[Friends and radio listeners]
Friends and radio listeners, what is the true gospel? What is the true gospel that Jesus preached? Did Paul preach a different gospel to the Gentiles?
There is much confusion on this topic. Why should there be such perplexity, such confusion in every phase of life today? It should be the function of religion to point the way. Yet, hereto we find only confusion of tongues, hundreds of religious denominations and sects in a Babylon of disagreement. Even in the prophesying Christian religion in the western world, we find different sects and denominations preaching a variety of different gospels. Some designate their gospel as the gospel of Jesus Christ. Others call their gospel, the gospel of salvation. Still, others profess the gospel of grace. Some, the gospel of the kingdom. Some, the social gospel, and some have used such terms as the Israel message.
Why have they lost the only true gospel which God sent by Jesus Christ? Why? By the way, how many gospels are there? Does it make any difference which gospel we believe?
Listen to the answer of the eternal God as inspired in Paul’s letter to the Galatians, the first chapter, the eighth and ninth verses. Now I would like to encourage you to look into your Bible and if you don’t have a Bible right now, please get a Bible or if you cannot get a Bible soon enough, be sure to write down the things that we say here so you can follow it up later on. Continuing what Galatians 1:8-9 says, “But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.” And it is made a double curse for the next verse says, “So say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.”
Why then has the world lost sight of that gospel? Why do people believe different gospels today? This is an astounding, incredible situation. It ought to shake you out of your passive indifference. This is not a non-consequential, unimportant matter. Jesus Christ said it is necessary to believe the gospel to be saved. Yet, the many, the hundreds of millions today do not know what that gospel is. Again, His parting commission to His disciples and apostles being sent out as His ministers to build His church was this: Christ said, “Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel.” They were to preach the gospel. Jesus then said, “He that believes and is baptised shall be saved but he that believes not shall be damned.” We find that in Mark 16:16. Notice Jesus said, “He that believes…” Believes what? Believes that which they preach [which is] of course, the gospel. Not a gospel, not any gospel, but the gospel. On the authority of Jesus Christ, it is necessary to believe that precise, identical gospel in order to be saved. And to believe the true gospel, we must first come to know what it is.
Now, with whom and from whom and to whom did the gospel originate? Is it with Christ? You will be surprised with the answers. It’s not with Christ because this message was sent from heaven by God. It was God the Father who promised to send a Messenger into the world from heaven bearing a message from Him, meaning, from God the Father. God had promised that in the prophecy in Malachi 3:1. Malachi 3:1 says, “Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me:” And that messenger of course as explained in Mark 1:2 was John the Baptist. And it says prepare the way before Jesus Christ. Continuing, “And the LORD, whom you seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom you delight in:”
The very first sermon by which God had the gospel preached to the Gentiles when Peter was sent to the house of the Gentile Cornelius recorded in the tenth chapter of the book of Acts gives us very explicit directions for locating the one and only true gospel. I would like you to open your Bible and compare. I want you to read with your own eyes. This is what the inspired Peter said as recorded in Acts 10:36-37. It reads, “The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ: [he is Lord of all]. (37) That word, I say, you know, which was published throughout all Judaea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached.”
So which gospel did Jesus preach? Now, let us carefully notice the points that are mentioned here. First or number 1: With whom did this message, this gospel, originate? Peter said, “The word which God sent.” Meaning, it originated from God. Number 2: To whom did God send it? Peter said, “Unto the children of Israel.” When Peter preached this, it was ten years later. This same gospel was being opened up to Gentiles of all nations. Originally, it was sent to the children of Israel and it was sent by God the Father. It did not originate with Jesus Christ, nor with Peter, nor with any of the apostles, or even the apostle Paul. It was sent by God, the Father of Jesus Christ. The third point that we will notice here: By whom was it sent? Who was the divine Messenger who brought and preached the message? Peter said, “By Jesus Christ.” Jesus Christ was the divine Messenger. Malachi called Him the Messenger of the Covenant. That message then is the New Covenant message, for Moses was the mediator of the old covenant. And Jesus Christ is the new as affirmed by many scriptures. Now, we go to point 4: Where was it first preached? To what geographical location shall we look for its beginning? Peter said, “It began from Galilee.” Yes, from Galilee. That is the place where it was first preached. Not Jerusalem, but Galilee. When did Jesus begin to preach this particular gospel in Galilee? Let’s quote from Peter. He said, “After the baptism which John preached.” In other words, the true gospel of the new covenant then did not begin with John the Baptist. It began after John had completed his baptismal ministry.
Now, those very definite directions lead us directly to the first chapter of Mark. The first verse tells us these and records the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Then it relates the baptising ministry of John, preaching, not the gospel, but the baptism of repentance which prepares the way for the gospel which the living God sent by Jesus Christ. And then we come to verses 14-15, “Now after that John was put in prison…” There, is the exact time for the beginning of the preaching of the true gospel. Jesus is the divine Messenger by whom God sent it. He came into Galilee, the precise geographical location.
