What Is The Gospel

Whenever I encounter this question or find myself in a situation that requires me to explain what the Gospel is, I always refer to 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 (NASB).

In his letter to the Church at Corinth, Paul reminds them of the Gospel which he had previously preached to them. He states, “Now I make known to you, brothers and sisters, the gospel which I preached to you, which you also received, in which you also stand, by which you also are saved, if you hold firmly to the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I handed down to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.”

From this, we can clearly see that the Gospel is that Jesus Christ died for the sins of humanity (Foretold in Isaiah 53:5-6), and He was buried (Luke 23:50-56), and that he was raised on the third day (Foretold in Psalm 16:10, but see Acts 2:25-31 for context).

Paul also went on to give evidence (eyewitnesses) of the resurrection in support of the Gospel: “He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also.” 1 Corinthians 15:5-8

After highlighting this, I then remind people of something Paul wrote within his letter to the early church at Rome, “that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” Romans 10:9