The Good News
I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live [spiritually], even though he dies [physically].
John 11:25
The apostle Paul’s letter to Philemon portrays his passion for the gospel, and he is a testimony of those who believe it. Paul had been imprisoned in Rome for preaching the gospel. Onesimus was a recipient of his preaching and gladly received this “good news.” His life was transformed. Onesimus was useless before Paul shared the gospel with him, but now he was useful to Paul and Philemon (see verse 11). Before he was a slave, but now he was a brother in Christ. His identity and character changed.
Paul prays that every believer would share this good news of salvation in Christ and that they would fully understand all that they have in Him (see verse 6). To understand the gospel, one has to understand the plight of fallen humanity, which the apostle Paul summarizes in Ephesians 2:1-2: “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air.”
To overcome the effects of the fall, three primary issues would have to be resolved. First, the sin that separates humanity from a Holy God had to be atoned for. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:23-24). Jesus died for our sins in order that we may be forgiven.
Second, it is not enough that our sins are forgiven if we are still spiritually dead. To save people who have already died, we would have to first cure the disease that caused them to die. Because of Christ’s death on the cross we are forgiven, and because of His resurrection we have eternal life. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). What Adam and Eve lost was spiritual life, and Jesus came to give us life (see John 10:10). As children of God we have received a glorious inheritance in Christ (see Ephesians 1:18) and have become new creations in Christ (see 2 Corinthians 5:17).
Paul wrote, “Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you. . . . If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith” (1 Corinthians 15:1,13-14). Because of the resurrection, we have new life in Christ, and that eternal life is not something we get when we die physically. We receive eternal life the moment we are born again. “Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life” (1 John 5:12). Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies” (John 11:25). In other words, those who believe in Jesus will continue to live spiritually even when they die physically.
Third, “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work” (1 John 3:8). Jesus defeated the devil and disarmed him (see Colossians 2:15), and we are no longer subject to him because every believer is now seated with Christ in the heavenlies (see Ephesians 2:6).
a few questions to ponder:
Read Colossians 2:13-15. What are the three primary aspects of the gospel?
Which of those three aspects of the gospel are most overlooked in our churches today?
Why do you think the cross and forgiveness has been emphasized so much more than the resurrection and the new life in Christ?
What effect has the “good news” of Christ had on you personally?
How have you not fully embraced your new life in Christ and let go of the past?
Neil T. Anderson is the founder of Freedom in Christ Ministries. He began the ministry in 1989 and continues to spread the message of freedom to this day.