[elohiym]

The Quintessential Gospel

(A Primer on the Gospel)

“He opened the rock, and the waters gushed out; they ran in the dry places like a river. For he remembered his holy promise, and Abraham his servant. And he brought forth his people with joy, and his chosen with gladness.” Psalm 105:41-43

The gospel in Greek is a term that means the good news. What is this good news? In it's simplest expression, the gospel is the good news that God's promise to Abraham has been fulfilled, that through Jesus Christ we can receive the promise of the Holy Spirit through faith. That is the quintessential gospel.

Galatians 3:14 That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

The promise to Abraham

Genesis 15:1 After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.

Imagine for a moment that you were Abraham and God told you that He was your “exceeding great reward.” Talk about a gift! But how does God give himself to you? The only way to do it would be to put his Holy Spirit inside you, and the implications of that happening are near incomprehensible.

What was Abraham's reaction to God's gift? He questioned it's value if he had no heir to inherit it (Gen 15:2-3). God's response was to tell Abraham that he would indeed have an heir, a great multitude of heirs through a singular seed (Gen 15:4-5). And Abraham accepted God's gift, and the promise that his heirs would receive that same gift, by faith (Gen 15:6).

Shadows of the promise

Acts 7:17 But when the time of the promise drew nigh, which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt.

God delivered Abraham's descendents from bondage in Egypt with the intent to give them what He promised Abraham. The children of Israel were apparently aware of the promise God made to Abraham, but perceived their reward as a place they called the “mountain of thine inheritance” where God would dwell with them in a sanctuary He builds for Himself (Ex 15:17). They did not grasp that the promise was for God's Spirit to dwell in them, that the promise was for them to be God's sanctuary (1 Cor 6:19).

The children of Israel were not ready for the gift. They began to rebel against God as soon as they were delivered from bondage (Eze 20:8-14). As a result, to preserve the promise for a later generation, God established a religious legal system governed by a contract we know as the old covenant, a.k.a. the Mosaic law (Ex 24:8; Deut 6:25).

The religious system God gave them was interwoven with numerous symbols and types that foreshadowed the promise and the one who would eventually confirm it with Abraham's heirs (Heb 8 and 9). As the centerpiece of this system, God had the children of Israel construct a temple which, unknown to them, was a symbolic representation of a human body where God's Spirit would ultimately dwell according to the promise (1 Cor 6:19).

Iteration of the promise

Ezekiel 36:27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

Though the children of Israel continued to rebel against God throughout their troubled history, there always remained a remnant through which God would fulfill the promise He made to Abraham (Rom 9:27; 11:5). To that remnant He iterated His promise through the prophets (Eze 36:25-27), and described it as making a new covenant with them (Jer 31:31-34). Remarkably, the new covenant isn't really new, but existed before the old covenant did (Gal 3:17).

The awaited fulfillment of the new covenant, i.e. the promise God made to Abraham, was part of the Jewish messianic expectation. It was the Christ who was to confirm the new covenant, abolish the old covenant, and deliver the promise that would enable them to be partakers of the Holy Spirit. Did they understand that the kingdom of God would be within them through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit? Clearly many did not (Luke 17:20-21).

The promise fulfilled

Mark 1:8 I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost.

To be baptized with the Holy Spirit means to receive the Spirit in fulfillment of the promise God made to Abraham. It is the gospel experienced. Through our spiritual baptism into Jesus Christ and resurrection we are made partakers of the Holy Spirit in him (Rom 6:3; 8:9-11). We must accept this by faith, as Abraham did.

[beloved57]

Gods promises to do something are not conditioned on if man accepts the promise or believes the promise or not..

God promised abe and sarah they would have a son, isaac, and at first both abe and sarah doubted the promise, unbelief..

[themuzicman]

You know, it is interesting that the Calvinist gospel is very much like the sweepstakes companies that sell magazines:

"You may have already won salvation! Just come to church and act like us, and you'll find out later whether you really are!"

Which is no gospel at all.

Muz

[elohiym]

I don't see why the war against Calvinism needs to spill over into this thread.

