Gospel means Good News. The true Gospel of Jesus Christ is indeed the GOOD NEWS about how Father God will ultimately save this whole world of sinful fallen men and sinful fallen angels, without a single exception, through His only begotten Son Jesus Christ. There is only one Gospel, which is the everlasting Gospel (Revelation 14:6). This is the Gospel that was believed by God’s Elect believers in the Old Testament, and by the early Christians in the New Testament after the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The most powerful and central truth of the whole of the Bible is the truth that Jesus Christ is truly and literally the only begotten Son of His Spirit Father God. Father God who is Spirit begot (birthed, not created) His Spirit Son before all creation. The Son of God is indeed God, but He is God the Son, who has always remained subordinate to His Father God from when He was begotten before all creation.
Father God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son to become flesh, to transform His immortal glorified Spirit body into a mortal fleshly human body in the womb of the Virgin Mary, in order to die on the cross for the sins of the whole world, and to save this whole world of sinful fallen men and sinful fallen angels, without a single exception. This is the true Gospel of Jesus Christ and the truth of all truths, and out of this truth, flows all other truths of the Bible.
“But who do you say that I am?”
The most important and central truth of the Bible that Jesus Christ is indeed the Son of the living God, His only begotten Son, must be revealed to us directly by Father God Himself, as it was revealed to Apostle Peter. When Jesus was on earth, He asked His disciples, “But who do you say that I am?”
Matthew 13:13-17
13 When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?” 14 So they said, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
16 Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
13 When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?” 14 So they said, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
16 Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
Notice that the understanding of who the true Christ of the Bible is, is by revelation and revelation only, and it is directly from Father God Himself. He alone decides who will be and who will not be a true follower of His Son in this life, before he or she dies. No-one is able to come to Christ unless Father God Himself first draws that person to Christ.
John 6:44
No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.
No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.
As it is true that no-one can come to the Son except through the Father, it is also true that no-one can come to the Father except through the Son.
John 14:6
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
We can only come to know who the true Father God is and who the true Son of God is through revelation and by revelation only.
Matthew 11:27
All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.
All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.
So, this is how it all works. Father God first reveals His Son to whomsoever He chooses and then the Son reveals His Father, but only to those who are first drawn by Father God to the Son. It really takes the supernatural God-given gift of faith to believe in the one and only true Father God and the one and only true Son of God.
In this age, before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, it is not Father God’s purpose to draw many people to His Son, but only a few, the Firstfruits. Jesus Christ says that many are called but only a few are chosen, and the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few (Matthew 7:14, Matthew 22:14).
God is not desperately trying to save the whole world during this life, and Satan is not winning hands down by taking multiple thousands of unbelievers, those who die every day, to hell. During this life, God’s purpose is to save only the few called and chosen people who are His Elect, the Firstfruits, before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. The Bible clearly reveals that these few, the Firstfruits, are only 144,000 in total. We explain this truth in great detail in the next chapter, Chapter 9, ‘The Truth of God’s Elect, the Bride of Christ’. However, all non-Elect, who are the unbelievers forming the vast majority of humanity, are not lost forever.
John 12:32-33 (NIV)
32 But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself. 33 He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.
32 But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself. 33 He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.
Jesus Christ was lifted up on the cross to die for the sins of the whole world. The cross of Jesus Christ has unlimited power to draw all to Jesus. Ultimately, in God’s time and His order, which extends beyond this age, all will be drawn to Christ because of the finished work of the cross for the universal salvation and reconciliation of all, without exception.
1 Corinthians 15:22-23a
22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. 23 But each one in his own order.
22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. 23 But each one in his own order.
Yes indeed, absolutely all will be made alive (saved) in Christ, but each one in his own order. The glorious purpose of God’s Elect, who are the Firstfruits, is that God will use them in the evangelising work of salvation to reap the Great Harvest of the rest of humanity in the ages to come, as we explain in detail in Chapters 11 and 12.
The sad and shocking fact is that there is no Christian denomination known to us, existing in this present time and age, which has the revelation of who the true Son of God is and His finished work on the cross for the salvation of the whole world. The world of Christianity, as we know it today, denies that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and it denies that He is the Saviour of the world. All Christian denominations say that they believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the Saviour of the world, but in reality, what they say and mean and what the Bible clearly says and means are two absolutely different things.
