Gospel
What is the Gospel? The Gospel is this: Jesus Christ lived the live we should have lived and died the death we deserve to die. His resurrection from the dead is the central fact of both human history and personal meaning in life. By trusting in him and letting go of our self-saving strategies we find life, meaning, joy, and purpose. We are a people who are finding freedom and life as we are learning to trust Jesus, let go of our unbelief and fear, and find joy in the mission that he calls us to.
We seek to live as a Gospel-centered church. What does that mean?
1. We must know the gospel (gospel message). Most Christians overestimate their own understanding of the gospel message. The gospel is something "into which angels long to look" (1 Peter 1:12). And angels are smarter than you. Which means: if you think you "get" the gospel, you probably don't. We must devote ourselves to an ever-deepening knowledge and appreciation of the gospel of Jesus.
2. We must experience the gospel (gospel motivation). The gospel is not just a message to be believed, but a power to be experienced. Until the gospel transforms our motivations, we will obey God primarily out of things like fear, pride, duty, or guilt. Those motivations simply aren’t strong enough to sustain lifelong, radical obedience. Only when we begin to live out of our new identity in Christ will we find ourselves loving God deeply and obeying him freely.
3. We must live the gospel (gospel means). The Gospel is not something we need to understand at the beginning of our Christian life, then we start to move on to other things about being a Christian. The Gospel isn’t just for unbelievers to hear so they can be saved. The Gospel is FOR Christians who have known Jesus for 5 yrs, 20 yrs, 50 yrs, just as much as someone who does not know Jesus. The Gospel is just as much for Christians to know and hear everyday, as it is for someone who doesn’t know Jesus yet and needs to believe for the first time.
