So far we have established that the modern Church is in a crisis.
The word crisis is defined as a time of intense difficulty, trouble or danger. But it can also be defined as a time when a difficult or important decision must be made, sometimes called a crisis point. I believe both definitions apply to the critical situation in which we find the modern church. The church today is not facing a time of difficulty, trouble or danger, it is already there. We are in the midst of the crisis, but for the most part, the body of believers that identify as the church doesn’t even realize it. The problem must first be acknowledged before a solution is sought, before a corrective decision can be made.
We have established that the cause of the crisis is the overall ignorance of the biblical gospel message. This not only creates an identity crisis for the church, but it cripples the churches ability to fulfill its mandate to proclaim the gospel to all creation. How can it proclaim that which is does not know? The gospel is not something that the church learns once and moves on from, it is necessary to be aware of it every day. It should color the lens through which we view the world.
So, the obvious answer to the crisis seems to be to alleviate the ignorance, to enlighten and educate with the scriptural truth concerning the gospel. I believe this with all of my heart. The gospel is that important because it is the power unto the saving of the souls of men (Romans 1:16). The darkness of evil and sin ingrained in every human heart is the birthplace of every worldly problem. The church wears itself out and drains its resources fighting against the symptoms of the disease (think abortion or sex trafficking) instead of attacking the illness itself (sin). Sin is the cause, sinful acts that manifest out of that sin is the effect. The gospel is the remedy for both.
Now I am not excusing the devil from his part in all of this. Of course, he is the power and energy at the source of evil, but he works through men’s hearts. Sinful men willfully do his bidding whether they know it or not. They work in tandem with each other because they are both darkened and in rebellion against God. The gospel brings light and deliverance from the darkness. It breaks the power that hold men in enslaved in deception. The gospel is a big deal. That is why it is so important that we rediscover what the fullness and truth of the gospel is!
The gospel message is the key that unlocks the hope for all creation. It is not only the remedy for the sickness infecting mankind, it is the message of redemption from the kingdom and powers of darkness, it is the reversal of the curse over all creation, it holds the promise of restoration and recovery from the effects of the fall and rebellion. The gospel is the good news of the undoing of all that the devil has done to steal, kill and destroy. That is why the devil hates it. It is why he has attacked not only the deliverers of the message but the message itself. If the church is going to assume an effective position in the war, its going to have to fit itself with the right armor and ammunition. Knowing God’s word is the best place to start. Knowledge is power.
With that being said, let’s begin by laying down the foundational elements of the whole gospel message. I say it like this because one of the problems of modern-day preachers is that they do not preach the whole gospel. They capitalize on one element and portray that as the message. One popular preacher today tends to focus heavily on the cross. Another seems to think the answer lies in the resurrection alone. I am here to tell you that while those aspects of the gospel are important, it is not the whole gospel. Each component is critical to the other. You cannot remove, replace or emphasize any one part without negating the whole. The message must start at the beginning and no where else and it must run its course until the very end.
My prayer is that by the time we are finished with this study, you will understand why I say this so emphatically. I pray we will all have a more precise awareness of the nature of God and our own standing before Him, because without that we will never value the gospel or its power. Remember, the gospel is the message of one central figure, the person and work of Jesus Christ and that alone.
The Gospel has 6 key elements concerning Jesus Christ that are vital and indispensable, and these are:
- His virgin birth
- His perfect, sinless life
- His death on the cross
- His resurrection from the dead
- His ascension
- And the promise of His return
In the upcoming lessons, we will explore each one in depth and discover why they are so crucial to each other and to the message as a whole. In so doing, we will discover the necessity of the gospel and why it is so important for the church to be grounded in it firmly. And we will be able to discern the effects of the gospel in the world around us. Gear up, we are going on a journey into the depths of biblical truth.
For whosoever wishes to save his soul will lose it, but whoever loses his soul for my sake and for the gospel’s will save it. Mark 8:35