What is the gospel?

[StanJ]

Due to recent discussions I want to gather an idea of what the community believes the gospel is.
From the Greek we know the word usually translated gospel means good news, yet there is a specific gospel message that if believed brings about salvation. What is that gospel? What is the gospel as preached by the apostles? What is the complete gospel? Are these all one and the same?
Let's discuss everything gospel related!
In the Love of Christ,
justaname

John 20:31 tells us exactly what the gospel is and Romans 10:9-11 tells us what is required when we believe it's message. This synergistic relationship is clearly depicted by Paul in Romans 5:9-11.

 

[skypair]

God is the one who saves, not our actions or choices.

Acts 2:40 -- "Save YOURSELVES from this untoward generation." We do actually have to turn ourselves around (repent) from sin of ourselves to righteousness that is of Christ. You will not find anyone in heaven who God forced, against their own natural will, to turn around. God has bidden us to a wedding, Mt 20, but if we believe that He is going to draw/drag us to that wedding, we are sadly mistaken. We not only have to choose to change our mind about the issue but also change our heart in complete obedience to His will.




It is through His grace that we repent (change what it is we think about the person and work of Christ) and receive faith.

Yes, and grace is the knowledge of the gospel of Jesus Christ which, if we believe, we must also apply to our lives in order to be saved. And, of course, the gospel is free and unmerited by us who are all sinners.

What you are falsely presenting is we merit salvation through repentance. This is a gospel of works and is denied in the Scriptures.

No. The "works" spoken of in scripture as unavailing are works of the flesh and of the law. But the works of our spirit -- belief, repentance, prayer -- is non disqualified, Ro 4:5. Just imagine what kind of God it would be that hated prayer. No. He loves to hear from His spiritual "offspring," Acts 17:27-28.

For He says to Moses, “I

WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL HAVE COMPASSION ON WHOM I HAVE COMPASSION.” So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy.
Right .. and in context, God always has mercy on His own people who worship and love Him.

It is in and by the grace of God we come to a faith through which He dispenses salvation. Salvation is a monergistic action of God.

That would be a Greek god you are talking about -- the gods of fate who didn't grant free will to men. As you may know, it didn't matter in the least what men did in trying to determine their own fate .. their "works" were to no avail .. their destinies were determined monergisticly by the gods.

skypair

 

[justaname]

John 20:31 tells us exactly what the gospel is and Romans 10:9-11 tells us what is required when we believe it's message. This synergistic relationship is clearly depicted by Paul in Romans 5:9-11.

Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. 10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. 11 More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

​Everything thing here for the believer is passive. Even our rejoicing is through the Lord Jesus Christ.

Salvation is an act of God, not man and God. Sanctification is synergistic.

 

[justaname]

God is the one who saves, not our actions or choices.

Acts 2:40 -- "Save YOURSELVES from this untoward generation." We do actually have to turn ourselves around (repent) from sin of ourselves to righteousness that is of Christ. You will not find anyone in heaven who God forced, against their own natural will, to turn around. God has bidden us to a wedding, Mt 20, but if we believe that He is going to draw/drag us to that wedding, we are sadly mistaken. We not only have to choose to change our mind about the issue but also change our heart in complete obedience to His will.




It is through His grace that we repent (change what it is we think about the person and work of Christ) and receive faith.

Yes, and grace is the knowledge of the gospel of Jesus Christ which, if we believe, we must also apply to our lives in order to be saved. And, of course, the gospel is free and unmerited by us who are all sinners.

What you are falsely presenting is we merit salvation through repentance. This is a gospel of works and is denied in the Scriptures.

No. The "works" spoken of in scripture as unavailing are works of the flesh and of the law. But the works of our spirit -- belief, repentance, prayer -- is non disqualified, Ro 4:5. Just imagine what kind of God it would be that hated prayer. No. He loves to hear from His spiritual "offspring," Acts 17:27-28.

For He says to Moses, “I

WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL HAVE COMPASSION ON WHOM I HAVE COMPASSION.” So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy.
Right .. and in context, God always has mercy on His own people who worship and love Him.

It is in and by the grace of God we come to a faith through which He dispenses salvation. Salvation is a monergistic action of God.

