excerpt from article by Burk Parsons. . . . . . .
The gospel is news. It's good news - the good news about what our triune God has graciously accomplished for His people: The Father's sending the Son, Jesus Christ, God incarnate, to live perfectly, fulfill the law, and die sacrificially, atoning for our sins, satisfying God's wrath against us that we might not face an eternal hell, and raising Him from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. It is the victorious announcement that God saves sinners. And even though the call of Jesus to "take up your cross and follow me," "repent and believe," "deny yourself," and "keep my commandments" are necessary commands that directly follow the proclamation of the gospel, they are not in themselves the good news of what Jesus has accomplished. The gospel is not a summons to work harder to reach God -- it's the grand message of how God worked all things together for good to reach us. The gospel is good news, not good advice, just as J. Gresham Machen wrote: "What I need first of all is not exhortation, but a gospel, not directions for saving myself but knowledge of how God has saved me.
The gospel is news. It's good news - the good news about what our triune God has graciously accomplished for His people: The Father's sending the Son, Jesus Christ, God incarnate, to live perfectly, fulfill the law, and die sacrificially, atoning for our sins, satisfying God's wrath against us that we might not face an eternal hell, and raising Him from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. It is the victorious announcement that God saves sinners. And even though the call of Jesus to "take up your cross and follow me," "repent and believe," "deny yourself," and "keep my commandments" are necessary commands that directly follow the proclamation of the gospel, they are not in themselves the good news of what Jesus has accomplished. The gospel is not a summons to work harder to reach God -- it's the grand message of how God worked all things together for good to reach us. The gospel is good news, not good advice, just as J. Gresham Machen wrote: "What I need first of all is not exhortation, but a gospel, not directions for saving myself but knowledge of how God has saved me.
Very true Lisa the gospel is indeed good news.
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