This thread is not about the "Calvinist gospel," but about the essence of the gospel, which is through Jesus Christ we can receive the promise of the Holy Spirit through faith. I wasn't aware that Calvinists didn't believe that, and suspect they do believe the same.

Discussing who has access to that promise, and how specifically they receive it, is not the point of this thread. I posted this thread as a primer for those who may be unfamiliar with what the gospel is; and while comments are welcome, I respectfully request that the comments either support the OP or challenge it directly.

[Sozo again]

Originally Posted by elohiym

The Quintessential Gospel

(A Primer on the Gospel)




The gospel in Greek is a term that means the good news. What is this good news? In it's simplest expression, the gospel is the good news that God's promise to Abraham has been fulfilled, that through Jesus Christ we can receive the promise of the Holy Spirit through faith. That is the quintessential gospel.

Galatians 3:14 That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

The promise to Abraham

Genesis 15:1 After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.

Imagine for a moment that you were Abraham and God told you that He was your “exceeding great reward.” Talk about a gift! But how does God give himself to you? The only way to do it would be to put his Holy Spirit inside you, and the implications of that happening are near incomprehensible.

What was Abraham's reaction to God's gift? He questioned it's value if he had no heir to inherit it (Gen 15:2-3). God's response was to tell Abraham that he would indeed have an heir, a great multitude of heirs through a singular seed (Gen 15:4-5). And Abraham accepted God's gift, and the promise that his heirs would receive that same gift, by faith (Gen 15:6).

Shadows of the promise

Acts 7:17 But when the time of the promise drew nigh, which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt.

God delivered Abraham's descendents from bondage in Egypt with the intent to give them what He promised Abraham. The children of Israel were apparently aware of the promise God made to Abraham, but perceived their reward as a place they called the “mountain of thine inheritance” where God would dwell with them in a sanctuary He builds for Himself (Ex 15:17). They did not grasp that the promise was for God's Spirit to dwell in them, that the promise was for them to be God's sanctuary (1 Cor 6:19).

The children of Israel were not ready for the gift. They began to rebel against God as soon as they were delivered from bondage (Eze 20:8-14). As a result, to preserve the promise for a later generation, God established a religious legal system governed by a contract we know as the old covenant, a.k.a. the Mosaic law (Ex 24:8; Deut 6:25).

The religious system God gave them was interwoven with numerous symbols and types that foreshadowed the promise and the one who would eventually confirm it with Abraham's heirs (Heb 8 and 9). As the centerpiece of this system, God had the children of Israel construct a temple which, unknown to them, was a symbolic representation of a human body where God's Spirit would ultimately dwell according to the promise (1 Cor 6:19).

Iteration of the promise

Ezekiel 36:27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

Though the children of Israel continued to rebel against God throughout their troubled history, there always remained a remnant through which God would fulfill the promise He made to Abraham (Rom 9:27; 11:5). To that remnant He iterated His promise through the prophets (Eze 36:25-27), and described it as making a new covenant with them (Jer 31:31-34). Remarkably, the new covenant isn't really new, but existed before the old covenant did (Gal 3:17).

The awaited fulfillment of the new covenant, i.e. the promise God made to Abraham, was part of the Jewish messianic expectation. It was the Christ who was to confirm the new covenant, abolish the old covenant, and deliver the promise that would enable them to be partakers of the Holy Spirit. Did they understand that the kingdom of God would be within them through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit? Clearly many did not (Luke 17:20-21).

The promise fulfilled

Mark 1:8 I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost.

To be baptized with the Holy Spirit means to receive the Spirit in fulfillment of the promise God made to Abraham. It is the gospel experienced. Through our spiritual baptism into Jesus Christ and resurrection we are made partakers of the Holy Spirit in him (Rom 6:3; 8:9-11). We must accept this by faith, as Abraham did.

[Mike C.]

The Gospel is the greatest story ever told

I think you did a nice job, but you should expand it. Two things in particular, I think you need to expand on "The Promise Fulfilled." You give a nice back story, but then almost gloss over the main plot. I mean, what happens now that the promise is fulfilled? What does this mean for Christians?

