Many professing Christians cannot fully tell you what the gospel is. It seems the only answer they can give is to quote 1 Cor. 15:1-4:

Now I make known to you brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.

   They say THAT is the whole gospel. Well, not really. Notice what Paul says:

For I delivered to you AS OF FIRST IMPORTANCE

   Why would Paul begin with such a statement? Because there is much more to the story than Christ died and was raised from the dead, but since this chapter has to do with the resurrection, this is his main focus for the rest of the chapter. If the dead are not raised, then our preaching is useless and so is our faith. If Christ is not raised, our faith is simply foolish.

   Sadly, many churches today give people a false sense of security. They will talk with the non-Christian and tell them that Jesus died for their sins, that he was raised on the third day and then try to get them to put their faith and trust in Jesus for salvation. They will then will lead them into prayer to “invite Jesus into their heart.” Did you know that no apostle or early Christians ever did such a thing? What is absent is the proclamation of the Kingdom or reign of God.

 Immortality Is Unmistakably Linked To The Gospel

   The gospel of the kingdom of God is about God’s immortality plan for human beings in the kingdom to come, which all those who believe the gospel will “inherit the earth” (Ps. 37:9; Ps. 37:11; Ps.37:22; Matt. 5:5). Jesus “…brought life and immortality to light through the gospel” (2 Tim. 1:10). Elsewhere we read, “To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor, and immortality, he will give eternal life” (Romans 2:7). Immortality is unmistakably linked to the gospel.

   Jesus came preaching the gospel (Good News) of this kingdom and was the main purpose for which he was sent:

I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well; for I was sent for this purpose. (Luke 4:43)

   Jesus went about preaching the good news of the kingdom of God (Matt. 4:17; 4:23; 9:35; Luke 4:43; 8:1; 9:11, etc.). What was he preaching since he had not yet died and resurrected from the dead? Jesus sent his disciples (and seventy others – Luke 10:1-12) to preach this gospel while they were uninformed of his coming death and resurrection. Then what did they preach?

   I wonder what Christians would tell people if they were told to go out and proclaim the Good News of the kingdom of God, but with the exception that they were not to mention anything about the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. What would they say?

   You see, the apostles did not go around just preaching the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. After Jesus death, burial, and resurrection, they still went about proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. Jesus, even after his resurrection, was still speaking with the apostles of things pertaining to the kingdom of God (Acts 1:3).

   After Paul’s conversion, he went about preaching the gospel of the kingdom. There were times Paul spent from morning until evening expounding to others, testifying to the kingdom of God:

When they had appointed a day for him, they came to him at his lodging in greater numbers. From morning until evening he expounded to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets. (Acts 28:23)

   We also read about Paul preaching from his own home:

He lived there two whole years at his own expense and welcomed all who came to him, proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance. (Acts 28:30-31)

   If the gospel is simply “that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures,” then are we to understand that it took Paul from morning until evening to tell them this? Is this all the people had to believe in order to be saved? Paul was preaching the whole gospel; the gospel of the kingdom of God, which now includes the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.

   Preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God did not mean hitting the streets and yelling at people by saying, “You Deserve Hell,” or addressing the people as you “God Haters, or “You Sinners,” and then start listing their sins or calling the women whores and threaten everyone with hell. Jesus never preached to sinners this way, not even to the sinful woman who cried at his feet and wiped his feet with her tears. He did not threaten her with hell. He did not condemn the woman caught in adultery, but rather told her to “go and sin no more.” However, when Jesus was confronted with the religious rulers, he went head on with them. Furthermore, the scripture specifically says we are NOT to judge those outside the church.

I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people not at all meaning the people of this world who are immoral, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters. In that case you would have to leave this world. But now I am writing to you that you must not associate with anyone who claims to be a brother or sister but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or slanderer, a drunkard or swindler. Do not even eat with such people. What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? God will judge those outside. Expel the wicked person from among you. (1 Cor. 5:9-13)

   Jesus nor none of the apostles, as far as I have read, ever hit the streets to try to convict people of their sins by yelling at them and telling them they are going to hell if they do not repent. They never addressed the average people as “You sinners!” or “God haters” and then go onto naming certain sins they may be guilty of committing. God will judge those outside the church. We must keep in mind that addressing them as sinners and telling them they are going to burn in hell forever only incites anger in a majority of their hearers. Why? Because “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Cor. 2:14).

   Judgment belongs to those inside the church with people who claim to be Christians who are involved in such activities as sexual immorality, those who are greedy, an idolater or slanderer, a drunkard or swindler. We should not be at the same table sharing a meal together. If we were to judge those outside the church as well, then we might as well lock ourselves in our rooms and never come out.

   By either ignorance or intentionally being manipulative, some have turned the gospel into a gospel of fear, name calling, condemnation, damnation, and punishment, rather than preach the GOOD NEWS of the Kingdom of God and how to gain immortality in that Kingdom in the age to come. This Kingdom of God will be inaugurated by the return of Jesus to resurrect the faithful of all ages to a life of immortality. 

Remember what Jesus said:

Do not marvel at this, for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves shall hear His voice, and shall come forth, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have practiced evil to the resurrection of condemnation. (John 5:28-29).

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