What is the Gospel?

“For God so loved the world, that he gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.”

            John 3:16-17

Love…

Simply put God loved us so much that he gave us the choice to sin and when we did he loved us so much, despite our sinful state, that he died to give us a second chance to choose relationship with him. The good news is that God is pursuing you. No matter who or where you are the profound truth is God loves you and His love changes everything.

I used to have a grand explanation for what the gospel is but I also had an incomplete understanding of the nature of God. God is love and the core of the gospel is his love for humanity. The gospel is God’s message of love to the world.

John 3:16 is quoted so often it’s almost tempting to disregard it but what it actually says is profound. God loved us, so he chose to save us.

When Adam and Eve sinned in the garden they traded relationship with God for death. Because he loved them God determined to restore relationship with them. The rest of the Bible is built on that pursuit for restoration and the climax is the death and resurrection of Jesus.

When he became our advocate and took our sins onto himself the veil in the temple was torn, enabling us to come boldly into the throne room. We have been restored to relationship with God and the abundant life that he offers us. We have been set free from the bondages of sin. The shame that we feel, the anxiety we experience, and the guilt that forces us to strive to prove ourselves is caught up in the blood of Christ and washed away.