Just wondering what exactly the gospel is, and how I should understand it to be. If someone were to come up to me and ask "what is the gospel?" what should I say? Thanks so much, this means a lot. :)
What's the easiest way to explain the gospel?
by proclaim_truth 30 Replies latest jw friends
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Christ Alone
John 3:16 is a pretty good nutshell version of the gospel:
For God (the greatest Giver)
so loved (the greatest motive)
the world (the greatest need),
that He gave (the greatest act)
His only Son (the greatest gift),
that whosoever (the greatest invitation)
believes (the greatest decision)
in Him (the greatest Person)
*believes in Him (the greatest opportunity)
should not perish (the greatest deliverance),
but (the greatest difference)
have (the greatest certainty)
eternal life (the greatest possession)
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steve2
The gospel is but one of numberless ways humans generate and promote explanations, reassurance and hope to other humans whose perceived-needs lead them to be prone to looking to supernatural (i.e., magical, miraculous) explanations to help them understand and navigate their lives. It is neither better nor worse than any other belief system - although its sincere proponents would expectedly assert its uniqueness and truth.
As Sebastian Brant said several centuries ago (1457 - 1521), Mundus vult decipi, ergo decipiatur (Translation: The world wants to be deceived).
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Theocratic Sedition
John 3:16 is a pretty good nutshell version of the gospel:
For God (the greatest Giver)
so loved (the greatest motive)
the world (the greatest need),
that He gave (the greatest act)
His only Son (the greatest gift),
that whosoever (the greatest invitation)
believes (the greatest decision)
in Him (the greatest Person)
*believes in Him (the greatest opportunity)
should not perish (the greatest deliverance),
but (the greatest difference)
have (the greatest certainty)
eternal life (the greatest possession)
I like that breakdown.
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Christ Alone
The gospel is but one of numberless ways humans generate and promote explanations, reassurance and hope to other humans whose perceived-needs lead them to be prone to looking to supernatural
Trying to derail this into yet another atheist thread?
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bohm
They are accounts of the life of jesus written by later followers as they imagined it to be. Partly true, partly false, noway to clearly tell which is which.
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cofty
Its very significant that the Watchtower have not got the slightest clue what good news or gospel was
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Terry
Gospel=Good spiel. Good story.
Word of mouth retelling.
Second and third hand rumors, ad infinitum.
In the Hebrew scriptures the Semitic people of Israel conflated legends, myths, partial histories and several versions of stories into national "book".
The Jews came to be called the people of the book.
Once Alexander the Great spread Greek culture by conquest a wave of philosophy from outside swept over the Jews and changed their language and self-identity.
So many Jews began speaking and reading the Greek language--- Hebrew of their scriptures was all but lost to them.
An effort was made to translate the holy writings into Greek and the result was the Septuagint. (70 elders).
A grand movement by Gnostics led by Marcion washed like a tidal wave over Palestine under Roman rule almost suceeding in expunging Judaism's Jehovah worship. The Romans destroyed the central temple in Jerusalem and scattered the "old time religion" leaving the Messianic (Jesus christians) to take over and proliferate.
The letters of the self-named "Apostle" Paul (Saul) had fueled Marcion's movement as the first "New Testament" writings.
The actual "Gospel" followed afterward with "books" ascribed later to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
These writings do not agree in hundreds of details. However, later apologists sought to reframe this problem as a Solution instead!
The description "Synoptic" was put forward that those good stories (good spiels) complemented each other.
For one thousand five hundred years the universal (Catholic) church controlled Christianity without resorting to the Bible for authority.
( Magisterium (tradition) was imposed and, eventually, infallibility of pronouncement by the Pople on matters of faith and morals.)
In the early 1600's, a monk, Martin Luther challenged the authority and morals of the church.
Luther destroyed the lock of clergy on the destiny of christians by substituting a new doctrine REPLACING Magisterium: Sola Scriptura.
(Bible alone).
According to Luther, any faithful believing christian could read his BIBLE and the holy spirit would REVEAL absolute Truth to the individual without
resort to clergy!
This theory proved ridiculously misguided. We know this because thousands of DIFFERENT interpretations sprung up from that time forward.
Christianity went from being one united Catholic religion into sects, divisions, subdivisions, denominations of DISAGREEING belief.
All of these "proved" their own interpretations using THE SAME BIBLE!
The easiest way to "explain" the Gospel is to point to the Divisions in Christianity.
It is all a matter of "reading INTO" the text rather than extracting FROM it.
As Shakespeare might say: Much Ado About Nothing!
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trebor
Easiest way to explain the gospel/What is the gospel (message):
"...that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures..."
Full context (I Corinthians chapter 15 verses 1 thru 8):
"Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.
For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time."