In my previous two posts, I talked about the reason why most of us had been sharing an incomplete Gospel to non-believers in the streets. I also pointed out from the Scriptures on the Gospel that Jesus and His disciples preached.
You can read the earlier posts here:
Part 1: https://bit.ly/2sd1M9m
Part 2: https://bit.ly/39hsVZ9
Over so many years, the church at large seems to have watered down the Gospel into a quick fix for salvation, focusing on the numbers and born-again testimonies, rather than the complete truth (which is still the Gospel) that Jesus has laid for us. Yes, we love the lost ----- in a way, it's really about getting more saved. We want to get the lost saved. I'm passionate about it. I reach out as I go about my daily life. However, my zeal for the lost to be saved must not be at the expense of truth, because they are not separated. They are two sides of the same coin. Preaching an incomplete Gospel can get someone to say the sinner's prayer easily, but probably not really born again into the kingdom of God. Having been in street ministry for many years, we have encountered so many who said “Yes” to misrepresented Gospel.
In Part 2, I shared that Jesus preached the Gospel in Mark 1:14-15 - “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the Gospel.” He always preached the Gospel of the Kingdom with the demonstration of miracles, signs and wonders (Matt 4:23; 9:35). Healings confirmed the reality of another Kingdom ---- the One who reigns and rules, and we are to be submitted to Him as believers. All His disciples preached the same throughout the books of the Gospel (Matt 7:7-8; Luke 10:9). Having said that, as I mentioned in the previous post, it is still not quite fully complete. Because this message still lacks power for a non-believer, even though it is full of truth.
To repent is to change your mind. In the context of Mark 1:14-15, it required the Jews to change their mind concerning the kingdom. They were to live their lives changed, because Jesus did not come to restore the kingdom of Israel. He came to present the true Kingdom of His Father. To live under the Father's reign and Lordship is to align their lives to heaven's culture and values.
However, it is IMPOSSIBLE for anyone to repent and live that way. There is none righteous (Romans 3:10). We have no capacity whatsoever to repent and live differently, because of a sinful nature (Romans 8:8). This is why Jesus came. He didn't come to change you. He came to kill you (Gal 2:20) so that you can live in a new nature (2 Cor 5:17; 2 Peter 1:3-4) with His righteousness in you (2 Cor 5:21) and thus, you can walk like Him.
The Gospel that Jesus preached did not include His death and resurrection. The Gospel that He commanded His disciples to preach after His resurrection included it.
Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that REPENTANCE AND REMISSION OF SINS should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. - Luke 24:46-47 (emphasis added)
Note: Read also John 20:21-23. This passage can be further expounded, but there are other verses that I am going to share.
In Part 1, I shared a tad about the difference between the Old & the New Covenant. The New Covenant only began after Christ rose from the dead. In the Old Covenant, you repent to be forgiven. In the New, you repent because you are forgiven. What Christ did on the Cross is universal atonement (John 1:29; Luke 23:34; 2 Cor 5:18-19; 1 John 2:2, etc.). Universal atonement, however, does not mean that everyone is saved automatically. There are many Scriptures on this, but I have to move on to focus on the Gospel. If not, it will not be a post. It can become a book lol.
In Luke 24:46-47, the Gospel that Jesus commanded His disciples to preach after He rose from the dead included both REPENTANCE and REMISSION of sins.
1) The REMISSION of sins leads to faith in Christ (1 Cor 15:1-4; Eph 2:8; Acts 16:31).
...without shedding of blood there is no remission. - Hebrews 9:22
It is the blood of Christ that remitted our sins. It is not because of a sinner/salvation's prayer. It's not because you are sorry. You are not forgiven because you are sorry. You are forgiven because of the finished works of Christ on the Cross! To preach the remission of sins is part of the Good News. It is so good that it is sometimes hard to believe. We did nothing to deserve it. It's purely by the grace of God. The message is simple, “Christ, the Son of God died for your sins. He loves you. Put your faith in Him.”
However, this is yet to be complete. Because it seems unnecessary to change your life. “God loves me just the way I am. I don't need to change anything.” Yes, He does love you just the way you are. But He doesn't stop there. His love compels us to change.
2) REPENTANCE also needs to be preached as part of the Good News. If we don't understand the context of repentance, we will naturally associate it with a negative connotation. Repentance is simply a change of mind ------ returning to God our Creator and His kingdom.
Note: You don't have to use the word 'repentance' to talk about repentance when reaching the lost. There are many ways to phrase a word.
In the Old Covenant, there was no power for repentance. In the New, the power for repentance comes from accepting (and believing) the remission of sins. Jesus died for our sins, but He rose for our justification (Rom 4:25). Christ became our righteousness (1 Cor 1:30). We receive a new nature (2 Cor 5:17) and the power to walk in the Spirit and righteousness (Rom 8:1-10; Gal 5:24).
