What really is the Good News?
What is the Good News? What makes it “good?” What is the “Gospel” that Jesus and the apostles preached?
Have you ever asked your pastors or elders what the Gospel is all about? If you ask a dozen Christians, you might get a dozen different views about what constitutes the Gospel. You could even ask preachers what they consider as a valid and complete Gospel message.
Here’s what you might hear from different people.
- “We preach Christ crucified.” Jesus died for us. He rose from the dead. Those who believe can receive forgiveness of sins.
- Jesus is the good news! “Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David.”
- Jesus not only forgives sins; He also heals the sick and sets people free from oppressive evil spirits.
- The good news is for the poor and oppressed. People need liberation from all poverty and oppression. The Gospel is the good news about a just and equitable society.
- The good news is for all creatures, not just for humans. Justice and Peace must include the entire environment, including non-human creatures.
A Truncated Gospel?
What is mostly preach today as the “Gospel” focuses on what individuals can gain from the death of Jesus Christ: namely, forgiveness of sins and deliverance from God’s wrath. Listeners are, therefore, encouraged to accept Jesus as their “personal” Savior and Lord. Is that all there is to the Gospel? Forgiveness of sins, acceptance of repentant sinners into God’s family, et cetera?
The problem is not merely that Evangelicals reduced the gospel to the level of individuals. Worse than that, this popular, individualistic “Gospel” does not do justice to the Gospel that is presented in the New Testament.
It is true that each individual needs to hear the Gospel and make a personal choice to follow Jesus Christ. One person cannot choose for another. That said, it must also be recognized that the Gospel is not just about leading individual souls to a right relationship with God through Christ. The simplistic reduction of the Gospel to “personal salvation” gives us a truncated Gospel.
The Gospel Of God’s Kingdom
What did John the Baptist preach?
“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near!” (Matt 3:2 LEB)
What did Jesus preach?
Now when [Jesus] heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galilee. … From that time on, Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, because the kingdom of heaven is near.” (Matt 4:12, 17 LEB)
What did the apostle Paul proclaim?
So he stayed two whole years in his own rented house, and welcomed all who came to him, proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching the things concerning the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness, without hindrance. kingdom of heaven is near.” (Act 28:30-31 LEB)
Now, if you are wondering what the ‘kingdom of God’ might mean, here’s a clue: the Good News is primarily for the Jews, and then, it is also meant for the rest of the world. In other words, if the Christian proclamation should indeed be good news, the Jews should be the first ones to perceive it as good news.
Jewish Hopes
At the time of Jesus’ birth, the Jews of those times were indeed waiting to hear some good news. Majority of their people had been lost without a trace more than 700 years ago. Only a small fraction of those who survived long years of exile, managed to live in the land of their ancestors. Still, they remained like slaves in their own land, ruled by foreign powers. Every Jew prayed earnestly for the restoration of their erstwhile kingdom. That kingdom was at its zenith during the reign of king David. God had promised David that one of his descendants would rule over his people forever. Each of his descendants who ruled as king was known as “messiah”, Hebrew for someone anointed as king. All those messiahs failed their people. Was it any wonder that the Jews eagerly waited for that particular Messiah who would fulfil God’s promise to David and rule forever?
The Jews prayed God would raise up a human king, a descendent of king David, who in turn would restore the glorious kingdom of Israel. That king, they hoped would secure Israel’s borders against the aggression of foreign rulers.
Jewish religious leaders spent hours poring through their scriputures to know more about this Messiah who would rule forever. One of their prophets had prophesied that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, David's town (Micah 5:2).
The Twist In The Tale
God intended to fulfill His promises to David in ways that the no Israelite ever imagined. God did not hide those intentions from His prophets. Yet, in spite of countless of hours of study, Israelite religious leaders failed to notice many key prophecies about their long-expected Messiah.
- A Divine Messiah
- David himself had prophesied about his descendant who would rule forever. But David called that descendant “Lord” (Ps 110:1) This was the earliest indication that this Messiah would not be merely human.
