Michael Demory
A few years ago I was told of a young man waiting in an airport to catch a flight to Africa where he would be “preaching the gospel.” As he informed surrounding passengers of his intended mission, a couple of men asked him, “what is preaching the gospel?” To which the puzzled young man answered, “I’m not sure what you mean.” Several times the inquiring men asked the young fellow what he would be preaching about when finally he answered, “I will be preaching about Jesus.” To which the two older men asked, “is that all there is to preaching the gospel?” By the time the passengers were boarding their planes, the young man was scratching his head in bewilderment.
By the way, the two men asking the questions happened to be members of the Lord’s church going to Africa to preach the gospel. The young man was a member of a denomination—hopefully he has an honest heart and will consider what was discussed.
I say all this to pose the question—how would you answer the question—“what is preaching the gospel?” Many Christians will answer by saying it is preaching about the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. But is that all there is? We know that Jesus commands all His disciples to “preach the gospel to all nations” (Matt. 28:19-20; Mk. 16:15). The perfect example for preaching the gospel is found in the treatise to Theophilus (Acts). By example we find that the disciples preached Jesus (Acts 8:35; 9:20; 11:20), preached the gospel (Acts 14:7,21; 16:10), and preached the word of the Lord (Acts 8:25; 15:35). Was there anything taught other than Jesus being the Son of God?
In Acts 8:12, Philip is shown preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ. To the household of Cornelius the centurion Peter is said to have opened his mouth (Acts 10:34). In verse 36 Peter says that it was the same word that was preached to the children of Israel that he preached the Cornelius et al; that every nation that fears God and works righteousness is accepted with Him. Being sent forth by the Holy Spirit to preach the word, Paul and Barnabas preached in the synagogues, how that Jesus came through the seed of Abraham and David fulfilling the voice of the prophets (Acts 13).
In Thessalonica Paul preached the gospel in the synagogue alleging that Jesus was destined to suffer and die, and rise again from the dead, and that Jesus is Christ (Acts 17:1-4). Over and over Luke records how the gospel was preached in the first century and what was entailed in that preaching. There is no doubt that the death, burial and resurrection were a part of the gospel preaching. However there must be more in order to evoke belief and obedience to the word. To the Jews the disciples imparted information that would best motivate them to repentance. They had to be taught of Jesus’ genealogy, His place in prophecy; His fulfilling of the law and the prophets and of the kingdom over which He does now reign.
On the other hand, the Gentiles required details over and above the death, burial, resurrection of Christ. There are several times that we read of the Apostles teaching others about the kingdom of God/the church of Christ (Acts 8:12; 14:22; 19:8; 20:25). In Acts 14 in the city of Lystra Paul and Barnabas were made gods by the people. The pair had to instruct the people of the city that they should turn from the vanities of life to the living God (vs. 15ff). To the Athenians Paul preached the gospel by informing them that there is only one God who is the creator of all things, who alone must be worshipped (Acts 17:22-31). Paul preached the gospel to Felix when he told him of righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come (Acts 24:24-25). It was also the preaching of the gospel that convicted those of Ephesus to burn their books of curious arts (Acts 19:19). The apostles even preached that persecution would be part of becoming a Christian (Acts 14:22).
In short, preaching the gospel entails the entirety of God’s scheme of redemption, living a holy life, and all the trials that come with it. It depends upon the knowledge of the individual as to how far one need to go to properly prepare a person or persons for obedience. They must understand that salvation is found only in Christ and His church, and that one must be faithful unto death (Acts 4:12; 2 Tim. 2:10; Rev. 2:10; 1 Cor. 15:58). In short, preaching the gospel is much more than simply preaching Jesus.
