Hearing the Gospel

God calls us. But God does not choose everyone He calls. This is made clear for us in Matthew 22:14 , "For many are called, but few chosen."

Furthermore, unless God calls us and draws us to Jesus, we cannot come.

"No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up in the last day." — John 6:44

But how are we called? How are we drawn by the Father to Jesus?

When Jesus began his mission on earth, he set a clear example of the method he intended to use to reach people and he never changed his approach:

"Now after John was taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the Good News of God's Kingdom, and saying, 'The time is fulfilled, and God's Kingdom is at hand! Repent, and believe in the Good News.'" — Mark 1:14-15

Jesus was being straightforward. He was telling them to change their ways and believe his message. So, what was his message?

The Bible tells us quite clearly:

• The Gospel includes both the Gospel of Jesus Christ^a and the Good News of God’s Kingdom, the kingdom Jesus came to declare:

The Gospel of Jesus Christ

• We must believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Anointed One, the Messiah, the son of the living God:

"But these are written, that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name." — John 20:31

"I said therefore to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am he, you will die in your sins." — John 8:24

• Jesus was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin, Mary:

"The angel said to her, 'Don't be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb, and give birth to a son, and will call his name ‘Jesus.' He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father, David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever. There will be no end to his Kingdom.' Mary said to the angel, 'How can this be, seeing I am a virgin?' The angel answered her, 'The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore also the holy one who is born from you will be called the Son of God.'" — Luke 1:30-35

• Jesus' role as our Saviour was announced by an angel at his birth:

"There were shepherds in the same country staying in the field, and keeping watch by night over their flock. Behold, an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. The angel said to them, 'Don't be afraid, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be to all the people. For there is born to you today, in David's city, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.'" — Luke 2:8-11

• Jesus lived a perfect, sinless life:

"You know that he was revealed to take away our sins, and in him is no sin." — 1 John 3:5

• Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life; Jesus is our means to finding favor with God and thereby, God’s grace:

"Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me." — John 14:6

"A highway will be there, a road, and it will be called The Holy Way. The unclean shall not pass over it, but it will be for those who walk in the Way. Wicked fools will not go there." — Isaiah 35:8

"For the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ." — John 1:17

"Jesus said to her, 'I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will still live, even if he dies. Whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?'" — John 11:25

"Most certainly I tell you, he who believes in me, the works that I do, he will do also; and he will do greater works than these, because I am going to my Father. Whatever you will ask in my name, I will do it, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you will ask anything in my name, I will do it. If you love me, keep my commandments. I will pray to the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, that he may be with you forever: the Spirit of truth, whom the world can't receive; for it doesn't see him, neither knows him. You know him, for he lives with you, and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans. I will come to you. Yet a little while, and the world will see me no more; but you will see me. Because I live, you will live also. In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. One who has my commandments, and keeps them, that person is one who loves me. One who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him, and will reveal myself to him." — John 14:12-21

• Jesus died for all humanity as an atoning sacrifice:

"And he is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the whole world." — 1 John 2:2

"But he was pierced for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The punishment that brought our peace was on him; and by his wounds we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray. Everyone has turned to his own way; and Yahweh has laid on him the iniquity of us all." — Isaiah 53:5-6

• Jesus' death is sufficient to provide salvation for all who receive him as their Savior:

"But as many as received him, to them he gave the right to become God's children, to those who believe in his name:" — John 1:12

• Our future hope of eternal life is confirmed by Jesus' literal, physical resurrection from the dead:

"He is not here, for he has risen, just like he said. Come, see the place where the Lord was lying." — Matthew 28:6

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his great mercy caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead." — 1 Peter 1:3

• Jesus ascended to heaven in his glorified body and is now seated at the right hand of God as our High Priest and Advocate until his return:

"When he had said these things, as they were looking, he was taken up, and a cloud received him out of their sight. While they were looking steadfastly into the sky as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white clothing, who also said, 'You men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who was received up from you into the sky, will come back in the same way as you saw him going into the sky.'" — Acts 1:9-11

The Good News of God’s Kingdom

• Jesus’ came to preach the good news of God’s Kingdom:

Jesus announces the arrival of the Kingdom. He offers his followers the Kingdom. His parables are intended to explain what the Kingdom is like. Much of his teaching is about how to enter the Kingdom and who will be accepted into it. The beatitudes in the Sermon on the Mount list the attributes of those who are fit for the Kingdom. Jesus advises us to seek the Kingdom of God above all else. Jesus hands Peter the keys to the Kingdom. The Kingdom is what he will deliver to his Father when his work has been finished.

"But he said to them, 'I must preach the good news of God's Kingdom to the other cities also. For this reason I have been sent'." — Luke 4:43

"This Good News of the Kingdom will be preached in the whole world for a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come." — Matthew 24:14

"But seek first God's Kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things will be given to you as well." — Matthew 6:33

• The Kingdom of God will be a literal kingdom of ever-lasting life on earth:

"Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth." — Matthew 5:5

"In the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, nor will its sovereignty be left to another people; but it will break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it will stand forever." — Daniel 2:44

"The seventh angel sounded, and great voices in heaven followed, saying, "The kingdom of the world has become the Kingdom of our Lord, and of his Christ. He will reign forever and ever!" — Revelation 11:15

"And he made us to be a Kingdom, priests to his God and Father; to him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen." — Revelation 1:6

"And made us kings and priests to our God, and we will reign on the earth." — Revelation 5:10

"All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to Yahweh. All the relatives of the nations shall worship before you. For the kingdom is Yahweh's. He is the ruler over the nations. All the rich ones of the earth shall eat and worship. All those who go down to the dust shall bow before him, even he who can't keep his soul alive." — Psalms 22:27-29

"I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth have passed away, and the sea is no more. I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband. I heard a loud voice out of heaven saying, "Behold, God's dwelling is with people, and he will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; neither will there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, any more. The first things have passed away... He who overcomes, I will give him these things. I will be his God, and he will be my son." — Revelation 21:1-4, 7

"But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. Before him all the nations will be gathered, and he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will tell those on his right hand, 'Come, blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world;'" — Matthew 25:31-34

To be saved, and be a follower of Jesus, we must be called, we must believe that Jesus is the Son of God, that he came to preach the Good News of God's Kingdom, that he is our Savior by dying for our sins, that he is the Christ, that he was raised from the dead, and we must allow him to be Lord of our lives, our King.

^a The word "Christ" is the English transliteration of the Greek word "Χριστός" — pronounced "khristós", which has the same meaning as the word "Messiah," a loose English transliteration of the Hebrew word "מָשִׁיחַ" — pronounced "mashíach". The word "Christ" used in translations of the New Testament and the word "Messiah" used in translations of the Old Testament. Both words mean "the anointed one," and denote Jesus as the one chosen by God to save his people. Jesus is the Messiah/Anointed One who was promised to the children of Israel—the fulfillment of the prophecies. When people call Jesus, "Jesus Christ," they are using the word "Christ" as his title or epithet. And when Jesus is called "The Christ," it is the same thing as calling him "The Messiah" or "The Anointed One." The titles mean one and the same in this instance.