What does “Gospel” mean?
If you’ve spent any time around a Christian community, you know that the word “gospel” is commonly used as a shorthand term for the core message of Christian faith. However, the exact meaning of gospel varies from church to church, based on the larger tradition or denomination. For some, gospel refers to the message that Jesus died for the sins of humanity. For others, it may refer to the general idea that God loves us or that we will spend eternity with him. So if we’re looking for clarity, the best way forward is to go back to the original source of this word in the biblical story.
A Royal Rescue
As the story of the Old Testament develops, it becomes clear that the kings who rule over Israel are as corrupt and violent as the rulers of any other nation. This is a problem because God had promised Israel’s ancestors that through this nation all other nations would find God’s blessing. In the Old Testament book of Isaiah, the prophet announced the good news that Israel’s divine King, the Creator of all things, was going to come to earth and be crowned the new king of Israel (check out Isaiah chapters 40-55). But first, Israel’s corrupt kings had to be dealt with, which we see in the exile of the Israelites to Babylon (check out the story in 1-2 Kings). While it may look like the evil kings of Israel or Babylon are running the world, there is still good news: Israel’s God is the true King of the world, and he’s coming one day to restore hope to God’s people. (see Isaiah 40:1-11 and 52:1-10).
An Inverted Gospel
Jesus was announcing the promised arrival of Israel’s God to become king of Israel and all nations, but the way that he asserted his rule was surprising to the people around him. When Jesus arrived in Jerusalem, the city where David once reigned, he did not use violent force to inaugurate his kingdom. Instead he rode into the city, weeping over its corruption and fate (see Luke 19:41-44), and then he marched into the temple, the throneroom of the God of Israel. There he acted as if he was the true king of Jerusalem, disrupting the sacrificial system and declaring that Israel’s rulers were a bunch of thugs who were leading the people toward destruction. This event resulted in his arrest a few days later as a traitor who claimed to be the king of Israel. He was unfairly tried on false charges, and the Roman governor allowed him to be crucified. However, the accounts of Jesus’ death make it quite clear that his execution was in fact the beginning of his exaltation to become the divine king. He is given a robe, a crown, and a scepter as soldiers bow down to him. In their eyes it’s a cruel joke, but in reality they were watching the gospel happen before their eyes. Jesus was being lifted up as the cosmic king of the world on his wooden throne where he died because of the sins of his enemies. The cross is the royal announcement that God’s purpose was to rescue his world by dying for it, by allowing our sins to overwhelm him unto death. But because God’s love is more powerful than our evil, he overcame it with his resurrection life, which he now offers to anyone who turns and puts their trust in his royal love.
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