You need to clearly understand what the Bible means when it says that Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God. We have covered this truth in great depth in Chapter 3, ‘The Truth of the Son of God’.
Jesus Christ died to sin once for all
When Jesus Christ died on the cross for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2), He died to sin once for all, and obtained eternal redemption once for all.
Romans 6:10
For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God.
For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God.
Hebrews 9:12
Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.
Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.
On the cross, Jesus Christ destroyed Satan, sin and death once for all, and it is only a matter of time when the full effect of the finished work of the cross will be realised by all creation. Scripture is clear that Jesus Christ, God’s only begotten Son Yeshua Elohim, will reconcile and save the whole world without a single exception.
2 Corinthians 5:19
God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.
God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.
Colossians 1:19-20
19 For it pleased the Father that in Him (the Son) all the fullness should dwell, 20 and by Him (the Son) to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.
19 For it pleased the Father that in Him (the Son) all the fullness should dwell, 20 and by Him (the Son) to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.
Please understand and believe what this scripture says. It says that Father God will reconcile absolutely all things in the universe (all that has become separated because of sin) through the shed blood of Jesus Christ on the cross. If you study the context of this scripture from Colossians 1:15, which we have covered in detail in Chapter 4, you will see that all things include all fallen men and all fallen angels. The cross of Jesus Christ has infinite power to reconcile all of God’s enemies, all fallen men and all fallen angels, from unrighteousness to God’s Righteousness.
Romans 5:10
For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.
For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.
Can we believe what this scripture says? It says that the death of the Son of God reconciled us to God when we were still God’s enemies; that’s even before we repented and believed in the true Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The powerful and glorious truth of the Bible is that all of God’s enemies; this whole world of sinful fallen men and sinful fallen angels have already been reconciled to God when the Son of God, Jesus Christ, died on the cross for the sins of the whole world. However, it is important to understand that each one must receive their reconciliation, which is in God’s time and order.
Romans 5:11
And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.
And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.
Yes, just like Apostle Paul and the believers in Rome in this verse, all people must receive the reconciliation that Jesus Christ has already earned and achieved on the cross for the whole world. So, the crucial question is: How do we receive our reconciliation to Father God that has already been earned for us by His Son Jesus Christ? The answer is to repent and believe in the true Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Repent and Believe in the Gospel
Mark 1:15
The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.
The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.
God commands all men everywhere to repent (Acts 17:30). Yes, we all need to repent of our fleshly sins; sins like lying, sexual immorality, covetousness, greed and so on, but, the only repentance which ultimately matters to God is the repentance from the sin of unbelief to belief in the true Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Although the Law of God is good, holy and righteous, it is impossible for any person to be righteous before God through the righteousness of the law because the purpose of the Law is not to make man righteous but to show him how exceedingly unrighteous he is (Romans 3:19-20, 7:13).
The only Way to be righteous before God is through the righteousness of faith. So, the important question is: What is the righteousness of faith? It is God’s own sinless, holy and perfect Righteousness which is imputed to a person when he believes, through the gift of God-given faith, in the true Gospel of Jesus Christ (Romans 3:21-26, 4:22-25). It is important to understand that the true saving faith is by grace through faith which is the gift of God.
Ephesians 2:8-9
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
The Gospel of Jesus Christ is indeed the power of God to salvation and it is only by believing the Gospel that one stands righteous before God through the gift of God-given faith, as confirmed by Apostle Paul in the following scripture.
Romans 1:16-17
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith”.
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith”.
The life-changing and transforming power of the true Gospel
When a person believes in the true Gospel, by God-given faith, that Jesus Christ is indeed God’s only begotten Son and that He died on the cross for the universal salvation and reconciliation of the whole world, a powerful and wonderful transformation takes place in that person’s life. The person is transformed from darkness to light, from blindness to sight, from captivity to freedom, and from being a child of Satan to being a child of God.
All true believers receive the blessed assurance, through the presence of God’s indwelling Holy Spirit, that all of their sins (past, present and future) are forgiven and that they stand totally righteous before God with God’s Righteousness.