So we now have the time, the Israelites residing there to whom God sent the message, the place, and the messenger. So whatsoever we find Jesus preaching here is the one and only true gospel. And what do we read? It says, “Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, (15) and saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent you, and believe the gospel.” Notice Jesus said, believe the gospel. Not any gospel, not a gospel.
So we have to answer the question, what gospel? The one He was proclaiming, the gospel of the kingdom of God. And that is what Jesus Christ preached. But one may ask, don’t we need to believe on Jesus? Of course, other scriptures teach that. But at this particular time, Jesus said, we must believe Him, believe what He said. Believe the gospel of the kingdom of God. Some believed on Jesus but did not believe Jesus, did not believe what He said. But if the one and only true gospel is the gospel of the Kingdom of God, what about the gospel of Jesus Christ? Is that a false gospel? Is there a contradiction? Not at all.
The gospel of Jesus Christ is the gospel He brought as God’s Messenger. The gospel He proclaimed is the gospel of the Kingdom of God. The gospel of Jesus Christ is not man’s gospel about the person of Christ but it is Christ’s gospel, the gospel God sent by Him, and therefore it is called in scriptures, the gospel of God. The gospel of God is God’s gospel, His message, His good news which He sent to earth by Jesus. Also, the gospel of Jesus Christ is Christ’s gospel, the gospel Christ brought from God, the gospel He proclaimed.
We hear a great deal today of the gospel of men about the person of Jesus Christ, confusing the message solely to the things about Jesus. As a result, millions believe on Christ but who do not believe Christ. But Jesus’ gospel is His message. And yet it was not only His but His Father’s, who sent Him as He Himself said. In John 12:49-50, Jesus said, “For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. (50) And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.”
Yes, the Father sent Jesus bearing a message which was the good news of the Kingdom of God. Jesus was God’s Spokesman, the Word that was made flesh and lived and taught on this earth. In John 14:24, Jesus said, “…The word which you hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me.” It is important to understand that the words which Jesus Christ spoke were not His but they came from the Father.
Now, what is this Kingdom of God? There was a definite time for the beginning of the gospel since John. The law and the prophets were until John. There was a definite time for this true New Testament gospel to begin. And after John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, saying, “The time is fulfilled.” And so now, what is that gospel? The English word gospel comes from the word “godspell”and means good news.
Daily we read the news of world happenings, mostly bad news. We live in a world of trouble, a chaotic world. And the very best news you can hear in this day or at any other is the good news of the Kingdom of God.
But what is a kingdom? Primarily it is government, and nation, and a government which rules it. It’s important for us to remember that there are four things which are necessary to constitute a kingdom. And lacking any one of these will not constitute a kingdom. What are they? First, it demands or needs a territory with a specific location and definite boundary lines. The second requirement for a kingdom is a king or supreme being or governing agent ruling over the third factor, which brings us to the subjects or citizens within that territorial jurisdiction. And the fourth factor or element of the kingdom, are laws and form of government. If we leave out any one of these vital requisites, we do not have and cannot believe the true gospel for this time. We must know whether the Kingdom of God is here now or coming later. Whether its territory is the earth or up in heaven, whether it is a literal kingdom of human mortals or a kingdom of immortals, whether it is literal or figurative, real or unreal. And on many of these things, a great many people are all mixed up.
Let us see a certain incident in the New Testament which gives light into the discussion about the gospel of the kingdom. Probably, most of you would remember about Nicodemus who came secretly to Jesus by night. And this account is recorded in the third chapter of John. Jesus said to him, “Truly, truly, I say unto you, except a man be born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God.” Jesus was proclaiming the Kingdom of God, explaining a most important face of it.
As Paul wrote to the church at Corinth, as we read in 1 Corinthians 15, it says, “Flesh and blood [that is a mortal human] cannot enter into the Kingdom of God.” The Church then cannot be the Kingdom of God for it is composed of flesh and blood mortals. The kingdom is not either an ethereal something set up in the hearts of men. Jesus went on to show Nicodemus that we who are born of flesh are flesh, just mortal flesh and blood. We were born that way, humans, mortals. But it is possible for us to be born again next time as a spirit being.
Now in the fourth chapter of John, we read here that God is spirit. The Kingdom of God is composed of those born of God. God is not a single person but a family of persons. We have the mineral kingdom, the plant kingdom, the animal kingdom. The Bible reveals an angelic kingdom, created by God and composed of spirit, not matter. And then high above all is the very creating kingdom, the God Kingdom, or in other words, the Kingdom of God.
God is reproducing Himself. God created men in God’s image so that men may become impregnated, begotten, and by a resurrection be born as an immortal spirit composed person in the Kingdom of God. The apostle Paul made very plain to the Corinthians that while mortal flesh and blood cannot inherit or enter into the Kingdom of God, through the resurrection of those begotten by the Holy Spirit of God during this mortal life, this mortal then puts on immortality that we, like the very God Himself becomes immortal, incorruptible, actually and literally born of God’s spirit into the very God family.
