What is the Gospel?Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word 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 in accordance with the Scriptures that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures...
(1 Corinthians 15:1-4)Who is Christ?
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God... And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth... For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
(John 1:1-2; 14; 17)Jesus Christ is God, and Jesus Christ is man. He is God made flesh, the Son of God sent to save us from our sins by dying on the cross.
Why do we need to be saved from our sins? Because, as the Bible says, the wrath of God abides on us. Our sins are a personal offense to God, and if we die in our sins, we will have to pay for them since "the wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23). But God gave us the gospel, which means "good news" so that we can be saved from the eternal consequences of our sins. How? Read how the Apostle Paul presented this good news to a group of Jews and God-fearing Gentiles who had yet to hear the gospel:
Of [King David's] offspring, God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as he promised. Before his coming, John [the Baptist] had proclaimed a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. And as John was finishing his course, he said, "What do you suppose that I am? I am not he. No, but behold, after me one is coming, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to untie."Brothers, sons of the family of Abraham, and those among you who fear God, to us has been sent the message of this salvation. For those who live in Jerusalem and their rulers, because they did not recognize him nor understand the utterances of the prophets, which are read every Sabbath, fulfilled them by condemning him. And though they found in him no guilt worthy of death, they asked Pilate to have him executed. And when they had carried out all that was written of him, they took him down from the tree and laid him in a tomb. But God raised him from the dead, and for many days he appeared to those who had come up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are now his witnesses to the people. And we bring you the good news that what God promised to the fathers, this he has fulfilled to us their children by raising Jesus, as also it is written in the second Psalm,
"You are my Son, today I have begotten you."And as for the fact that he raised him from the dead, no more to return to corruption, he has spoken in this way,"I will give you the holy and sure blessings of David."Therefore he says also in another psalm,"You will not let your Holy One see corruption."For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep and was laid with his fathers and saw corruption, but he whom God raised up did not see corruption. Let it be known to you therefore, brothers, that through this man forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, and by him everyone who believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses. Beware, therefore, lest what is said in the Prophets should come about:"Look, you scoffers, be astounded and perish; for I am doing a work in your days, a work that you will not believe, even if one tells it to you.”
(Acts 13:23-41 ESV)We are sinners. Jesus came to die for the forgiveness of sins and the gift of eternal life to those who repent and believe in Him. We as Message Believers or former Message Believers have a particular sin that we often overlook. It is the sin of believing in a differnt Jesus, the Jesus of William Branham. WMB called him Jesus, but he was a different Jesus which he created in his own mind who didn't match the biblical Jesus. His Jesus was, in fact, an idol. Include that sin when you repent because if you haven't, you may still be believing in a different Jesus, and as a result, a different gospel!