The other thing is that while your 'essence' of the gospel makes perfect sense to Christians, to a non-believer, telling them that they can be filled with the holy spirit won't mean much. The gospel message should call unbelievers to repentance however it is presented, so explaining the forgiveness of sin and judgment, and the power of God unto righteousness are important to emphasize. When I was unsaved, I had no idea that God wanted to actually indwell in me. I would have thought it impossible anyway since I knew I wasn't right with God. You can look to the gospel messages in the book of Acts for examples, since they always spoke of repentance and rebirth.

[elohiym]

Originally Posted by Mike C.

I think you did a nice job, but you should expand it. Two things in particular, I think you need to expand on "The Promise Fulfilled." You give a nice back story, but then almost gloss over the main plot. I mean, what happens now that the promise is fulfilled? What does this mean for Christians?

Thanks for your comments. I intentionally kept The Promise Fulfilled as brief as possible because I wanted to focus on the back story most Christians are unaware of. I wanted to avoid the mechanics of salvation, which I am saving for another thread. Also, it was my desire for brevity that kept the entire post as short as possible so people would actually read it. It was just meant as a primer for Christians.

[Mike C.]

Originally Posted by elohiym

Thanks for your comments. I intentionally kept The Promise Fulfilled as brief as possible because I wanted to focus on the back story most Christians are unaware of. I wanted to avoid the mechanics of salvation, which I am saving for another thread. Also, it was my desire for brevity that kept the entire post as short as possible so people would actually read it. It was just meant as a primer.

Keep it up. Direct, concise, Biblically sound expositions like this help to keep the significance of other doctrinal disagreements in perspective. There's nothing like the pure gospel of Christ to set one's thoughts straight.

[CALVARY\CALVIN]

Originally Posted by elohiym

The Quintessential Gospel

(A Primer on the Gospel)




The gospel in Greek is a term that means the good news. What is this good news? In it's simplest expression, the gospel is the good news that God's promise to Abraham has been fulfilled, that through Jesus Christ we can receive the promise of the Holy Spirit through faith. That is the quintessential gospel.

Galatians 3:14 That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

The promise to Abraham

Genesis 15:1 After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.

Imagine for a moment that you were Abraham and God told you that He was your “exceeding great reward.” Talk about a gift! But how does God give himself to you? The only way to do it would be to put his Holy Spirit inside you, and the implications of that happening are near incomprehensible.

What was Abraham's reaction to God's gift? He questioned it's value if he had no heir to inherit it (Gen 15:2-3). God's response was to tell Abraham that he would indeed have an heir, a great multitude of heirs through a singular seed (Gen 15:4-5). And Abraham accepted God's gift, and the promise that his heirs would receive that same gift, by faith (Gen 15:6).

Shadows of the promise

Acts 7:17 But when the time of the promise drew nigh, which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt.

God delivered Abraham's descendents from bondage in Egypt with the intent to give them what He promised Abraham. The children of Israel were apparently aware of the promise God made to Abraham, but perceived their reward as a place they called the “mountain of thine inheritance” where God would dwell with them in a sanctuary He builds for Himself (Ex 15:17). They did not grasp that the promise was for God's Spirit to dwell in them, that the promise was for them to be God's sanctuary (1 Cor 6:19).

The children of Israel were not ready for the gift. They began to rebel against God as soon as they were delivered from bondage (Eze 20:8-14). As a result, to preserve the promise for a later generation, God established a religious legal system governed by a contract we know as the old covenant, a.k.a. the Mosaic law (Ex 24:8; Deut 6:25).

The religious system God gave them was interwoven with numerous symbols and types that foreshadowed the promise and the one who would eventually confirm it with Abraham's heirs (Heb 8 and 9). As the centerpiece of this system, God had the children of Israel construct a temple which, unknown to them, was a symbolic representation of a human body where God's Spirit would ultimately dwell according to the promise (1 Cor 6:19).

