Scripture reading: John 1:9–13

The Gospel in Four Words

. . . until Christ is formed in you! (Galatians 4:19)

Imagine a person coming to you with the following request: “I’m desperate to know the true meaning of the Gospel. Help me. I only have three minutes, so you are going to have to leave out all that is nonessential and give it to me straight.”

Could you do it? Could you give the Gospel in three minutes? This question helps all of us to discover whether we truly grasp the Gospel we say we believe. Here is how I might respond:

I’m so glad you asked! In order to convey the most basic message of the Gospel and make it easy to remember, we will focus on four variations of the word, “form.”

First of all, God formed everything. He not only created the entire universe, he also formed human beings from the dust of the ground. He then breathed his own Spirit into them so that they could have his life in them! In the beginning, people like us were perfect in every way. They had pure thoughts, healthy relationships, sinless behaviors, meaningful work and, best of all, a vital and authentic connection with the One who created them. But something went tragically wrong.

Sin entered the world. All that God had formed became de-formed! All creation was affected but especially us humans. Our thoughts, attitudes and actions became twisted into a shape that God never intended. Sin is not just what we do. It is who we are! We are not what God created us to be. All of us are affected. Our desires are impure, our thoughts misguided, our actions destructive. Like lost sheep, we have all wandered far from the original purposes of our creation. We sometimes try to re-form our lives by making resolutions, attending self-help seminars and modifying our behaviors, but none of these actions are sufficient. We need a remedy that goes much deeper than that!

Incredibly, God himself has offered such a remedy. He loves us so much that he sent his only Son to come and re-create what sin had destroyed! Through his death on the cross he can forgive our sins. Through his in-dwelling Spirit he can enable us to live life in a whole new dimension. Jesus came not just to re-form our old patterns of behavior; he came so that our hearts and lives could be trans-formed. His work in our hearts means that we can become new creations!

Why would God do such a thing? Because he wants all of us, everyone who has put their trust in Jesus, to be just like him. See, the goal of salvation is not heaven. That is the destination. The goal is Christ-likeness! The Gospel makes it possible to recover what was lost so that the original purpose of creation can now be fully realized. We can be con-formed to the image of Jesus. My actions, attitudes, and desires can reflect the reality of Jesus him- self . . . living fully in me!

Now for you, dear friend, to benefit from what God has made possible, you simply need to acknowledge the truth of your deformity and ask God, in childlike faith, to trans-form your heart and life so that he can con-form you into the image of his Son.

Four words: Formed, deformed, transformed and conformed. That’s how I would describe the Gospel message if I had three minutes. Of course the best place to understand the Gospel is in the New Testament. Why not read it there for yourself and develop your own three-minute presentation!

 

Make it an object of constant study, and of daily reflection and prayer, to learn how to deal with sinners so as to promote their conversion.—Charles G. Finney

 

point to ponder • Can you summarize the Gospel in three minutes?

prayer focus • Friends who need to hear the Gospel.