That would be a Greek god you are talking about -- the gods of fate who didn't grant free will to men. As you may know, it didn't matter in the least what men did in trying to determine their own fate .. their "works" were to no avail .. their destinies were determined monergisticly by the gods.

skypair





The way you quoted this is difficult for me to untangle, yet I will respond in a way that should be understandable.

1. The acts passage is not saying we have the ability to save ourselves from the wrath of God. You have done a contextual switch here. The passage reads:
And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation!”
The exhortation can also be translated "Escape from this..."

2. I do not disagree with application of the teachings of Christ and the apostles into our lives, rather only the qualifications for salvation. This application is sanctification, which all who have a saving faith complete.

3. You have made the claim of context being "God always has mercy on His own people who worship and love Him". This context is nowhere in this portion of Scripture and has nothing to do with what Paul is presenting here. Here is the controlling statement given in Scripture concerning context of So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy.:

for though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God’s purpose according to His choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls,

Paul is explicitly excluding love, worship, repentance, broken-heartedness, even faith or any human action be it physical or spiritual. The twins were not even born yet, they did nothing. God's choice is based upon Himself and depends on nothing outside Himself. This is explicit and clear in Scripture. Thus calling or election is not dependent on foreknowledge, rather on God's Sovereign choice.

4. The above clearly shows this is no greek god, rather the God of the Bible I am speaking of. Man is responsible for every choice he makes, yet God is sovereign in His decrees. Look to the Psalms:

The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
And He delights in his way.
24
When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong,
Because the Lord is the One who holds his hand.

I am not teaching fatalism. Man's choices are voluntary, not coerced, yet we will not make choices contrary to our desires or natures.

 

[StanJ]

​Everything thing here for the believer is passive. Even our rejoicing is through the Lord Jesus Christ.
Salvation is an act of God, not man and God. Sanctification is synergistic.

Reconciliation is a two-part process and in the case of man and God it requires both man and God to be reconciled to one another. God started the process as Paul also explains in 2 Cor 5:18-20. What many people fail to realize is that in any kind of relationship there must be a turning towards one another or a reconciliation to resolve conflict and God not only turned first, but He provided the means whereby we could resolve the conflict, by turning back towards God and BEING reconciled to Him. Hence the end of verse 20.
Salvation is indeed an act of God, precipitated by our being reconciled to him as he has reconciled himself to us. That is a synergy that many people don't recognize, or can't, do to predispositional bias.

 

[mjrhealth]

around (repent) from sin

Funny thing is, if you do a word search you will never find "repent" and "sin" in teh same sentnce

Repent

G3340
μετανοέω
metanoeō
met-an-o-eh'-o
From G3326 and G3539; to think differently or afterwards, that is, reconsider (morally to feel compunction): - repent.

Its to change ones way of thinking, just like the son

Mat 21:28 But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, Son, go work to day in my vineyard.
Mat 21:29 He answered and said, I will not: but afterward he repented (had a change of heart, thinking), and went.

Sin such a burden amongst christians and it should not be.

 

[Heb 13:8]

Funny thing is, if you do a word search you will never find "repent" and "sin" in teh same sentnce

Wow

 

[justaname]

Reconciliation is a two-part process and in the case of man and God it requires both man and God to be reconciled to one another. God started the process as Paul also explains in 2 Cor 5:18-20. What many people fail to realize is that in any kind of relationship there must be a turning towards one another or a reconciliation to resolve conflict and God not only turned first, but He provided the means whereby we could resolve the conflict, by turning back towards God and BEING reconciled to Him. Hence the end of verse 20.
Salvation is indeed an act of God, precipitated by our being reconciled to him as he has reconciled himself to us. That is a synergy that many people don't recognize, or can't, do to predispositional bias.

This portion of Scripture you offered speaks of how we were reconciled while we were still enemies; that does not sound like a two way street to me. Reconciliation in Romans 9:5-11 is man being reconciled back unto God through the propitiation of His Son.

For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son...

On this side of the cross before coming to God through Christ we are in open rebellion, only through faith in Christ can we come out of that rebellion. Here then this reconciliation process you speak of can be completed, yet again man must first come to faith.

Jesus' statement:
And He was saying, “For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.”