Even though believers still battle against the temptations of the flesh and they can succumb to sin, the glorious and powerful spiritual reality of the Gospel is that they are no longer ‘in Adam’, but ‘in Christ’ and their sins are no longer counted against them. True believers are a new creation, born-again Christians, and they never come under the condemning judgement of God (Romans 8:1). From God’s perspective, they are a good tree, and they can only bear good fruit, which are the works of faith (Matthew 7:18).
All true believers have the covering of God’s Righteousness through God given faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. They are looking forward to entering the coming Millennial Kingdom of God in a new, immortal, resurrected, glorified saved body, at the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. In the meantime, the focus for the believer is to be filled with the fruits of God’s Righteousness, which are the fruits of God’s Spirit, to the glory and praise of God.
Philippians 1:9-11
9 And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, 10 that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, 11 being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
9 And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, 10 that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, 11 being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
Galatians 5:22-23
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.
Every aspect of our salvation is a gift from God
Man’s fallen free will plays absolutely no part in his salvation. Salvation happens because of God’s will alone, and God’s determined will is to save all men (1 Timothy 2:3-6, 4:9-10). We do not choose God, but God chooses us (John 15:16), and ultimately, He will choose all in His time and His order, extending beyond this age.
Every aspect of our salvation is a gift from God. Repentance and faith are gifts from God (Romans 2:4, Ephesians 2:8-9). The Righteousness of God is a gift from God (Romans 5:17). The Holy Spirit, which helps believers produce the fruits of Righteousness, is a gift from God (1 Timothy 1:6-7). The fruits of Righteousness themselves are gifts from God (Philippians 1:11, Galatians 5:22). Our salvation is one hundred percent the work of God’s grace from start to finish, and man is in no position whatsoever to boast about any aspect of his salvation. All the glory goes to God, God the Father Yahweh Elohim and God the Son Yeshua Elohim, who are the Author and Finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2).
There is only one WAY to be saved and that is to believe in the true Christ of the Bible that He is indeed God’s only begotten Son and the Saviour of the whole world. Ultimately, in God’s time and order extending beyond this age, all without a single exception will come to believe in the true Gospel of Jesus Christ, willingly and thankfully, as we explain in detail in Chapter 12.
The Gospel in the Old Testament
Was the Gospel preached in the Old Testament? Yes, absolutely!
Galatians 3:8
And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, “In you all the nations shall be blessed.”
And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, “In you all the nations shall be blessed.”
Yes indeed, as we can clearly see from this verse, the Gospel was preached to Abraham. In fact, the Gospel was preached to all of God’s Elect Saints who are mentioned in Hebrews 11. These are Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, David, the harlot Rahab and others, who are God’s Elect, the Firstfruits, who had been given the gift of faith from God to believe in the true Gospel of God’s only begotten Son Yeshua Elohim, Jesus Christ.
Was the Gospel that was preached in the Old Testament the same Gospel that is preached in the New Testament? Yes, absolutely!
Revelation 14:6
Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth—to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people.
Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth—to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people.
There is only one Gospel, the everlasting Gospel, to be preached to every nation, tribe, tongue and people in this age and in the ages to come, and which was preached in the Old Testament to the Israelites, God’s chosen nation, and to all of God’s chosen Elect like Abel and Noah, before the nation of Israel was formed.
There is only one WAY to be saved, and it is through belief in the name of God’s only begotten Son, Yeshua Elohim, Jesus Christ, and His finished work on the cross for the universal salvation of the whole world.
Acts 4:12
Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.
Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.
Apostle Paul says in Acts 26 that Moses and all the prophets of Israel had the revelation that Christ would be the light to both Jews and Gentiles, and that He would suffer and be the first to be resurrected from the dead.
Acts 26:22-23
22 Therefore, having obtained help from God, to this day I stand, witnessing both to small and great, saying no other things than those which the prophets and Moses said would come 23 that the Christ would suffer, that He would be the first to rise from the dead, and would proclaim light to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles.
22 Therefore, having obtained help from God, to this day I stand, witnessing both to small and great, saying no other things than those which the prophets and Moses said would come 23 that the Christ would suffer, that He would be the first to rise from the dead, and would proclaim light to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles.