We now have the power to repent unto the Kingdom BECAUSE of the remission of sins. We have a new mind (1 Cor 2:16; Romans 12:2) to see and align our lives to His kingdom and His reign.
Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is BORN AGAIN, he cannot SEE THE KINGDOM OF GOD.” - John 3:5 (emphasis added)
If you are not born again, you cannot change your thinking. You still think like the old man (old nature). You can't help it. Your thinking affects your living. This is why we need to be born again. Then we can change our thinking and thus, change our living.
What do we repent of? We repent of our own 'kingdom' living so that we now live for His kingdom. Before Christ, we lived for us. Now we live through Him and for Him (Gal 2:20).
This is why the Gospel is not about uttering salvation or sinner's prayer. It's not in the Bible. It's about believing in Christ (remission of sins) and surrendering your life to Him (repentance) so that His kingdom reigns FIRST in your heart (Luke 17:20), and through you, to the world (Matt 6:10).
Note: For a believer, the kingdom of God is within us (Luke 17:20; Matt 12:28; Romans 14:17). For a non-believer, the kingdom of God is at hand (Mark 1:15).
Apart from Luke 24:46-47, we can see in the consistency in the epistles (New Covenant) regarding the Gospel that the apostle Paul preached.
How I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, and taught you publicly and from house to house, TESTIFYING to JEWS, and also to GREEKS, REPENTANCE TOWARD GOD and FAITH TOWARD our Lord JESUS CHRIST. - Acts 20:20-21 (emphasis added)
This was Paul's departing message to the Church in Ephesus. What he said to them is of great importance. The Gospel that Paul preached to the Jews and the Greeks (Gentiles) included repentance (toward God) and remission of sins (faith toward Jesus; 1 Corinthians 15:1-4). Compare Acts 20:20-21 with Luke 24:46-47 again.
In Paul's perspective, testifying to the Gospel of the grace of God is the same as preaching the kingdom of God. They are not separated. Look at the following verses.
...so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to TESTIFY TO THE GOSPEL OF THE GRACE OF GOD. And indeed, now I know that you all, among whom I have gone PREACHING THE KINGDOM OF GOD, will see my face no more. - Acts 20:24b-25 (emphasis added)
Paul's ministry is to testify to (preach) the Gospel of the grace of God. When he said, “now I know that you all”, he was referring to the Ephesians (who were primarily Gentiles) ----- whom he had gone preaching the kingdom of God aka the Gospel of the grace of God.
Why is it sometimes called the 'Gospel of grace' in Paul's writings? Because Paul's primary ministry was to the Gentiles (Gal 2:7-8). It is the grace of God to include the Gentiles in His redemption plan (Eph 2:4-5; 11-13). As a former persecutor of Christians, he personally also encountered His grace.
Because Paul preached the complete Gospel, he could say the following.
Therefore I testify to you this day that I AM INNOCENT of the blood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare to you the WHOLE COUNSEL OF GOD. - Acts 20:26-27
Hebrews also mention repentance and remission of sins as the foundational principles of Christ.
Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of REPENTANCE from dead works and of FAITH TOWARD GOD. - Heb 6:1 (emphasis added)
Let's take a quick look at what the apostle Peter said in his first sermon when preaching the Gospel to the Jews on the Day of Pentecost.
“Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, BOTH LORD AND CHRIST.” - Acts 2:36 (emphasis added)
The word “Christ” in Greek means the “Anointed One” or the “Messiah”. Messiah refers to the Saviour. Jesus is not just our Saviour. He is BOTH Lord and Saviour. The Gospel is an incomplete Gospel if we don't complete the Gospel with the message of His Lordship and His Kingdom when preaching to a non-believer.
If you confess with your mouth the LORD Jesus and believe in your heart that God has RAISED HIM FROM THE DEAD, you will be saved. - Romans 10:9 (emphasis added)
Notice in Romans 10, the salvation message (the Gospel) includes LORD and Saviour in this verse alone. It's not just 'Jesus died for your sins'. It is also, “Are you ready to live under His Lordship?”
Peter's second sermon (Acts 3:11-26) to the Jews included remission of sins (v26) and repentance (v19). The Jews understood that if Christ is the Messiah that Peter preached, they must be submitted to His Kingdom, because they understood discipleship.
This is the reason that in the Great Commission (Matt 28:19-20 and Mark 16:15), you see the word 'Gospel' in Mark (addressed to the Gentiles) but not in Matthew (addressed to the Jews).
