What is the Gospel?

The Gospel is NOT the following:

God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life

Jesus died for you (speaking indiscriminately and randomly).

Believe that Jesus died for your sins and you will be saved.

The Gospel IS the following:

Rom 4:3 For what does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness."

1. Belief in God (but what are we to believe? This comes shortly)

Rom 4:10-11 How then was it counted to him? Was it before or after he [had been circumcised/had been baptized/confessed/preached/___]? It was not after, but before he [was circumcised/was baptized/confessed/preached/___]. 11 He received the sign of [circumcision/baptism/confession/preaching/____] as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised [unbaptized/unconfessed/had not preached/____].

2. Belief apart from any performance we do.

Romans 4:14-15 For if it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. 15 For the law brings wrath, but where there is no law there is no transgression.

3. There is a PROMISE that is to be believed in. For this is what we are to have faith in (just as Abraham did).

Now read this thoughtfully and slowly:

Romans 4:16-25 That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace [what is the promise?] and be guaranteed to all his offspring [those who have faith, and not another, see Romans 9.6-8]—not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham [iow, Jews and Gentiles], who is the father of us all [Jews and Gentiles who have faith (this is what ALL meant to the Jews), for all are not descended from Abraham nor do all have faith], 17 as it is written, "I have made you the father of many nations"—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. 18 In hope he believed against hope [what did he believe? ->], that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, "So shall your offspring be." 19 He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead ( since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb. 20 No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, 21 fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. 22 That is why his faith was "counted to him as righteousness." [what? No mention of Jesus???? How is this possible?] 23 But the words "it was counted to him" were not written for his sake alone, 24 but for ours also [this is just like other stories, where we draw out principles from Scripture and apply them to us today]. It will be counted to us who believe in him [who? Jesus? NO! The Father -- the One who GAVE the promise] who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, 25 who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification

Finally, one last verse that shows us WHAT the promise is:

Matthew 1:21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."

Let me state that what we are to believe is that GOD FULFILLED HIS PROMISE TO SAVE HIS PEOPLE FROM THEIR SINS.

We are to believe that this was fulfilled in Jesus Christ and not another.

We are to believe that God has ACTUALLY DONE this.

For one to believe that the promise that God would save His people is a potential does NOT have the faith of Abraham, for Abraham's faith DID NOT WAVER in the FACT that God WOULD FULFILL His promise to give him an heir.

Soli Deo Gloria