What does the Bible say about the gospel?

The Bible passages below can be used in sermons, prayers, pastoral care, or worship planning focused on the gospel.

• Matthew 26:13, the gospel is preached (Jesus says his anointing will be remembered wherever the gospel is preached)
• Mark 8:35, for the sake of the gospel (those who lose their life for Jesus and his gospel will save it)
• Acts 8:25, preaching the gospel (Peter and John preached the gospel throughout Samaria)
• Romans 1:1, set apart for the gospel (Paul was called to be an apostle)
• Romans 1:16, power of the gospel (I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith)
• 1 Corinthians 9:18, the gospel is free (Paul takes no credit for the gospel message; it's God's free gift)
• Galatians 1:6-8, false gospel (don't be tempted by those who teach a perverted gospel)

Sermon ideas about the gospel

The English word gospel derives from a Middle English riff (godspell) on a Latin derivative of the Greek evangelium, which means good news. Godspell was the combination of god (good) and spell (tale).

The New Testament contains four individual gospel books: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Together, they narrate the one gospel story of Jesus of Nazareth and how through his ministry, teaching, preaching, miracles, death, and resurrection he brought about a forgiveness of sin and the end of death.

The gospel proclaims the coming of the kingdom of God, and it announces that entrance into this kingdom is by grace alone through faith alone when in baptism we receive union with Christ and so eternal life through him.

Already in the book of Acts, in the earliest preaching of the church, and then on into the epistles of Paul and others, "the gospel" was shorthand for the whole content of the sermons presented by the apostles. Probably no single verse captures this better than what Paul wrote in Romans 1:16: "For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek."

Excerpts about the gospel

Following are sample excerpts from Zeteosearch.org sermon resources about the gospel:

• "But whether we are called to leave behind kith and kin, we are all called to a radical commitment to the gospel. And if in the midst of our lives that sometimes mean turning down a promotion, saying hard things to our children, denying our families the dream vacations taken by others, or any number of other sacrifices both great and small in service to the power and beauty of the gospel . . . well, we ought not be surprised." Sermon Illustration, Sermon Preparation by Scott Hoezee from Center for Excellence in Preaching 
• "Yes, but the way that he described God's reign, it surprised everybody. I mean, think. A powerful, successful kingdom, it needs to be strong, able to impose its will, able to defeat its enemies. But Jesus said the greatest person in God's Kingdom was the weakest, the one who loves and who serves the poor. And he said you live under God's reign when you respond to evil by loving your enemies, and forgiving them, and seeking peace. This is an upside-down Kingdom." Article (video transcript) about Scripture from BibleProject