What is the GOSPEL?

I can’t say it any better that this dude. Please watch and enjoy with an open-heart. This is a beautiful spoken-word explication of theGospel. It’s accompanied by some awesome video-graphic aesthetics. Comment with any questions and reactions! My only critique would be for them to display scripture references with each subset of the acronym, but then again, every verse in the bible points to this story: God came to us so we, by faith in his Son’s death and resurrection, could return to him and receive life (the life we were created to have, before we messed it up). Amazing love! Amazing grace! This is the gospel, check it out (listen carefully, he talks fast):

Some of my favorite quotes from the video | My explanations:

“Trying to prove God is like defending a lion, homie. It don’t need your help, just unlock the cage.” [1:50] | If you can believe in a God that is powerful enough to create a universe and your own consciousness, is it too outlandish to claim that he may be greater than our own reason can even comprehend? If you’re trying to explain God to yourself or someone else, it’s easy to feel as if you have to prove him. But here’s a fact you can rest in: God does not need you to prove him, because he exists with or without your approval. Just because it takes faith to believe God is real does not mean that he isn’t! The Christian is not called to prove God, the Christian is called to show God throughout every facet of their life. God can’t be tamed, so just unleash him through your life! (Isaiah 55:8-9; Acts 1:7; Ecclesiastes 8:17).

“There’s not a religion in the world that doesn’t agree something is wrong with us.” [1:35] | Every person in the world has a religion, a system of beliefs in or not in something (what people tend to call “God”) that drives how they live.  Every religion comments on humanity and evil/suffering in the world — “where did it come from” and “how it can be stopped” are the two main concerns within this realm. No religion states that this world is perfect or that mankind is made of perfect humans; if we are not perfect something is in fact wrong with us. Why do we want perfection in the world? Because we were created in perfection and desire to get back to it. (Genesis 1-3; Romans 5:12-21).

“Here’s what God says is part A of the Gospel: you can’t fix yourself quit trying it’s impossible.” [3:05] | But the problem is not just that we are imperfect, the problem is that we by ourselves cannot fix our imperfection. LISTEN, this is the hardest part of the gospel to accept because it means fully giving up your pride and your notions of how “good-hearted” or “nice” of a person you think you are. It sounds mean. It sounds harsh. But it is the diagnosis: we are born broken. And without God’s grace we remain such. Our pride tells us that our achievements, our philanthropic deeds or kindness means we are “good people.” But “good” is not good enough for God. Have you ever lied or deceived someone? Have you ever hurt another person? If you have answered yes to either of these questions, you are not perfect. Yes, that means no one is perfect. Does this mean that God does not love you the way you are? Of course not. It means that he loves you so much that he wants to restore you to the way you were meant to be. So many people claim that God cannot exist because a loving God would never allow suffering/evil in the world. But do you realize that if imperfection in this world would be eliminated, it means God would have to take you out with it? This is why he has given of us the gift of grace through Jesus so that we won’t be destroyed, but saved, so that we wouldn’t die, but live! (Romans 3:9-24; 1 Corinthians 15: 14-17; Galatians 2:21).

“But silly us, trying to pass the course of life without referring to a syllabus.” [2:15] | Christianity is not a set of rules to follow to earn points, to avoid hell and to not have fun. It’s a change in life that reflects that you have been reborn into a new life are are receiving a new heart; it’s a relationship, with a loving God, that leads to joy and peace. But God does have an outline for how those who claim him are called to live. Does this mean he is oppressive? Not at all! Think of it like this: if you have a wife or husband (or boyfriend or girlfriend) — your relationship with that person requires a certain way for you to live if that relationship is going to be real, to be happy and to survive. That means you will stop doing certain things to honor that relationship because you love and appreciate that relationship more than those other things; your relationship with those old things would even seem like hate compared to how much you love your new relationship. The exact same concept is required in your relationship with God! He has outlined how we ought to live if we believe in him and love him, and it is the only way to get through this life and to him. (John 14;6; Romans 12:9-21; James 2: 14-26; Matthew 7:15-27; Ephesians 4:17-5:21).

