What is the gospel?
“The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” – Mark 1:1
The word gospel literally means “good news,” and was originally a political term.
The good news of the Roman heralds was usually something about the highest leader of the land and pertained to military success, marriage, and procreation. Their contents were inscribed on parchment, stones, and pillars so the people could celebrate and rally around their ruler.
The good news was to unify the people around a political figure who could promote and protect them. Christians adopted the term gospel for the same reason—to exalt their emperor, Jesus, who could promote and protect their spiritual prosperity. They were suggesting the emperor had been trumped by Messiah, a claim likely first made by young John Mark as he wrote his gospel under Peter’s influence in the capital city of Rome.
According to tradition, Mark was a teenager and his parents provided the upper room for the last supper. When soldiers arrived to arrest Jesus, Mark ran to warn Jesus wearing only his inner garment. When a soldier caught him by the collar, Mark wriggled loose and ran for his life (Mark 14:51-52) naked.
If John Mark risked his life in the garden to protect Jesus, is it any wonder that in Rome he proclaimed Jesus as a political ruler?
The gospel is not merely the story of Jesus for the church but the proclamation of salvation through the church.
There’s only one true gospel of Jesus. Hence, we’re to do everything in our power to put him on his throne. This isn’t merely a metaphor. Through his church, Jesus reigns in this world. It’s our responsibility and privilege to be his couriers, announcing to far-flung places this singular truth that we have a king named Jesus who sits on the throne in God’s heaven to bring healing to God’s earth.