God is the protagonist and initiate in the drama of salvation and reconciliation. Man is the beneficiary of God's grace and only while in His grace through the faith God bestows can man subdue the desire to supersede God's authority and ultimately reconcile God unto himself. The synergy you speak of is during the sanctification process, not during God's initial drawing of us to Him.

 

[StanJ]

This portion of Scripture you offered speaks of how we were reconciled while we were still enemies; that does not sound like a two way street to me. Reconciliation in Romans 9:5-11 is man being reconciled back unto God through the propitiation of His Son.
On this side of the cross before coming to God through Christ we are in open rebellion, only through faith in Christ can we come out of that rebellion. Here then this reconciliation process you speak of can be completed, yet again man must first come to faith.

Yes I know what it says because I chose it, but your statement here just confirms that you're one of the many that doesn't understand what reconciliation actually is. There is also a reason why Jesus is called our Mediator and our High Priest in the order of Melchizedek. These are all terms that represent a carefully planned synergy between God and man but was instigated by God and can only be fulfilled or completed by man. Sadly your explanations are full of RT doctrinal speak, and not wording that is actually found in scripture. The only ones there were found to be in open rebellion to God were the Pharisees and teachers of the law in Jesus' day, who were in actuality believers of the day.

Jesus' statement:
And He was saying, “For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.”

So in this very narrow interpretation of yours from scripture, where does John 20:31 fit in?
How does God 'draw someone' in your opinion? I for one would have to say they would be invariable but limitless.

God is the protagonist and initiate in the drama of salvation and reconciliation. Man is the beneficiary of God's grace and only while in His grace through the faith God bestows can man subdue the desire to supersede God's authority and ultimately reconcile God unto himself. The synergy you speak of is during the sanctification process, not during God's initial drawing of us to Him.

I would have to disagree with this in that in the drama of salvation, Jesus is the protagonist.
His presence is felt and showing all the way back to God making a covenant with Abraham.
Mankind has always been the beneficiary of everything God has done to establish a people unto himself, and even when his chosen people rebelled against the provision of his only begotten son, this did not stop him but he simply opened app the reconciliation process for all of mankind. Remember what John 3:16-21 tells us... and the synergy I speak of has been there throughout the history of mankind when it comes to God establishing a people unto himself.

 

[Heb 13:8]

Stan, in 45 years you never walked away from your faith and lost your salvation? If so, did the Holy Spirit leave your body and come back.

 

[skypair]

1. The acts passage is not saying we have the ability to save ourselves from the wrath of God. You have done a contextual switch here. The passage reads:
And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation!”
The exhortation can also be translated "Escape from this..."

Sure, but it is a command .. there is an understood "(You) escape…" or as my KJV says, "Save yourselves from this…" In this case (2:40) it means to be baptized in water converting to Christian from Jew. But baptism (the baptism of repentance) is a figure of something you did spiritually. You repented to God from your sin nature turning to His divine nature — you were thereby forgiven and regenerated (Acts 2:38).

2. I do not disagree with application of the teachings of Christ and the apostles into our lives, rather only the qualifications for salvation. This application is sanctification, which all who have a saving faith complete.

Yes, the application of that Spirit is unto sanctification .. but repentance is unto the justification, the forgiveness of sins, which MUST come first. Forgiven = justified .. regenerated = sanctified.

3. You have made the claim of context being "God always has mercy on His own people who worship and love Him". This context is nowhere in this portion of Scripture and has nothing to do with what Paul is presenting here. Here is the controlling statement given in Scripture concerning context of So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy.:

See, here is a good demonstration of the sovereignty of God. It is NOT that God changes the will of man or that He makes him run .. it is that God is sovereign over the OUTCOME of our choices. So who do you think God is going to favor when 2 men come to him, one repenting of sin and the other presuming that God has chosen him? God controls the outcome. He chooses the one who wants to be reconciled and have a valid relationship with Him.

for though

the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God’s purpose according to His choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls,

Paul is explicitly excluding love, worship, repentance, broken-heartedness, even faith or any human action be it physical or spiritual. The twins were not even born yet, they did nothing. God's choice is based upon Himself and depends on nothing outside Himself. This is explicit and clear in Scripture. Thus calling or election is not dependent on foreknowledge, rather on God's Sovereign choice.
Hard as this may be for you to believe, this isn't talking about Jacob or Esau — God loved them both. They were His "offspring," Acts 17:27-28. This quote comes from Mal 2:3 and refers to their descendants. And His calling refers to the calling of Jacob to be the father of 12 tribes of Israel .. and Esau to be the father of 12 tribes of Arabs.

