The Gospel is the centerpiece of the Bible. It is Good News! Below is a simple explanation of what the Gospel is. If you have any questions about the Gospel and what it means to be a Christian, please leave your email address and someone will be in contact with you.
GOD
God is light, and in him is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5). He is perfectly holy, just and good. He is the creator and sustainer of the universe.
FALL
Man was made to have perfect communion with God. Man has fallen short of God’s standard of perfect holiness. Furthermore, because we sin, we are enemies of God and in a state of rebellion against Him. Because God is just, we all deserve eternal separation from Him as rightful punishment for sin. If God did not punish sin, He would not be just.
ATONEMENT
Jesus, fully God and fully man, a person of the Trinity, entered into history and lived the perfect life. He was utterly righteous and sinless. Willingly, he offered himself up as a propitiation for our sins through his death on a cross. He bore the full wrath of God in our stead until every drip of just punishment was satisfied. Thus the crucifixion is the place where the justice and love of God is reconciled. God’s just judgment and wrath against sin was satisfied and this was done only by God’s expressed love of sacrificing his Son for us.
JUSTIFICATION (“The Great Exchange”)
If we place our faith in Jesus and his atoning sacrifice, repenting of our sin, God is just to forgive, for our punishment was born by Jesus, and considers us righteous because Jesus’ righteousness is imputed to us. The atonement was substitutionary, so that our sin was placed onto Jesus’ account and his righteousness was placed onto our account (2 Corinthians 5:21). Our union with Christ means that we died with him in his death and were resurrected with him into new life. Our old self is put to death and we are no longer dead in our sin but alive in Christ.
