What is the Good News?
1 Corinthians 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how 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:
Introduction: The word gospel appears 93 times in the NT literally means “good news.” In Greek, it is the word euaggelion, from which we get our English words evangelist, evangel, and evangelical. The gospel is, broadly speaking, the whole of Scripture; more narrowly, the gospel is the good news concerning Christ and the way of salvation. The key to understanding the gospel is to know why it’s good news. To do that, we must start with the bad news. The Old Testament Law was given to Israel during the time of Moses (Deuteronomy 5:1). The Law can be thought of as a measuring stick, and sin is anything that falls short of “perfect” according to that standard. The righteous requirement of the Law is so stringent that no human being could possibly follow it perfectly, in letter or in spirit. Despite our “goodness” or “badness” relative to each other, we are all in the same spiritual boat—we have sinned, and the punishment for sin is death, i.e. separation from God, the source of life (Romans 3:23). In order for us to go to heaven, God’s dwelling place and the realm of life and light, sin must be somehow removed or paid for. The Law established the fact that cleansing from sin can only happen through the bloody sacrifice of an innocent life (Hebrews 9:22). This morning of Christmas Eve I think it would be good to remind us of just what the Gospel is.
I. The Gospel is about a Cradle
Luke 2:10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
What are the good tidings of great joy? Let’s look at the events of that night so long ago.
The shepherds were surrounded by bleating, smelly sheep and the dust that arose when they and their herds moved about. They had no idea what was about to happen — the pronouncement of the ages! The Bible tells us God sent an angel and he appeared before them, “and the glory of the Lord shone round them, and they were greatly afraid” (Luke 2:9). Not only did the angel reflect the Lord’s glorious light, but it was so extensive it surrounded the shepherds, too. The angel had to tell them not to be afraid, so great was the glory of the Lord that surrounded them (see also Exodus 34:29-30).
The angel proclaimed his tidings of great joy and then said, “For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11). Once the angel gave the shepherds the directions to find the baby, “suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!’” (Luke 2:13-14).
Surely the shepherds were overcome, but they quickly gathered their wits about them and headed into Bethlehem to see what happened. After they saw Mary, Joseph, and the baby, they “made known” what the angel said to them. In verse twenty, we are told the shepherds went back to their flocks, “glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.” We can rightly call these shepherds some of the first evangelists, for they shared the good news about Jesus with people.
What does the Cradle say to us? It speaks of his humanity
John declares that “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us…” and the name Emanuel means God with us.” He came to us physically but he also came to us to unite with us in our humanity.
II. The Gospel is about a Cross
Notice that Paul declares that “…how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;” The Hymn says “…on a hill far away stood and old rugged cross, the emblem of suffering and shame.”
AT JESUS’ ATONING DEATH ON THE CROSS, IT IS SAID THAT
“SIN WAS NULLIFIED, SINNER WAS JUSTIFIED, LAW WAS SATISFIED AND GOD WAS GLORIFIED!!!”
THE WONDROUS CROSS
Gal. 6:14 inspired Isaac Watts to compose one of modern Christendom’s favorite hymns. While preparing for a communion service in 1707, Isaac Watts wrote this deeply moving and very personal expression of gratitude for the amazing love that the death of Christ on the cross revealed. It first appeared in print that same year in Watts’ outstanding collection, Hymns and Spiritual Songs. The hymn was originally titled "Crucifixion to the World by the Cross of Christ." Noted theologian Matthew Arnold called this the greatest hymn in the English language (Osbeck, Kenneth W.: Amazing Grace: 366 Inspiring Hymn Stories for Daily Devotions. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Kregel Publications, 1990, S. 106).
Note in particular the beauty of the little-known fourth verse:
1. When I survey the wondrous cross
on which the Prince of Glory died;
my richest gain I count but loss,
and pour contempt on all my pride.
2. Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast,
save in the death of Christ, my God;
all the vain things that charm me most,
I sacrifice them to his blood.
3. See, from his head, his hands, his feet,
sorrow and love flow mingled down.
Did e'er such love and sorrow meet,
or thorns compose so rich a crown.
4. Were the whole realm of nature mine,
that were an offering far too small;
love so amazing, so divine,
demands my soul, my life, my all.
THE MEANING OF THE CROSS
In the 19th century, Armenian Christians, under a Turkish Muslim government, experienced a tremendous amount of persecution. The government lifted the ban on Muslims converting to Christianity in 1856. Then just eight years later, they began arresting these Muslim converts to Christianity. From 1895 to 1896 government soldiers killed up to 100,000 Armenian civilians in an attempt to kill every Armenian Christian within Turkish borders. Lawyers, doctors, clergymen, and other intellectuals were rounded up and charged with subversion. Many had their heads placed in vises and squeezed until they collapsed.