Now, what are the conditions for entering the Kingdom of God? Now, how do we enter into that glorious kingdom?
Jesus came, preaching the gospel of the Kingdom of God and saying, “Repent and believe the gospel.” There are two things that we need to do—to repent and to believe. We must believe the gospel and that means also believing on Jesus Christ, the king of the Kingdom of God, the coming King of kings over all the families of the earth. It means believing in Him as personal Savior as High Priest now and as coming King. But to repent is to completely change the mind in respect to sin. And sin is the transgression of the law according to the Bible. We can read that in 1 John 3:4, the law of God by which God rules the kingdom. Sin is the transgression of the law of God. It means therefore that to repent means a total complete change of mind and of life. It means, we repent of transgressing the rule, the will, and the laws of God.
What did Jesus say to the young man who asked Him how to inherit eternal life? He said in Matthew 19:17 (that should be easy to remember), “If you will enter into life, keep the commandments.” And He went on to show that He referred to the Ten Commandments, God’s great spiritual law, summing up the principle, the whole duty of righteous living. It’s a way of life. It is a way contrary to human nature, and to the ways and customs of this world. It’s the basic spiritual law and way of life of the Kingdom of God, the way of peace of mind, to world peace, to happiness, prosperity and joy, the way to eternal life.
Yes, Jesus Christ proclaimed and taught the gospel of the Kingdom of God. But did He command His ministers in building His Church to preach this gospel message? Let us notice a few scriptures here. First of all, Luke 9:1-2. It says, “Then he called his twelve disciples together, and sent them to preach the kingdom of God...” The following chapter, Luke 10 and verses 1-2 and 9. “After these things the LORD appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, where he himself would come. Therefore he said unto them, heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh [or near] unto you.” In Jesus’ prayer, commonly called the Lord’s Prayer, He prayed, “Thy kingdom come.” Then, it wasn’t here yet. And it is not here yet today. But He taught us to pray for it to come for His kingdom and that alone shall bring peace and happiness to this sin-sick, war-weary earth. “Thy kingdom come, thy will [meaning the Father’s will] be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
What gospel did the evangelists preach? In the first sending out of the faith once delivered, how did the early church carry out the commission? Let us notice Philip who went to Samaria and preached. The account is found in Acts 8:12. It says here, “But when they believed Philip preaching the things [concerning what?] concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.” No infant baptism here. Philip preached the things concerning the Kingdom of God.
How about the apostle Paul? What did he preach? Let us read Acts 20:25 and also in 21, it says here, “…I have gone preaching the kingdom of God…testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.” And notice the gospel Paul preached to Gentiles after he had turned completely away from the Jewish religion. Acts 28:30-31, “And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house (this was when he was in prison in Rome), and received all that came in unto him, (31) Preaching the kingdom of God (now, read that again, preaching the Kingdom of God), and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ…”
And what gospel did Jesus say should be preached today into all the world? We can read that in Matthew 24:14. It says (speaking of our time), “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness (for a witness) unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” Meaning, the end of this age.
Now there are many gospels that you are hearing today, but there is only one true gospel message which Jesus Christ mentioned and He has prophesied will be preached. And this is the very same message which you are hearing today. A single, all powerful world-ruling government is coming that will equalize all world problems fairly and righteously for all people. Of course, many say such a world-ruling government is impossible. Yet the biblical revelations say that it is not impossible and that is actually coming in our time. It’s about time that someone speaks out and tells the world that the very gospel of Jesus was the advance announcement of this very world government, a government not by selfishly motivated men, but by the living, all powerful God. Jesus Christ’s message, His gospel was the Kingdom of God, the government of the living God.
Jesus Christ was born to be king. When Jesus was on trial for His life, Pilate said to Him, “Are you a king then?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king, and to this end, I was born. And for this cause, came I into the world.” We read that in John 18:37. John 18:37, Jesus told Pilate, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then would My servants fight that I should not be delivered to the Jews. But now is My kingdom not from here.” Meaning, not of this age, not of this time, but it is of the world tomorrow. Indeed, Jesus is coming in supreme power and glory. Notice the description of the event, then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth shall mourn and they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. We read that in Matthew 34:30.
Now, what does that kingdom look like? What is it all about? What are its details? Had the other prophets prophesied about that kingdom? What will it be like? We will hear the details of that message of that kingdom in future broadcasts.
Therefore, be sure to listen again with our next broadcast which will elaborate and expand even more on this topic. This message has been eye-opening to you because this world has been in great religious confusion, believing so many kinds of conflicting, fighting, contradicting gospel messages. But there is only one, the one that Jesus Christ brought from the Father which He commanded His apostles to preach and to teach, which the apostles preached and that is the gospel of the Kingdom of God.
For more details, be sure to listen to our next broadcast.
[Until next time, in behalf of the Good News of the World Tomorrow, this is Ed Macaraeg saying thank you for listening.] |