4. The above clearly shows this is no greek god, rather the God of the Bible I am speaking of. Man is responsible for every choice he makes, yet God is sovereign in His decrees. Look to the Psalms:

The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
And He delights in his way.
24
When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong,
Because the Lord is the One who holds his hand.

I am not teaching fatalism. Man's choices are voluntary, not coerced, yet we will not make choices contrary to our desires or natures.

Perhaps you are unaware but your tradition originated with Augustine, a saint from the eastern form of Christianity. As such, he was highly influenced by Greek philosophy and captivated with the idea that Greek philosophy could be infused into Christianity much like pagan sacrifices/sacraments had been in the western form. So what comes of that is totally sovereign God, fate rather than free will, monergistic unconditional election, irresistible grace, etc. — all things that are antithetical to the biblical God. See, folks in the east would understand this and come into the church readily.

skypair

 

[H. Richard]

Since the thread is "WHAT IS THE GOSPEL" I would like to say that when Jesus came He preached the "GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM" because all He preached was that the promised kingdom was at hand. He was here to setup the promised kingdom. There are no words in the 4 gospels that say he was here to preach salvation under grace. Jesus and the 11(12) never recinded the Law of Moses.

When God set the Jews aside and reached out to the Gentiles it did not include keeping the Law of Moses. The gospel of grace is that Jesus (God) paid (atoned) for all the sins of the world so it is only necessary that a person believe in that payment (atonement).

Atonement = reparation = settled, as a debt, payment, reconciliation; (for the slow of heart)

Matt 3:2
2 and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"
NKJV

Matt 4:17
17 From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
NKJV

Matt 10:7
7 And as you go, preach, saying,'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.'
NKJV

Mark 1:14-15
14 Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God,
15 and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel."
NKJV

 

[justaname]

Sure, but it is a command .. there is an understood "(You) escape…" or as my KJV says, "Save yourselves from this…" In this case (2:40) it means to be baptized in water converting to Christian from Jew. But baptism (the baptism of repentance) is a figure of something you did spiritually. You repented to God from your sin nature turning to His divine nature — you were thereby forgiven and regenerated (Acts 2:38).

Well to Jews Christianity is not a conversion, rather a completion or fulfillment. The repentance had to do with how they thought of the Christ they called to be crucified. Repentance has everything to do with the person and work of Jesus Christ.

Again we can not save ourselves. God saves us. You used this verse out of context to attempt to prove your point in an improper fashion.

Yes, the application of that Spirit is unto sanctification .. but repentance is unto the justification, the forgiveness of sins, which MUST come first. Forgiven = justified .. regenerated = sanctified.

Romans 5:1
Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

Galatians 2:16
nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified.

Justification is the work of God where the righteousness of Jesus is reckoned to the believing sinner. It is not earned nor retained by human effort and is based solely on Jesus' sacrifice on the cross and faith in such. Do not be confused. I am not associating your argument of repentance with works of the Law, rather I argue biblical repentance in association with salvation is the changing of thinking concerning the work and person of Jesus Christ.

See, here is a good demonstration of the sovereignty of God. It is NOT that God changes the will of man or that He makes him run .. it is that God is sovereign over the OUTCOME of our choices. So who do you think God is going to favor when 2 men come to him, one repenting of sin and the other presuming that God has chosen him? God controls the outcome. He chooses the one who wants to be reconciled and have a valid relationship with Him.

God is sovereign over all of creation. (Ephesians 1:11)
Lets look to how God chose to stop Paul in his "free-will" decision to capture and persecute Christians on the road to Damascus. Jesus blinded him and sent him on a completely different mission. Jesus determined to show Paul how much he must suffer for for His name.

Here is what Scripture teaches about man's self determinism:
The king’s heart is like channels of water in the hand of the Lord;
He turns it wherever He wishes.

Many are the plans in the mind of a man,
but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand.

God is ultimately the determining factor.

