The Gospel in Brief

GOLDEN TEXT: “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Spirit.” —Titus 3:5

TITUS 1:1-3; 2:11-14; 3:4-8

THE word “Gospel” means glad tidings. One of the briefest statements of the glad tidings is the announcement to the shepherds of the birth of Jesus to be the Savior of the world: “Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is horn this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:10,11) While Jesus is the Redeemer in God’s great plan of salvation, the Gospel includes the methods provided by God whereby the knowledge of his saving grace through Christ reaches mankind.

Paul speaks of “the faith of God’s elect.” There are elect classes in the divine plan. Jesus himself is the elect One, the great executor of the divine plan, and the church associated with him is also referred to in the Scriptures as God’s elect. But the program of election presented in the Bible is quite different from the traditional one. It is not a case of a few being elected to be saved, and the remainder of mankind foreordained to be lost—which according to tradition means to be tortured forever in a fiery hell. In God’s program of election the elect are chosen to be channels, or instruments, for blessing the nonelect.

For example, God promised Abraham that his “Seed” would bless all the families of the earth. (Gen. 12:3; 22:18) In Galatians 3:16 we are informed that Jesus is this foretold “Seed” of Abraham. And then in verses 27-29 of this chapter we are informed that those who are baptized into Christ are also Abraham’s seed, “and heirs according to the promise.” In other words, these will be associated with Jesus in the work of blessing the people.

God’s elections are not arbitrary nor regardless of qualifications. Romans 8:29 reads, “Whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.” Note that God foreordained that this class must be conformed to “the image of his Son.” There is no other way to be a member of this elect class. And being conformed to the image of Christ involves a life of godliness such as Paul refers to in the lesson. This also is one of the aspects of the Gospel, an acknowledgment of the truth “which is after godliness.”

Another important aspect of the Gospel is the second visit of Christ to earth to establish the long-promised messianic kingdom. Paul speaks of this as “looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ.” The fact that Paul refers to Jesus as “a great God” does not mean that he is Jehovah, the Almighty God. It is appropriate that this expression be used with respect to Christ’s second presence on earth, for Isaiah, in forecasting the coming of the Messiah, first mentions his birth as a child, and then describes his future glory by the use of a number of titles, one of them being “The mighty God.”—Isa. 9:6

The word God in the Hebrew of this text simply means “a mighty one,” as it does in the Greek of the New Testament. Jesus came in humiliation at his first advent. It is not until his “glorious” appearing that he will be recognized by mankind as “The mighty God,” worthy of being honored and worshiped, even as our Heavenly Father. In fact, only through him can anyone properly honor the Father.

Salvation is the gift of God through Christ; it cannot be earned by good works. However, the consecrated believer is expected to conform as nearly as possible to the high standard of righteousness set forth in the Bible. But regardless of how nearly he measures up to this standard, the Christian cannot justify himself before God. This is possible only through the blood of Christ.

Paul speaks of being justified by God’s grace, but this simply means that it is God’s grace that has provided the merit of Christ’s sacrifice, which is a robe to cover our imperfections. (Isa. 61:10) Paul speaks of the washing of regeneration, and the renewing power of the Holy Spirit. The water of the Word of truth has a powerfully cleansing effect in our lives, and through its influence we are able to walk in newness of life as new creatures in Christ Jesus. However, we still need the merit of the blood to cover our unwilling imperfections.

Our justification, then, through the blood, is a definite part of the Gospel. Being justified, the Heavenly Father accepts our sacrifice, and if we are faithful we will live and reign with Christ.

QUESTIONS

What is the meaning of the word “Gospel”?

Describe briefly God’s program of election.

What is the purpose of Christ’s second visit to earth?

Is it appropriate that Jesus be referred to as “a great God”?

How are Christians justified?

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