“The cost of your soul you ain’t got enough piggy bank, but you could give it a shot.” [2:49] | Your soul does not have a cost. You can’t buy salvation with good deeds or being a “good person,” though you can try. Your efforts will be futile though, and they will lead to restlessness and constant worry, fear and doubt. Because God requires perfection, we need a perfect payment for our souls to get us back right with him, and a perfect payment can’t be produced by imperfect people. But here is the beauty of God’s grace: we don’t need to pay because our debt to God has already been paid by Jesus’ death on the cross (and it is a historical fact, the man did indeed die on the cross — the most embarrassing and painful form of torture in the ancient world). This is why you can rest assured that if you trust in Christ, you are  in right standing with God because He has declared that Jesus paid all of your debt, so you don’t have to! (Great song to play right now if you’re still reading). Yes, Jesus paid YOUR debt. He took YOUR cross and YOUR suffering so that you could receive HIS life, yes it is a beautiful exchange (Galatians 3:1-9; Philippians 3:1-11)!

“His [Christ's]  righteousness, His death death functions as payment, yes — payment. He wrote a check with his life, but at the resurrection we all cheered because that means the check cleared. Pierced feet, pierced hands, blood-stained Son of Man, fullness, forgiveness, free passage into the promised land!” [3:44] | I mean at this point in the video I’m just jumping up and down, screaming “LET’S GO!!” Listen! Easter is not a holiday to be celebrated once a year. It should be celebrated every second of every day. Jesus’  resurrection means that we can indeed return to God and be with him has we ought to. This quote has some heavy theological doctrines in it (don’t be discouraged if you have no idea what “the Son of man” means). The Bible is shallow enough for a child to wade in and deep enough for the smartest man to dive into. But if you can understand the basic message that you were broken and through Christ (and only Christ) you are made perfect, than you can receive the promise of eternal fellowship with God. This is an EXCITING truth. So many times church feels and looks like a funeral or a lame party full of uncool, judgmental prudes (and in many cases, this may be the sad truth). But if the gospel is truly understood, it can only be met with with unparalleled joy and excitement (yes, this truth should make you more excited than ANYTHING in your life). Jesus commonly refers to the kingdom of God as one big party. Redemption and eternal life shouldn’t be responded to with mindless and emotionless singing and living. It should be responded to with unmatched rejoice and thanksgiving. This is your LIFE and it has been saved. Is that not exciting?!

The Greek word for “Gospel” literally means “good news.” In the ancient world, generals would tell a certain soldier or messenger to carry a gospel back to the city — good news that told of victory. Of course the city was excited to hear the gospel. The good news is that Jesus was victorious over sin, death and separation from God and has come to his people to tell them that he has won the war! (Romans 4:25, 5:10-11, 6:23; Matthew 20:28 (the Son of Man pays our ransom); 1 John 2:2).

Notice how so many words in this video are in the PAST tense? God has already paid our debt — the check has already cleared and been accepted. This means if you trust in Jesus, you do not need to worry about getting even or right with God or  feel guilty about anything you have done in the past because through him you already have been declared innocent. This is why Jesus says his yoke is easy and his burden is light because in him there is FREEDOM from worry about life or fixing yourself. This freedom leads to peace, which leads to rest, which leads to happiness (Romans 8: 1-6; John 19: 28-30 – It is FINISHED).

I’ll finish by saying that like any relationship, YOU have to work to grow in your relationship with Christ. You have to discipline yourself to grow in your love with him just as you would with any other person and relationship; Christ has already came to you and will always respond to you. Don’t be passive about your faith! Truly believing in what this video says necessitates a change in your life (you can’t just get married and then keep living how you used to, as if you weren’t, you have to CHANGE); this change may seem terrifying but trust me, it will make you happier than anything else and free you! Full trust in Jesus gives life — yes, a new life, and it’s offered to anyone. Everyone who trusts in him (100 percent and no less) can receive it! The change will be organic, if you truly are in awe of the cross and Jesus’ love. It will not be easy, it will be painful, but it will come natural. You will not see the gospel as rules, but as your greatest desire. The gospel changes the heart (not just the outside) when it is truly accepted.