Then the Turkish government set April 24, 1896, as the day to kill the rest of the Armenian Christians. Nearly 600,000 Christians died on that day, but some escaped. One of those who escaped was a young girl of 18 who stumbled into an American camp.
"Are you in pain?" a nurse asked when she arrived.
"No," she replied, "but I have learned the meaning of the cross."
The nurse thought she was mentally disoriented and questioned her further. Pulling down the one garment she wore, the young girl exposed a bare shoulder. There, burned deeply into her flesh, was the figure of a cross.
"I was caught with others in my village. The Turks stood me up and asked, 'Muhammed or Christ?' I said, 'Christ, always Christ.' For seven days they asked me this same question and each day when I said 'Christ' a part of this cross was burned into my shoulder. On the seventh day they said, 'Tomorrow if you say "Muhammed" you live. If not, you die.' Then we heard that Americans were near and some of us escaped. That is how I learned the meaning of the cross."
She learned it through the burning, and that's how we too learn the meaning of the cross. We learn it through the fiery trials that come our way. George MacDonald (1824-1905) once said, "The Son of God suffered unto death, not that men might not suffer, but that their sufferings might be like his."
(Marti Hefley, By Their Blood, Baker, 1996, p.342. From a sermon by C. Philip Green, In the Fire! 7/30/2011)
III. The Gospel is about a Crypt
4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day
Joseph of Arimathea was a very wealthy Pharisee, a member of the council, and a secret follower of Jesus. It was Joseph who went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body after the crucifixion. And it was Joseph who supplied the tomb for Jesus’ burial.
Well, it seems that someone pulled him aside and said, "Joseph, that was such beautiful, costly, hand-hewn tomb. Why on earth did you do this thing, to which Joseph replied that Jesus was only going to use it for the weekend.”
Tomb, thou shalt not hold Him longer;
Death is strong, but Life is stronger;
Stronger than the dark, the light;
Stronger than the wrong, the right;
Faith and Hope triumphant say,
Christ will rise on Easter Day.
Phillips Brooks.
The King of all ages, the Giver of life,
For a moment lies silent and still;
But a power sent from heaven comes breaking the night,
And death must bow to His will.
Gaither Vocal Band
IV. III. The Gospel is about a Crown
Philippians 2:5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
COMING FOR HIS CROWN
When the Archbishop of Canterbury crowned Queen Elizabeth II, he laid the crown on her head with this pronouncement, “I give thee, O sovereign lady, this crown to wear until he who reserves the right to wear it shall return.”
In life Jesus wore a crown of thorns but now He sits at right hand of the Father crowned with glory and honor and praise.
Conclusion: Crowns have always been the sign of authority and Kingship.
Charlemagne, whom historians say should deserve to be called "great" above all others, wore an octagonal crown. Each of the eight sides was a plaque of gold, and each plaque was studded with emeralds, sapphires, and pearls. The cost was the price of a king’s ransom.
Richard the Lion-Hearted had a crown so heavy that two Earls had to stand, one on either side, to hold his head. The crown that Queen Elizabeth wears is worth $20 million-plus. Edward II once owned nine crowns, something of a record. Put them all together, from all of Europe and from the archives of the East, all of them are but trinkets compared to Christ’s crown.
Revelation 19 says he had many diadems. He wears a crown of righteousness. He wears a crown of glory. He wears a crown of life. He wears a crown of peace and power. Among those crowns, one outshines the rest. It was not formed by the skilled fingers of a silversmith, nor created by the genius of a craftsman. It was put together hurriedly by the rough hands of Roman soldiers.
It was not placed upon its wearer’s head in pomp and ceremony, but in the hollow mockery of ridicule and blasphemy. It is a crown of thorns.
The amazing thing is that it belonged to me. I deserved to wear that crown. I deserved to feel the thrust of the thorns. I deserved to feel the hot trickle of blood upon my brow. I deserved the pain. He took my crown of thorns -- but without compensation. He offers to me instead His crown of life.
Next week I will have a crown on one of my teeth. The dentist will drill away the decay and damage of the old tooth and replace it with a new crown. He will replace the old with something new. Faith involves getting rid of the old and replacing it with something better. Jesus said “ the thief comes to steal, kill and destroy. I came that they might have life and have it to the full.” (John 10:10)
“And it came to pass afterward, that he went throughout every city and village, preaching and shewing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God” (Luke 8:1, KJV)
In this world, we need words. The most effective way to communicate people is through words.
Our words may be of good effects as well as bad—it determines our destiny. The Bible says, “For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned" (Matt 12:37, NIV).
The most important message God’s people need to speak in these last days is “Glad Tidings of the Kingdom.” It is the good news of the coming kingdom of our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ. It is the glad tidings that Jesus Christ is coming very soon. Soon and very soon we will go to see the King. He is even at the door.
It is good news that we will be going to heaven with Jesus—that in there “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (Rev 21:4, NIV).
