The good news begins with what Christ did
The Gospel of Christ announces the saving work of the Lord Jesus Christ. It answers the most personal question in Bible study: how can a sinner have peace with God? Paul gives the message plainly in 1 Corinthians 15:1–4 KJB. Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and He rose again the third day. The object of faith is the crucified and risen Saviour.
1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
Our need: sin, not merely a lack of religion
For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
Sin is measured against God’s glory. Moral improvement, religious attendance, family heritage, and charitable deeds cannot remove guilt before God. Recognizing this need directs us away from confidence in ourselves and toward the provision God has made in His Son.
But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
His death, burial, and resurrection
- His death: Christ died for our sins. The cross is God’s provision for the guilt we could not remove. Read Romans 3:24–26 KJB and 2 Corinthians 5:21 KJB.
- His burial: He truly died and was buried. The gospel concerns real events, not only a moral example or a symbol.
- His resurrection: He rose bodily. Read the rest of 1 Corinthians 15 KJB: Paul explains that a gospel without Christ’s resurrection would be vain.
The words “according to the scriptures” matter. Christ’s suffering and resurrection have prophetic testimony. Mid-Acts teaching distinguishes those foretold events from the previously hidden purpose and administration revealed through Paul. A mystery does not mean that every fact about the cross was absent from earlier Scripture.
Receive salvation by faith
But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
Believe that the Lord Jesus Christ died for your sins and rose again; trust His finished work for your salvation. Faith receives God’s gift. A prayer may express your trust, but its wording is not a saving formula. Baptism, giving, church membership, and works do not supply a missing part of Christ’s payment.
Notice the order in Ephesians 2:8–10 KJB: salvation is by grace through faith, apart from works; then the saved person is God’s workmanship unto good works. Service follows salvation. It does not purchase it.
Peace and assurance
Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.
The believer’s assurance rests upon God’s word and Christ’s accomplishment. Learning every detail of dispensational doctrine is not a prerequisite for receiving salvation. Begin with the gospel, then grow in understanding.