Then lets look to the words of Jesus:
But there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who it was that would betray Him. 65 And He was saying, “For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.”

Jesus is explicit. It must be granted by the Father that individuals come to Him, meaning in faith.

Then lets look even to repentance:
The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, 25 with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth,

God grants repentance...

the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God’s purpose according to [/size]His choice would [/size]stand, not [/size]because of works but [/size]because of Him who calls,[/size]

Paul is explicitly excluding love, worship, repentance, broken-heartedness, even faith or any human action be it physical or spiritual. The twins were not even born yet, they did nothing. God's choice is based upon Himself and depends on nothing outside Himself. This is explicit and clear in Scripture. Thus calling or election is not dependent on foreknowledge, rather on God's Sovereign choice.
Hard as this may be for you to believe, this isn't talking about Jacob or Esau — God loved them both. They were His "offspring," Acts 17:27-28. This quote comes from Mal 2:3 and refers to their descendants. And His calling refers to the calling of Jacob to be the father of 12 tribes of Israel .. and Esau to be the father of 12 tribes of Arabs.

I fully understand where this quote comes from. Yet lets look to how Paul is using it in this context:
Paul is stating God chose Jacob from before he was born to become the nation He intended to use for His namesake. Again this is a verse of the sovereign election of the individual called Jacob. Your point makes no difference in my argument. Just as other Scriptures affirm, it was God that selected Israel out of all the nations of the world for His namesake. And in this portion of Scripture God selected Jacob to be the father of that nation.

Then continue reading the Scripture in context: Paul assumes retort and your very argument, that God is unjust in selecting certain individuals. This only further confirms my interpretation. Then Paul moves to the negative side of choice where God chose to harden Pharaoh. Paul drives home his argument: So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.

Then Paul continues to preemptively defend his argument by posing the question, "Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?"

Why do people try to circumvent the plainness of Scripture in this context other than to assert their dogmatic eisegital approach to interpretation?

Perhaps you are unaware but your tradition originated with Augustine, a saint from the eastern form of Christianity. As such, he was highly influenced by Greek philosophy and captivated with the idea that Greek philosophy could be infused into Christianity much like pagan sacrifices/sacraments had been in the western form. So what comes of that is totally sovereign God, fate rather than free will, monergistic unconditional election, irresistible grace, etc. — all things that are antithetical to the biblical God. See, folks in the east would understand this and come into the church readily.

skypair

The tradition I follow originated with the Apostles.

 

[Sword]

Wow what a fight fantastic guys. why is a simple question so hard to stay on topic? No wonder the church is a shambels. every one knows better than anyone else. Got bored after page one. horrible reading. no wonder no one wants anything to do with christ if you lot represent Him

 

[justaname]

What is the Gospel?

The gospel is not behavior modification, becoming a better person or learning to become more moral. It is not taking the life of Jesus as a model way to live or transforming/redeeming the secular realm. It is not living highly communal lives with others and sharing generously in communities who practice the way of Jesus in local culture. These may all be good things but they are not to be confused with the gospel. They should accompany the gospel, and should not separated from the gospel and while God may use them to authenticate the gospel and make our proclamation of the gospel more fertile in hardened hearts yet they are not to be viewed as replacements for the gospel.

Did you notice the one characteristic of all of the above activities has nothing to do with what Christ has done for us, but all about what we do for him. The true gospel, rather, is news about what Christ the Saviour, has already done for us (in his life, death and resurrection) rather than instruction and advice about what you are to do for God. Christ's accomplishment, not ours, is the essence of the gospel. Above all, the gospel of Christ brings good news, rather than instruction about our behavior. The gospel of not about what we do, but our acts inevitably spring up and overflow in thanksgiving due to what Christ has done for us.

In short, the Gospel is the life-altering news that Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became man, lived a sinless life under the Law, died for sinners and rose again to reconcile them to himself, eternally victorious over every enemy that stood between God and man. Now, because of this redemptive work, there is nothing that separates those who believe from their Creator and all the benefits that He promises in him. D.A. Carson says the gospel centers "upon Jesus Christ and what God has done through him. The essential points of the gospel are Jesus Christ's status as the Son of God, his genuine humanity, his death for our sins, his burial, resurrection, subsequent appearances, and future coming in judgment. That no one is justified but in the gracious work of Jesus Christ in his death and resurrection. It is not merely a recital of theological truths and historical events; rather, it relates these truths and events to situations of every individual believer."

