Since March on the third Friday of the month, we have been exploring why the AFCU exists and examining what discipleship, fellowship and prayer look like in the AFCU.
We hope this has been helpful and given you a greater understanding of what the AFCU does, why we do it, and what’s available to you as an AFCU member.
Through our communications, we want to enable, equip, and encourage YOU, our members, to live out and grow your faith, to act as ‘salt and light’ where you serve and encourage others to come to a committed faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
For the remainder of the year, on the third Friday of each month, we will focus on a different area related to the Gospel as we want to walk alongside you as you act as ‘salt and light’ where you serve.
To start, in this email, we will look at what the Gospel is and why people need it.
The ‘Gospel’ is a word that we use a lot. But do we truly understand what it means?
The Gospel literally means good news and occurs 93 times in the Bible, exclusively in the New Testament. The Gospel is the good news concerning Christ and the way of salvation. It’s not just good advice on how we can live a better life. It is the good news of what God has done through Jesus to rescue lost sinners and bring them back to Him.
In the Bible, one of the clearest definitions of the Gospel comes from Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4.
“Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.”
These verses address the two questions we want to examine: what the Gospel is and why we need it.
The Corinthians had already heard the Gospel; they had received it, but Paul still reminds them of it. This is because we constantly need to be reminded of this; it is not just the message that brought us into the Christian life, but the message that sustains us throughout it. As Christians, each day we need to remember that our hope is not built upon our achievements, our feelings, or our faithfulness, but upon the finished work of Christ. The Christian life begins with the Gospel and continues through the Gospel. We need to be continually reminding ourselves and others of the truth of the Gospel. Just as Paul reminds the Corinthians, this is the message we have taken our stand on.
Good News tells us about something that has happened. The Gospel is first and foremost news. In these four verses, it is not about what we do for God but what Christ has done for us. Good news.
“Christ died for our sins.” At the cross, He took upon Himself the judgment that sinners deserved. He bore the weight of our sin and shame and took the punishment that we deserved. God does not ignore sin, but provides a saviour for sinners.
“He was buried.” The burial confirms the reality of Christ’s death. He did not merely appear to die; he truly died. The Son of God went to the deepest depths in order to rescue sinners.
“He was raised on the third day.” If Jesus had remained in the grave, there would be no good news. Christ’s resurrection is the victory over sin and death. Christ’s sacrifice has been accepted, and salvation has been accomplished. Christ lives. Because He lives, I can face tomorrow.
The Gospel tells us what God has done to reach us through Christ’s death and resurrection, which is why people need to hear it.“By this Gospel, you are saved.” People need the Gospel because people need salvation. We cannot rescue ourselves; the only way back into a relationship with God the Father is through Christ the Son.
The Gospel is the good news that Jesus died for our sins, was buried, and was raised on the third day according to the scriptures.
It is the message every person needs to hear.
The message we are called to proclaim.
Matthew 28:19-20
“Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
We are called to proclaim, preach and share the good news of the Gospel in the places where God has placed us.Paul “received” the Gospel and then “passed” it on. We have to do the same!