A fellow blogger and friend of mine asked a very interesting question on his site the other day; "If we could go back in time and ask the early Christians 'what is the Gospel?' What do you think their answer would be?"
I'm always a sucker for this sort of thing, so I'll give it a shot.
In Greek (the language in which the New Testament was written) the word for gospel is euaggelion. It also means "good news!" It was a term to describe a historic (sometimes earth shattering) event of national importance. In Jesus' day every year there would be an announcement celebrating the birthday of Caesar; the Lord and King of the brutal Roman Empire. They would announce this event proclaiming, "The birth of Caesar is the euaggelion(good news) to the whole world." The Kingdom of Rome considered it great news to remind people who ruled the world.
This becomes fascinating when we see that the angels were doing the same thing when they announced the birth of Jesus;
"The angel said to them 'Do not be afraid. I bring you good news (euaggelion!) of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord." (Luke 2:10-11)
This was an announcement proclaiming the birth of a new King (Jesus) and a new Kingdom; the Kingdom of God! In this historical context, the first Christians would have seen this word "gospel" being used as a rebellion against the Roman Empire and everything it stood for. The Kingdom of God would have been considered by Christians and non-Christians alike as all-out invasion against the current political establishment. An invasion not of political force or violence but of peace, healing, forgiveness, and freedom to all. A Kingdom that expands by loving enemies, praying for persecutors, and dying to ones self. It represents a revolution; a countermovement calling out the injustice of the world, and bringing the love of God's light to all people. Now that's Good News!
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2 comments:
That's a pretty good assessment of how Christ was perceived by those who heard his teachings as well as by the Jewish people awaiting the Messiah.
In the blog post you refer to...
http://blogoftheway.blogspot.com/2008/12/gospel-according-to.html
...perhaps I should have clarified the initial question.
What do you suppose the Christians of the 1st Century (after Christ's ascension) considered the gospel to be?
The point I was trying to make was identify the distinction between the gospel and the effects of the gospel. Why Christ came, what the Cross meant and why so many of His early followers were martyred. Certainly, this gospel was much more than a message of peace, love, healing and freedom. Something bigger; something deeper was behind the rapid spread of Christianity and the passion behind so many who gave their lives for it. A revolution? A countermovement against injustice?
Perhaps on a superficial level but the gospel of Jesus Christ was and is much more than that.
I believe the Word is very clear about the gospel and that it points exclusively to the Cross.
This 'good news' was Christ crucified for the sins of the entire world. The grace of God made available to all who would repent and trust in His Son.
Everything else... the love, the peace, the joy, the dying to ones self, healing and experiencing God's Kingdom are the effects OF the gospel. Certainly, Christ introduced the world to the Kingdom of God but this Kingdom awaits us in eternity. What brings people to God, through Christ is the Cross.
Thanks, John, for your comments.
I love having this interaction between brothers in Christ.
There should be no disagreement between Christians as to the main purpose of Jesus' mission: To lovingly and sacrificially take the sins of the world upon Himself by dying on a cross - a punishment we deserved - so that anyone who puts their trust in him can be found holy and righteous in the eyes of God and have eternal life. There is nothing so incredible as the grace of God! Without it we are still dead in our sins with no hope of living eternally. But is there more to eternal life than just living forever in heaven? (Don't get me wrong, that's the best thing of course, but is it the only thing?) Towards the end of John's Gospel account, Jesus prays to his Father and reveals a definition of eternal life. Jesus says, "This is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent" (john 17:3) So, in other words (if I may be so bold) eternal life is "to have an loving interactive relationship with the one true God and with Jesus Christ his Son and messenger." The Greek phrase that John uses for eternal life literally means "Life of the ages." Which can also be interpreted as "not the kind of life that people are living now." So, eternal life can also mean "an extraordinary and revolutionary life, centered on a loving interactive relationship with the Son of God, that is radically different from the way people are living right now."
Throughout Jesus' life he shows us what it means to live eternally; a “life of the ages”. Through his love, healing, peace, and forgiveness even for his greatest enemies, Jesus revealed to us what eternal life looks like. In other words, part of the mission of Jesus was to bring heaven to earth; The Kingdom of Heaven invading the Kingdom of the world. In a world focused on money, power, control and status, Jesus brings service, justice, humility, and mercy. In this light, we see that our job as disciples (bent on becoming just like Jesus) is not only to help people get into heaven, but to show them what heaven looks like. To bring His Kingdom here. I believe this is why Jesus teaches his disciples to pray like this: "…Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven."
Well, that’s just some of what I wanted to say. I hope some of it makes sense. I tend to run on a bit. Plus, it’s getting late…I’ve got to get to bed soon. See you on Sunday.
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