Again, Apostle Paul makes it abundantly clear in 1 Corinthians 15 that the Gospel that he preached was according to the Scriptures, and of course, the only Scripture that was available to Paul was the Old Testament Scripture.
1 Corinthians 15:1-4
1 Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.
1 Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.
The writer of Hebrews also confirms that the Gospel was preached to the Israelites in the Old Testament, but they could not believe (except for those who were God’s Elect like Moses) because they were not given the gift of faith to believe in the true Gospel of God’s only begotten Son.
Hebrews 4:2-3
2 For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. 3 For we who have believed do enter that rest, as He has said: “So I swore in My wrath, ‘They shall not enter My rest,’ although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.
2 For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. 3 For we who have believed do enter that rest, as He has said: “So I swore in My wrath, ‘They shall not enter My rest,’ although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.
Jesus Christ Himself preached the Gospel from the book of Isaiah.
Luke 14:17-19
17 And He (Jesus) was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the broken hearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; 19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”
17 And He (Jesus) was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the broken hearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; 19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”
Again, Jesus confirms in Luke 24:27 below that Moses and all the prophets understood the things concerning Himself.
Luke 24:27
And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He (Jesus) expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.
And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He (Jesus) expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.
Of course, ‘the things concerning Himself’ is about the true Gospel of God’s only begotten Son and His finished work on the cross for the universal salvation of the whole world. Let us now look at some examples in the Old Testament of where we read about ‘things concerning’ the Son of God, Yeshua Elohim, Jesus Christ.
Proverbs 30:4 says that God is a Family of Father and Son and that they both have names.
Proverbs 8:24-30 says that the Son (the Wisdom of God) was birthed before all creation.
Psalm 2:7 says that the Son was begotten (birthed) by His Father God ‘today’ meaning before all creation.
Isaiah 7:14 says that a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel, meaning ‘God is with us’.
Isaiah 53 is an amazingly clear chapter prophesying that the Son will die for the sins of many, meaning the whole world, and that this knowledge will justify them, meaning that it will make them Righteous with Christ’s Righteousness.
Psalm 22 talks about the suffering of Jesus Christ on the cross.
Psalm 16:10 says, “For You will not leave my soul in sheol, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see Corruption” clearly refers to the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and that He had an incorruptible body which did not decay in the grave.
Psalm 98:1-3 says,
1 Oh, sing to the LORD a new song! For He has done marvelous things; His right hand and His holy arm have gained Him the victory. 2 The LORD has made known His salvation; His righteousness He has revealed in the sight of the nations. 3 He has remembered His mercy and His faithfulness to the house of Israel; All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
1 Oh, sing to the LORD a new song! For He has done marvelous things; His right hand and His holy arm have gained Him the victory. 2 The LORD has made known His salvation; His righteousness He has revealed in the sight of the nations. 3 He has remembered His mercy and His faithfulness to the house of Israel; All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
Notice that ‘His right hand and His holy arm have gained Him the victory’ refers to Jesus Christ’s finished work on the cross for the universal salvation of the whole world. Yes indeed, all the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God, as this scripture declares.
So yes, the things concerning the Son of God, Jesus Christ, are written in the Old Testament by the prophets, and these things proclaim the true Gospel of God’s only begotten Son. Father God does everything through His Son, and it was the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ Himself, the Word of God, who preached the Gospel to God’s Elect of the Old Testament. It was He, the Word of God, who related to and spoke to the Prophets of Israel, and He is the one who inspired Moses and the other Prophets of Israel to write the things concerning Himself in the Old Testament.
Conclusion
The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the everlasting Gospel, the Gospel for all ages for the universal salvation of the whole world, without a single exception. This same Gospel was preached in the previous ages by the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ Himself and revealed (to God’s Elect) in Old Testament Scriptures, and it is being preached in this present age through the Old and New Testament Scriptures, and through Christ’s Elect believers obedient to Christ’s command to go into all the world and preach the gospel.
Mark 16:15
He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation”.
He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation”.
This very same gospel will be preached in the coming Millennial Age, and then following it, in the Lake of Fire Judgement Age until absolutely all things on earth and all things in heaven have been reconciled through the shed blood of Jesus Christ on the cross, as clearly and powerfully stated in Colossians 1:19-20.
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