The word gospel literally means “good news." The gospel is, broadly speaking, the whole of Scripture; more narrowly, the gospel is the good news concerning Christ and the way of salvation. The gospel is often referred to as the Gospel of Jesus Christ because it is not just any good news, but it is the good news which relates to the person and work of Jesus Christ. Without Christ, there is no Gospel.

The elements of the gospel are clearly stated in 1 Corinthians 15:3–6, a key passage concerning the good news of God: “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living.” Notice, first, that Paul “received” the gospel and then “passed it on”; this is a divine message, not a man-made invention. Second, the gospel is “of first importance.” Everywhere the apostles went, they preached the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. Third, the message of the gospel is accompanied by proofs: Christ died for our sins (proved by His burial), and He rose again the third day (proved by the eyewitnesses). Fourth, all this was done “according to the Scriptures”; the theme of the whole Bible is the salvation of mankind through Christ. 

The key to understanding the gospel is to know why it’s good news. To do that, we must start with the bad news. In Genesis 3, something called sin entered the world. Adam and Eve were tempted by the serpent—also known as the devil or Satan—and chose to act in direct opposition to God’s command. This act of disobedience began a cycle of life, disobedience, and death that continues to this day. Adam’s fallen, sinful nature has been passed along from one generation to the next. The Bible depicts human beings, all human beings everywhere, as in revolt against God, and therefore under His judgment. We have all sinned, and the punishment for sin is death, i.e. separation from God (Romans 3:23).

Yet, God has, in His good pleasure, made a way for sinners to be reconciled to Himself through His Son Jesus Christ (Rom. 5:10-11; 2 Cor. 5:18-21; Col. 1:21). In His death, Jesus Christ received in Himself the punishment which was due for the sins of all of His people. All of God’s wrath which would have been poured out on the sinners, was instead poured out on Jesus. He became their substitute. In that moment, God’s wrath against them was propitiated (satisfied) because it was laid upon Christ.

Additionally, Christ provides for the sinner His own righteousness as their possession so that they may stand before God not only as sinless, but as perfectly righteous. The sinner’s debt was charged to Christ’s account, and Christ’s righteousness was charged to their account. In this divine transaction, God is able to remain perfectly just in that He has punished sin through a substitute and He has accepted the righteousness of that substitute on their behalf.

Jesus Christ lived a righteous life and then suffered death on a Roman cross for the sins of His people (Isa. 53:4-12; Matt. 1:21; John 10:11, 15, 17:6, 9, 19, Rom. 8:34). Thus, Jesus Christ satisfied the holy and just requirements of God (Rom. 3:21-26; 5:8-9; 8:3-4; 1 John 4:9-10). God then raised Him from the dead, vindicating Christ’s work (Matt. 28:18; Acts 2:32-36, 17:30-31; Rom 1:4; 14:9). Sinners are called to repent and believe the Gospel and to receive God’s free gift of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ alone (Acts 2:38, 3:19; Rom. 6:23; Eph. 2:8-9). Everyone who believes is thereby counted righteous before God (Rom. 1:16-17; 3:21-26; 4:4-8; 5:1; etc.). As the apostle Paul declares in Romans 10:9-13, "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in Him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing His riches on all who call on Him. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

The question now becomes, how can a person know that his sins are forgiven and that he has been given the righteousness of Christ? The answer is by faith alone. There is no work which can be done which would demand God’s favor or even His attention. Salvation comes as a result of God’s gift of grace (unmerited favor) which results in a rebellious sinner’s heart being converted and responding positively to the call to repent of sin and believe in Jesus Christ. “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9). If a person has true faith in Jesus Christ, he can be confident that he is saved. His will and desires will begin to conform to Christ and he will become His disciple. A life unchanged is not a life of true faith. In short, a person knows that he is saved if he has responded positively to the Gospel in faith and repentance and his life has been changed as a result.

Knowing this, how have you responded to the Gospel? Do you reject it or do you believe it is the truth? The Bible tells us that those who reject the Gospel have rejected Christ, and that apart from Christ there is no salvation from sin. You will be judged by God for your sin and His unmitigated wrath will be poured out on you for all eternity. If this describes you, I pray God’s grace would open your heart to believe His Gospel and that you would know the joy and peace which comes in the salvation of His Son alone. Without Christ, there is no Gospel.