The Good News of Jesus Christ
Before discussing baptism formulas, spiritual gifts, or church practices, the Bible insists we slow down and ask a more important question:
What is the good news — and how is a person truly saved?
This article uses Say • Obey • Share (SOS) to walk carefully through Scripture. It does not argue with people. It lets the Bible speak.
🗣️ SAY — What does the Bible say the gospel is?
The gospel is not a method or a checklist. It is an announcement — good news.
1 Corinthians 15:1–4 summarises it clearly:
- Christ died for our sins
- He was buried
- He was raised on the third day
Paul calls this message something that must be received, not achieved.
Romans 3:23 — “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
Romans 6:23 — “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
The gospel begins with bad news (our sin), but it ends with a gift — not a demand. A gift must be accepted, not earnt.
👣 OBEY — How does a person respond to the gospel?
Scripture is remarkably consistent: salvation is received by faith, not performed through works.
Romans 10:9–10 says:
“If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
This is reinforced by:
Ephesians 2:8–9 — “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
Obedience matters — but it follows salvation, it does not create it.
Ephesians 2:10 explains the order: we are saved for good works, not by them.
📖 Where do repentance, baptism, and the Holy Spirit fit?
Acts 2:38 is often treated as a formula, but it appears within a much larger story.
Peter is preaching to a Jewish crowd who already believe in God, already accept Scripture, and have just realised they rejected their promised Messiah.
His call to repent is a call to change direction — to turn from rejecting Jesus to trusting Him.
Baptism follows as a public response of faith, just as it does throughout Acts.
The Holy Spirit is given as God’s promise to all who belong to Christ — not as a reward for correct sequencing. To prove that the elements are there but not a recipe or a formula read Peter's next Gospel presentation and their response in Acts 10:1–48. Note the order. Again, although a gentile, Cornelius was already a "God Fearer" which is a title and type of acolyte. As you go through the historical accounts in Acts note different elements that are particular to all and which events are unique.
This matches the wider New Testament:
- Romans 8:9 — Anyone who belongs to Christ has the Spirit.
- Galatians 3:2–3 — The Spirit is received by faith, not by works.
- 1 Corinthians 12:13 — All believers are baptised by one Spirit into one body.
📣 SHARE — How would you explain this good news to someone?
A gospel that must be carefully sequenced, perfected, or proven by experience is not good news — it is pressure.
But the biblical gospel can be shared simply:
- We are sinners in need of rescue
- Jesus lived, died, and rose for us. He paid the price so we don't have to.
- We are saved by grace through faith in Jesus.
- Obedience follows salvation, not the other way around.
This is why Paul warns so strongly:
Galatians 1:6–9 — “If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.”
Adding requirements to the gospel does not strengthen it — it quietly replaces it.
Important note:
Baptism and spiritual gifts matter. They are beautiful and biblical. But they belong after the good news, not before it.
In the next articles, we will slow down and examine baptism “in Jesus’ name” and speaking in tongues using the same SOS approach — carefully, fairly, and in full biblical context.
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