If you know any Christians, or if you happen to be one, you’ve probably heard the word
“gospel” as a kind of summary of Christian belief,
connected to phrases like, “God loves you” or “Jesus died for your sins.”
But over time, religious words like gospel can lose their power and meaning by becoming
too familiar.
So let’s take a moment to rediscover what this important word gospel meant to the people
who wrote the Bible.
Gospel translates the Old Testament Hebrew verb bisser and the noun besorah.
The Greek New Testament equivalent is euangelion, which is a compound word.
“Eu” means good, and “angelion” means announcement.
All of these words mean “good news,” but what kind of news?
Well in Hebrew, bisser is what we might call national news or a royal announcement.
Like when King David hears a messenger bisser that his army was victorious in battle, that
means he still rules on his throne over the people of Israel.
And after David dies, his throne is passed onto Solomon, his son.
And when he was inaugurated as king in Jerusalem, a herald spreads the besorah that a new ruler
is in charge.
But after Solomon’s death came a bunch of “bad news” kings, whose corruption led
their nation into self-destruction.
This is why the prophet Isaiah announced the good news that one day the God of Israel would
come as the cosmic king, to confront all corrupt and violent kingdoms and restore his rule
over all nations.
And so when Jesus of Nazareth hit the public stage, he continued Isaiah’s gospel when
he went around announcing the euangelion of God’s Kingdom.
Jesus claimed that God was restoring his reign over his people Israel and over all nations,
and he was the one bringing it all about.
Now, the euangelion about a new king in charge means a new way of life.
Jesus said that living in God’s Kingdom meant following him, by putting down the sword
and seeking peace through radical forgiveness and generosity, even towards your enemies.
His good news required people to make a decision.
This is why Jesus took his euangelion to Jerusalem, to confront the corrupt and violent kingdoms
of his day.
But he challenged them in a surprising way—with the power of God’s generous love.
As Jesus was being executed by his enemies, he received his crown and was mocked as a
fake king, but he displayed true royal authority by forgiving his tormentors.
Jesus was the one in charge that day, giving his life for the sins of others, and then
a few days later, everything changed.
Jesus rose from the dead as the true king, whose love is stronger than death.
He appeared to hundreds of his followers and told them to spread the euangelion that all
authority in heaven and earth now belongs to him.
And they did share this good news all over the ancient world.
They did it by writing the four accounts of Jesus’ life that are “the Gospel.”
They tell the story of how Jesus brought God’s Kingdom, how he lived for others and died
for their sins, and then was raised from the dead.
Jesus’ followers also shared the good news by simply talking about it.
This is why Peter and Paul, or Priscilla and Aquila, traveled all around sharing the royal
announcement.
While it might look like the rulers of our world are in charge and can do whatever they
want, the good news is that the crucified and risen Jesus is the true Lord of the world,
the real King of all creation.
And in Jesus’ Kingdom, things are different.
It’s where the real leaders are the servants because the last are first and the first go
to the back of the line.
It’s where the hungry are fed and the homeless are welcome because love is the most powerful
reality of God’s Kingdom.
And this good news is not easy to believe.
It actually sounds kind of crazy when you first hear it.
But something happens when people tell the story of Jesus and start living like he really
is the king of the world.
That’s when this gospel becomes the best news that you’ve ever heard.