- A Heavenly Reign
- In that passage, David had prophesied that the Messiah would rule from heaven instead of setting up a throne on earth. “The LORD says to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand …’ ”
- A Global Reign
- David, in Psalm 2, prophesied that the coming Messiah’s reign would extend to the ends of the earth. “Ask from me and I will make the nations your heritage, and your possession the ends of the earth.”
- A Divine Messiah With A Global Reign
- Daniel prophesied that someone like a “son of man” would ascend on the clouds of heaven to God’s presence to receive an eternal kingdom over all nations. (Dan 7:13-14).
- The Messiah Will Be Killed
- Daniel prophesied that the Messiah would be “cut off” (Dan 9:26). Isaiah prophesied about the sufferings and death of the coming Messiah.
- The Messiah Will Rise Again
- David predicted that the future Messiah would rise again from the dead. He specifically stated that God would not abandon His Holy One to the grave or let His body decay. (Ps 16:9-10)
Is it any wonder the Jews failed to identify Ye’shua (Jesus) as their Messiah?
Why blame the Jews when Evangelical Christians, who claim to know Jesus, misread the Bible and claim that God will restore an earthly kingdom to the Jews? They even teach that God is yet to fulfill His the promise to David. As a result, they do not believe that Jesus is king; they think Jesus will set up a kingdom on earth in the future! They do not have any good news to offer to the Jews! The Messiah’s kingdom, for them, is still in the future. They do not realize that any news that is called Good News must be based on what happened in the past.
Apostolic Proclamation
The apostle Peter proclaimed the true good news on the day of Pentecost: God exalted Jesus to the highest throne – at the right hand side of the Father – and made him Messiah (Christ) and Lord of all.
“Therefore let all the house of Israel know beyond a doubt, that God has made him both Lord and Christ [Messiah = King]—this Jesus whom you crucified!” (Acts 2:36 LEB)
How could Peter be so sure that Jesus was crowned King (Messiah) of Israel and the whole world? The proof of Jesus’ exaltation was there for all to see: God had sent His Holy Spirit upon Jesus’ disciples. Thousands of Jews who had gathered there from “every nation under heaven” (Acts 2:5) were convinced that God had performed a miracle through His Spirit.
“Therefore, having been exalted to the right hand of God and having received the promise of the Holy Spirit from the Father, he has poured out this that you see and hear.” (Acts 2:33 LEB)
The apostle Paul made it further clearer: By raising Jesus from the dead and appointing him as the Messiah (Christ), God fulfilled His promise to David.
“And we proclaim the good news to you: that the promise that was made to the fathers, this promise God has fulfilled to our children by raising Jesus …” (Acts 13:32-33 LEB)
That’s the Good News to the Jews! That’s why Peter declared: “Therefore let all the house of Israel know beyond a doubt …”
Every Jew needs to hear this good news:
Your long-awaited Messiah is enthroned in heaven; the kingdom of Israel has been restored; it’s borders extend to the ends of the earth; the Messiah will rule forever and ever. There is no need to fight for an earthly kingdom. The moment you submit to the heavenly reign of your Messiah, you are in His eternal kingdom.
The apostle Paul said, “We preach Christ crucified.” Most evangelical Christians latched on to the word “crucified.” We failed to notice the word CHRIST which means anointed King. Paul did not just preach about the crucifixion. He preached the King of kings who was enthroned in heaven after having defeated death.
Christians who fail to preach the Good News of His Royal Highness, Ye’shua the Messiah, are distorting the gospel. Worse still, such Christians are helping Jews to set up an earthly kingdom or state—even while the real Messiah, the Son of David, is seated on heaven’s throne. They are trying to set up a small “Israel” within the global kingdom of the Messiah. They sell weapons, fund wars, and sponsor a genocide—all in the name of helping Jesus become a king on earth. What a tragedy!
Read about the prophecies that were fulfilled on the Day of Pentecost:
Messiah’s Heavenly Kingdom and Israel’s Restoration
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Articles on Evangelism