The gospel. It is the most wonderful news we’ve ever heard. It is the reason for the hope and joy within. It is the foundation of Christianity and the victory of Jesus over Satan. The beautiful gospel.
“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.” 1 Corinthians 15:1-8
Paul reminded the Corinthians of the saving gospel in his first letter to them. The gospel was the first thing he taught them, because it was the core to everything else they would learn. Jesus is everything. His death, burial, and resurrection is the reason we can have salvation and hope for eternal life in heaven.
Here’s what we’ve covered so far: We heard the word, which then led us to act in faith by confessing Christ and repenting of our many sins. We died to our old, wicked self.
But there is more to the gospel than just death. Jesus died, but He also rose. We know how to die to sin - it is a commitment to Christ, a denial of self, and an obedience to His will. But how do we come alive in Him? How do we rise up to walk in a newness of life? How do we completely reenact and obey the gospel?
“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:1-11
Christ sent His disciples on a mission to spread the gospel and make disciples (Matthew 28:18-20). In order for them to accomplish His commission, He made sure that they knew to baptize the believers into Christ. Christ has offered eternal life to His followers; we, as followers, get to be partakers of the gospel and recipients of its reward when we are buried into and raised from the baptismal waters. Our sins are crucified with Christ on the cross when we are united with His death, and we rise to walk in newness of life when we are united with His resurrection. Paul perfectly describes the peace one receives in baptism: complete unification. Unity with Christ and unity with the gospel. The moments following a person’s baptism, they are washed free from sin (Acts 2:38; 22:16), they are alive in Christ Jesus (Romans 6:11), they are united in Christ’s body [also known as Christ’s church, Ephesians 1:22-23] (1 Corinthians 12:13), they are saved from condemnation (Mark 16:16), and they have obeyed the gospel of Jesus (Romans 1:16; Romans 6:1-11).
“For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit.” 1 Corinthians 12:12-13