Unveiling the Essence of the Gospel: Instructions for Hope

Biblical Literacy Session 2 The Gospel: Instructions for Hope

Course Agenda Session 1 -The Bible: God s Word, Our Hope Session 2 The Gospel: Instructions for Hope Session 3 OT Intro: Knowing a Holy God Session 4 OT Intro: Looking for a Future King Session 5 NT Intro: The Arrival of the King Session 6 NT Intro: Living for the King

Session 2 Agenda What is the Gospel Elements of the Gospel Creation Fall Depravity Law Elements of the Gospel Grace God s Calling Our Response Assurance Restoration

The Gospel: Instructions for Hope What is the Gospel ?

What is the Gospel? A Greek compound word meaning good message and is not a New Testament word. Greek word is Euangelion Hebrew word is Bisser or Bisorah

What is the Gospel? Isaiah 52:7 How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, Good News is in reference to a messenger bringing news of war

What is the Gospel? There are 3 usages of Gospel in the Bible A particular form of literature focused on the Kingdom of God The work of Christ How the work of Christ benefits believers

What is the Gospel? The gospel then is: the Good News that the Kingdom of God has come to us in Jesus Christ and through His work (life, death, resurrection, ascension, gift of the Holy Spirit, and promised return), those who believe in Him are given eternal victory over Satan and the effects of sin.

The Gospel: Instructions for Hope What are the elements of the Gospel ?

The Elements of the Gospel Creation The Fall Depravity Law Grace God s calling Our response Assurance Restoration

Creation Genesis 1:4, 10, 12, 18, 21, 25 It is good Genesis 1:31 It is very good Genesis 3:8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day,

The Fall Genesis 2:16-18 And the Lord God commanded the man, You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die. The Lord God said, It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.

The Fall Genesis 3:1-3 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, Did God really say, You must not eat from any tree in the garden ? The woman said to the serpent, We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.

The Fall Genesis 3:6-7 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

Euangelion - Protoeuangelion Genesis 3:14-15 So the Lord God said to the serpent, Because you have done this, Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.

Depravity Adam s sin has been imputed to all who have come after Adam. Romans 5:12 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned

Depravity Adam s sin has been imputed to all who have come after Adam. Depravity does not imply total evil, rather depravity declares corruption of the whole person.

Depravity Romans 1:28-32 Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice.

Depravity Romans 1:28-32 They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. Although they know God s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.

Law Ceremonial How we show honor to a holy God Civil How we love one another as God s people Moral How we live according to God s holiness

Law GALATIANS 3:15-26

The Elements of the Gospel Creation The Fall Depravity Law Grace God s calling Our response Assurance Restoration

Grace Matthew 5:17-20 Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.

Grace Matthew 5:17-20 Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.

Grace Luke 22:20 In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.

Grace Ephesians 2:1-10 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts.

Grace Ephesians 2:1-10 Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,

Grace Ephesians 2:1-10 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast.

Grace Ephesians 2:1-10 For we are God s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Gods Calling John 6:44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day. John 14:6 Jesus answered, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Gods Calling Romans 10:14-15 How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!

Gods Calling 2 Corinthians 5:18-21 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.

Gods Calling 2 Corinthians 5:18-21 We are therefore Christ s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Gods Calling Romans 8:28-30 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.

Gods Calling Romans 8:28-30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.

Our Response Matthew 13:18-23 Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy.

Our Response Matthew 13:18-23 But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful.

Our Response Matthew 13:18-23 But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.

Our Response Romans 10:9-13 If you declare with your mouth, Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As Scripture says, Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.

Our Response Romans 10:9-13 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

Assurance Hebrews 10:19-25 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings,

Assurance Hebrews 10:19-25 having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Assurance Hebrews 10:35-36 So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.

Restoration Revelation 21:1-5 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

Restoration Revelation 21:1-5 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, Look! God s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes.

Restoration Revelation 21:1-5 There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. He who was seated on the throne said, I am making everything new! Then he said, Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.

Restoration Revelation 21:22-27 I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it.

Restoration Revelation 21:22-27 On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb s book of life.

Restoration Revelation 22:1-7 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.

Restoration Revelation 22:1-7 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.