Iteration of the promise

Ezekiel 36:27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

Though the children of Israel continued to rebel against God throughout their troubled history, there always remained a remnant through which God would fulfill the promise He made to Abraham (Rom 9:27; 11:5). To that remnant He iterated His promise through the prophets (Eze 36:25-27), and described it as making a new covenant with them (Jer 31:31-34). Remarkably, the new covenant isn't really new, but existed before the old covenant did (Gal 3:17).

The awaited fulfillment of the new covenant, i.e. the promise God made to Abraham, was part of the Jewish messianic expectation. It was the Christ who was to confirm the new covenant, abolish the old covenant, and deliver the promise that would enable them to be partakers of the Holy Spirit. Did they understand that the kingdom of God would be within them through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit? Clearly many did not (Luke 17:20-21).

The promise fulfilled

Mark 1:8 I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost.

To be baptized with the Holy Spirit means to receive the Spirit in fulfillment of the promise God made to Abraham. It is the gospel experienced. Through our spiritual baptism into Jesus Christ and resurrection we are made partakers of the Holy Spirit in him (Rom 6:3; 8:9-11). We must accept this by faith, as Abraham did.

Yes...the difference between the 2 covenant's is thus: the"if you will"under the covenant of God's law in Ex.19:5;becomes("I will) put My Spirit within you,and(cause you to walk)"of Ezek.36:25-27,according to the law of our father Abraham's faith,through which the seed of God's covenant of grace was planted and faithfully flowed unto the merging of God's Holy Spirit Quicking His own seed that He planted in Abraham's loins long before,in the blessed womb of Mary up in to the Fruition of the Living Christ<the Word of Promise become the Flesh of God dwelling among us That the Flesh of Mankind in Christ,by Christ,and through Christ maybe forever married to His own Spirit of God,thus creating a New Creation of a Divine unioun between God,and man reconciling the two in Christ forever more.............Amen!

[csuguy]

The gospel is not that through Christ we will recieve the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, rather, is a seal that guarantees the ultimate promise of eternal life with God (Ephesians 1:13;Ephesians 4:30).

The gospel is the story of Christ, his life, death, and resurrection - and what that means for us. Namely, that through him we are offered forgiveness for our sins and salvation. The HS can be said to be part of the gospel for sure, but the HS is not the gospel itself.

[elohiym]

Originally Posted by csuguy

The gospel is not that through Christ we will recieve the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, rather, is a seal that guarantees the ultimate promise of eternal life with God (Ephesians 1:13;Ephesians 4:30).

The gospel is the story of Christ, his life, death, and resurrection - and what that means for us. Namely, that through him we are offered forgiveness for our sins and salvation. The HS can be said to be part of the gospel for sure, but the HS is not the gospel itself.

You don't believe Christ is God.

You are not qualified to speak about a gospel you neither understand nor have embraced.

[Oh no... it's Sozo]

Originally Posted by csuguy

The gospel is not that through Christ we will recieve the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, rather, is a seal that guarantees the ultimate promise of eternal life with God (Ephesians 1:13;Ephesians 4:30).

The gospel is the story of Christ, his life, death, and resurrection - and what that means for us. Namely, that through him we are offered forgiveness for our sins and salvation. The HS can be said to be part of the gospel for sure, but the HS is not the gospel itself.

"Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, according to the promise of life in Christ Jesus"

"It is the Spirit that gives life"

"Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us-- for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree " in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

"In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation-- having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise"

[elohiym]

Oh, don't confuse csuguy with the facts!

[csuguy]

Originally Posted by elohiym

You don't believe Christ is God.

You are not qualified to speak about a gospel you neither understand nor have embraced.

Christ is the Son of God

[csuguy]

Originally Posted by Oh no... it's Sozo

"Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, according to the promise of life in Christ Jesus"

"It is the Spirit that gives life"

"Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us-- for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree " in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

"In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation-- having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise"

Yep - as those scriptures say, they believed the gospel and because of this they were sealed with the HS. Thus the gospel is not the HS, but rather is the seal you receive upon accepting the gospel.