!
The gospel according to Paul is simultaneously an affirmation of who Jesus is (Rom. 1:3-4) as well as of what he has done (1 Cor. 15). In Romans 1, Paul says he was “set apart for the gospel of God 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 . . .” Then, in 1 Corinthians 15, Paul adds:
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.
Simon Gathercole summarizes the Pauline definition of the gospel as: God’s account of his saving activity in Jesus the Messiah, in which, by Jesus’s death and resurrection, he atones for sin and brings new creation. Our faith in Jesus, not our works, makes us right with God (Rom. 3:28).
There is, of course, more to the gospel than the good news about our salvation being purchased by Jesus and through faith in him sinful men and women are reconciled to a holy God. But if you do not believe that aspect of the gospel you do not believe the gospel. And if you don’t believe the gospel you should stop calling yourself a Christian.
This survey shows that too many Christians aren’t Christians at all. They are not relying on the finished work in Christ but trusting that their own works will be judged worthy by God. There are many reasons why this belief is prevalent among self-identified Christians, but a primary cause is that they likely haven’t heard the gospel.
This may seem like an absurd claim since Christian leaders in America appear to be constantly talking about the gospel. But this is partially due to self-selection bias: if you’re the type of person who would visit the website of The Gospel Coalition to read an article about how American Christians don’t believe the gospel, you probably assume most Christians are also familiar with the gospel. Even in gospel-centered churches, though, we can’t take for granted that the good news has been fully heard. As my friend and pastor Eric Saunders says, when you get tired of talking about a subject is usually when your audience is just starting to pay attention to your message.
This survey should be a reminder how easy it is for people to slip back in to relying on themselves, and how we need to constantly proclaim the gospel—to ourselves and our neighbors—until we fully realize that we can only be rescued from our sin through what Jesus accomplished by his life, death, and resurrection.
hope this helps !!!
