“Paul, a servant slave of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,” (Rom 1:1-4)
What is ‘Gospel’?
| Word: | euaggelion |
| Original Word: | εὐαγγέλιον, ου, τό |
| Part of Speech: | Noun, Neuter |
| Transliteration: | euaggelion |
| Phonetic Spelling: | (yoo-ang-ghel’-ee-on) |
| Definition: | good news |
| Usage: | the good news of the coming of the Messiah, the gospel; the gen. after it expresses sometimes the giver (God), sometimes the subject (the Messiah, etc.), sometimes the human transmitter (an apostle). |
The word ‘gospel’ comes from the Greek word ‘euaggelion’, which literally means “good news”. In some writings of antiquity, this word was used to mean ‘good tidings’ or ‘a reward for good tidings’. Eventually, in Christian writings, it came to mean the ‘narrative of the sayings, deeds, and death of Jesus Christ’1.
Even to this day, the word ‘gospel’ is generally used to mean this. Although it also used to mean ‘the message through which one can be saved from their sins’.
What is ‘the gospel of God’?
What is the gospel or the good news of God, for which Paul was set apart? He answers that in verses 2 to 4. Paul makes six statements regarding this good news of God.
- This good news was promised by God in advance. God declared it before it happened. (Rom 1:2)
- It was announced through his prophets. (Rom 1:2)
- Those announcements were recorded in the Holy Scriptures. (Rom 1:2)
- The good news was about his Son, Jesus Christ. (Rom 1:3,4)
- Jesus was born, as a human being, in the family line of King David. (Rom 1:3)
- He was proved to be the Son of God by raising from the dead. (Rom 1:4)
Therefore, the gospel of God is the good news that God proclaimed in ages past, through his prophets, regarding his Son Jesus Christ, recorded in the Holy Scriptures.
To find out what exactly is that good news and what makes it good, we need to search through the scriptures and put together the promises of God scattered across the Bible. It is difficult to give an exhaustive list here but let us consider some of the key promises.
God’s promises/statements regarding his Son:2
| Prophesy/Promise | Prophet | Scripture | Promised time | Fulfilled time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| God will send a man, who will be born of a woman, to put an end to the devil and death. | Moses | Genesis 3:15 | Around 4000 BC | Around 04 BC |
| This Man will be a descendant of Judah. He will be a king forever. | Moses | Genesis 49:10 | ||
| He will be a son of David and at the same time, the Son of God. | Nathan | 2 Samuel 7:13-14 | Around 1000 BC | |
| The Son of God is eternal. He will not be created sometime in the future but he has an everlasting existence. He will bring wonderful counsel and peace when he comes as a man. He is one and the same as the Almighty God. | Isaiah | Isaiah 9:6 | ||
| He will be born of a virgin. | Isaiah 7:14 | Around 720 BC | ||
| He will bring slavation to Israel and to the ends of the earth. | Isaiah 49:6 | Around 30 AD | ||
| He will be rejected by men. He will be be filled with sorrow and grief. | Isaiah 53:3 | |||
| He will be pierced and crushed for the sins of humanity. He will bear the punishment to bring sinners peace. | Isaiah 53:4-5 | |||
| He will die due to that suffering and people will see it as God punishing him. But his death will be for our sake. | Isaiah 53:8 | |||
| After he completes his sacrifies and pays for the sins of many, he will come back to life. | Isaiah 53:10-11 |