This is an excerpt.
For further reading:
https://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/articles/onsite/qna/whatisgospel.html

 

[H. Richard]

What is the Gospel?

The gospel is not behavior modification, becoming a better person or learning to become more moral. It is not taking the life of Jesus as a model way to live or transforming/redeeming the secular realm. It is not living highly communal lives with others and sharing generously in communities who practice the way of Jesus in local culture. These may all be good things but they are not to be confused with the gospel. They should accompany the gospel, and should not separated from the gospel and while God may use them to authenticate the gospel and make our proclamation of the gospel more fertile in hardened hearts yet they are not to be viewed as replacements for the gospel.

Did you notice the one characteristic of all of the above activities has nothing to do with what Christ has done for us, but all about what we do for him. The true gospel, rather, is news about what Christ the Saviour, has already done for us (in his life, death and resurrection) rather than instruction and advice about what you are to do for God. Christ's accomplishment, not ours, is the essence of the gospel. Above all, the gospel of Christ brings good news, rather than instruction about our behavior. The gospel of not about what we do, but our acts inevitably spring up and overflow in thanksgiving due to what Christ has done for us.

In short, the Gospel is the life-altering news that Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, became man, lived a sinless life under the Law, died for sinners and rose again to reconcile them to himself, eternally victorious over every enemy that stood between God and man. Now, because of this redemptive work, there is nothing that separates those who believe from their Creator and all the benefits that He promises in him. D.A. Carson says the gospel centers "upon Jesus Christ and what God has done through him. The essential points of the gospel are Jesus Christ's status as the Son of God, his genuine humanity, his death for our sins, his burial, resurrection, subsequent appearances, and future coming in judgment. That no one is justified but in the gracious work of Jesus Christ in his death and resurrection. It is not merely a recital of theological truths and historical events; rather, it relates these truths and events to situations of every individual believer."

This is an excerpt.
For further reading:
https://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/articles/onsite/qna/whatisgospel.html

***
Excellent post because I believe the same thing; Not what we do but what Jesus did for us.

 

[skypair]

***
Excellent post because I believe the same thing; Not what we do but what Jesus did for us.

That's the good news alright. But it leaves out the bad news .. that we can in no way receive what He has done for us if we remain in our sinful state (sin natured heart and sin guilty conscience). We MUST renounce our wicked ways and our unrighteous thoughts (Isa 55:7-8) before Christ can save us. We are seriously deceived if we think that God is going to change the sinner who doesn't want to change himself.

skypair

 

[FHII]

That's the good news alright. But it leaves out the bad news .. that we can in no way receive what He has done for us if we remain in our sinful state (sin natured heart and sin guilty conscience). We MUST renounce our wicked ways and our unrighteous thoughts (Isa 55:7-8) before Christ can save us. We are seriously deceived if we think that God is going to change the sinner who doesn't want to change himself.

skypair

As long as we are in the flesh, we are in that sinful nature. As "good" as you try to behave (and even if you succeed as far as you've tried) you are still a sinner.

Grace covers sins and with grace our sins aren't imputed to us. They are still there, but God isn't even looking at them.

 

[Netchaplain]

"Above all, the gospel of Christ brings good news, rather than instruction about our behavior."


Good article JAN - Though our works do not address attaining nor retaining of salvation, they reveal our perception and understanding of it!

Blessings!

 

[H. Richard]

That's the good news alright. But it leaves out the bad news .. that we can in no way receive what He has done for us if we remain in our sinful state (sin natured heart and sin guilty conscience). We MUST renounce our wicked ways and our unrighteous thoughts (Isa 55:7-8) before Christ can save us. We are seriously deceived if we think that God is going to change the sinner who doesn't want to change himself.

skypair

***
It is only when a person sees that he/she can not change their sinfuil nature that they realizes what a blessing God has given us in His Son's work on the cross. We can not change our sinful nature but God has given us His grace in that He made a way for us to become His children.

I think it is in the scriptures that he that has been forgiven much will love much. I think it follows that for a self-righteous person there is not much love except for him/her self.