“Go into all the world and PREACH THE GOSPEL to every creature. - Mark 16:15 (emphasis added)
Go therefore and MAKE DISCIPLES of all the nations. - Matthew 28:19 (emphasis added)
The Gospel and the Great Commission are the SAME.
Why is it that in the book of Matthew, it is recorded as “Go and make disciples”, instead of “Go and preach the Gospel”? Because there is no difference between preaching the Gospel and making disciples for the Jews. To believe in Christ as the Messiah sent by God is to live according to His teachings and His Kingdom. When a Jew follows a rabbi, he is to be submitted to the rabbi's teachings and be his disciple. Therefore, once a Jew believes that Jesus is the Saviour, and has repented of his thinking to return to God's Kingdom and God's reign, he knows that he has become the disciple of Christ and is to live according to the Kingdom culture.
The Great Commission = Preaching The Gospel = Making Disciples
The early disciples didn't separate evangelism and discipleship. It is us who do that in the modern church. They did not preach the incomplete Gospel (that we do) without the kingdom message. It is us who separates the two ----- one message for the lost and another message for discipleship after the lost is born again. The early disciples only preached ONE message ----- the complete Gospel.
Note: There was no such thing in the early church as presenting the Gospel of salvation to the lost first, followed by teaching them on discipleship where we talk about the Kingdom of God. It is NOT either-or. The Gospel is BOTH. It must be presented as a whole to the lost.
For Jesus didn't just come to show grace. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. He came to present grace and truth.
...grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. - John 1:17
The Gospel is not just grace. It's grace and truth. Grace is not a Person. Grace and truth came through a Person. Jesus is not just the grace of God. He is the grace and the truth of God. This is why Jesus is not just our Saviour, He is also our Lord. He is BOTH LORD (repentance unto the kingdom) AND SAVIOUR (remission of sins). That's a complete Gospel!
Jesus died for your sins, but He rose to restore your identity and redeem your original purpose ------ to live under His reign and manifest His kingdom, taking dominion on earth (Genesis 1:26-28) over all kinds of chaos (sicknesses, strife, broken relationships, poverty, depression, etc.).
Eternity doesn't begin in heaven. It begins now. The Kingdom is first within you and then flows out of you to the earth. We must reign on earth now until Jesus comes. Jesus will return and reign with us to end all rules on earth and fully establish His Kingdom. Once it is fully established (when the last enemy, death is subdued), Jesus will hand the Kingdom to the Father. (1 Cor 15:23-25)
This is why the complete Gospel of the Kingdom must be preached to all nations before the end will come (Matthew 24:14). The Gospel will prepare the Bride of Christ (the Church) to be GLORIOUS ------ by reigning on earth first with the Spirit of Christ and then together with the Person of Christ when He returns. The Gospel prepares the Bride to be READY for complete reign on earth.
This is not a “save me or help me” Gospel. That will be a pathetic church instead of a glorious church. The Gospel doesn't just save you. The Gospel is to save you so that the earth can be saved through you. The Gospel saves you for His Kingdom purpose ----- to rule and to reign. Jesus is coming back for a GLORIOUS BRIDE (Eph 5:27; Rev 19:7) Before the Kingdom of God can be established through us, the Kingdom of God must first be established in our hearts. We can reign and take dominion on the outside, when we realise that we can reign and take dominion on the inside (within us).
Your kingdom come...
Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven...
It begins with you and me.
P.S: The Kingdom message took me many years to understand as my foundation was built wrongly when I was first born again. Therefore, as fellow believers, we must preach the complete Gospel to the lost (non-believers) so that they can have the right foundation to grow quickly and destroy hell for a living.
P.P.S: The simple summary of the Gospel can be shared with the lost as follows (as a guide only and not necessary have to be in order of sequence):
- We were created to have relationship with God & out of that relationship, to take dominion on earth and establish His reign/kingdom
- Man fell, our relationship with God was broken, and thus, we couldn’t help but sin
- God wants to restore us back to the original design/intent/purpose
- Jesus, the Son of God came down from heaven and lived as a perfect Man on earth without sin to redeem us back.
- Because He loves us, He died on the Cross to pay for our sins and reconcile our relationship with God.
- He rose from the dead to restore our identity (sons and daughters) and redeem us for the kingdom (the original purpose of dominion and reign)
- When we believe that Jesus is Christ and is the only Way to the Father, He comes in and lives in us so that we can have a brand new nature to live a brand new life.
- He gives us the authority and power to live like Him and take dominion on earth —- healing the sick (like what you just experienced, etc), bringing peace to the environment around us, building strong marriage, etc (list the effects of the kingdom and how it can look like).
- Would you return to Him and give your life to Him so that He can live through you?
- Take the person through Holy Spirit and water baptisms quickly
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