No Cross = No Gospel

I mentioned elsewhere that I recently got the book Don't Call it a Comeback. It is essentially a compilation of articles written by various pastors, authors and theologians, each chapter dealing with a different facet of evangelicalism.

As the author of What is the Gospel?, Greg Gilbert displayed a love for the gospel and a realization of the need for the cross to be at its center. It is these same things that he brings to his chapter, "The Gospel: God's Self-Substitution for Sinners."

Gilbert doesn't mince words, often dealing with unpopular truths. Many people want to believe in a feel-good "gospel" that primarily promises them comfort, ease and affluence. The message of the Bible is nowhere near this pleasant though.

"In the face of the worst cultural prejudice imaginable, (Paul) fixed the entire gospel squarely and immovably on the fact that Jesus was tacked to a stauros and left to die. If he had been trying to find a surefire way to turn first-century people off from his 'good news,' he couldn't have done better than that.

"So why did he do it? It's simple. He did it because he knew that leaving the cross out, or running past it with a glance, or making it peripheral to the gospel, or allowing anything else to displace it at the center of the gospel would make it, finally, no gospel at all."

The reason that a real gospel must have the cross at its center is the fact that each one of us is unmistakably a sinner. And when Gilbert speaks of sin, unlike many, he doesn't minimize what that actually means:

"Throughout Scripture, sin is not simply falling short of one's true meaning or purpose, nor is it merely a broken relationship or external systemic corruption. Rather, it is a personal, blameworthy transgression of the law of God and a rejection of his authority as Creator and King."

In light of this truth, I found quite Gilbert's treatment of "the gospel of the kingdom" to be especially helpful. So many today seem to want to separate "the gospel of the kingdom" from the "gospel of the cross." We are told that "the gospel" is primarily about the coming of Christ and the inauguration of his kingdom, over which he will rule with all righteousness. Gilbert pleads with readers not to follow in the footsteps of those who would make such a stark division, pointing out that the only way into the kingdom is through the cross.

"So by all means, preach about the kingdom, talk about Jesus' conquest of evil, write about his coming reign. But don't pretend that all those things are glorious good news all by themselves. They're not. The bare fact that Jesus is going to rule the world with perfect righteousness is not good news to me; it's terrifying news, because I am not righteous! I'm one of the enemies he's coming to crush! The coming kingdom becomes good news only when I realize that the coming King is also a Savior who forgives sin and makes people righteous--and he does that through his death on the cross."

Book Review: What Is the Gospel?

Yesterday I posted a video in which Kevin DeYoung, Ryan Kelly and Greg Gilbert discussed the mission of the church.  I had neither heard Gilbert speak nor read anything by him before this.  It just so happens though, that last week I ordered his book What Is the Gospel?, which I was pleased to have the opportunity to read this week.

Gilbert recognizes that we live in an age of much gospel confusion.  Both inside the Church and out there are varying views as to what exactly we mean when we speak of the "gospel."  It is this problem which he strives to address.  As D.A. Carson states in the book's forward, "This book does not so much claim to break new ground as survey afresh some old ground that should never have been ignored, much less abandoned."

What Is the Gospel? has much to commend it.  It deals with the deepest and most meaningful of truths, yet does so in a way that is eminently readable.  Gilbert clearly loves the gospel and it comes through in his writing.  A number of times I was forced to simply stop reading, ponder the great truths that he had expounded, and worship the God of whom they spoke.  And just as he maintains that the life, death and resurrection of Christ is the heart of the gospel, he makes sure that the Bible is at the heart of his argument.  As a quick perusal of the Scripture index will show, in just over 100 short pages of writing, Gilbert makes almost 175 distinct Scripture references.

I often speak with others about the necessity to keep the gospel at the center of all we do.  In fact, it must inform not only our actions, but our very identity.  And if this is to be true of us, then we must be sure that the gospel that is doing this is the true gospel.  Therefore we must hold fast to the gospel by which we have been saved, the gospel Paul considered to be of first importance: "that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures..." (1 Corinthians 15:3-4).

Greg Gilbert has done this, and What Is the Gospel? will help others to do the same.

The Mission of the Church

Here is a helpful video from The Gospel Coalition in which a trio of young pastors discuss the issue the mission of the church. It seems to me that in the end, Kevin DeYoung, Greg Gilbert, and Ryan Kelly hit the nail on the head as they emphasize the centrality of the proclamation of the Gospel, namely Jesus' life, death, burial and resurrection.

This is not to say that there is no place for a life of good works.  Indeed we are commanded to live as salt and light in the world (Matthew 5:13-16), to love our neighbor as ourselves (Leviticus 19:18; Matthew 22:37-39) and to live lives marked by the good works which God has prepared  in order that we might walk in them (Ephesians 2:10).  What is crucial is that these works are seen neither as "the Gospel," nor as an end in themselves.  They are never a means by which we might earn the favor of God, but rather ought to be only and always a thankful response to his gracious love.


The Mission of the Church from Ben Peays on Vimeo.