I would like to preach the gospel to you, as it is given in the Gospel of John.
Our general understanding of the gospel is too limited. Yes, the gospel does include the matter of sin, for 1:29 tells us, “Behold the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world!” This verse implies Christ’s death, for that was the means by which He took away our sins. We may infer from 19:30 and 34 also that dealing with sin is included in the gospel.
The love of God is also included in this Gospel, as we well know from 3:16: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that every one who believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.”
We were pitiful sinners, but the Son of God loved us and died on the cross for our sins. If we believe in Him we are saved, and when we die we shall go to heaven. This is what we usually consider the gospel, but I must tell you that the concept of going to heaven is not to be found in the Gospel of John. Yes, this thought may be hinted at in other verses, but going to heaven, to tell the truth, is not the main item of the gospel.
In the twenty-one chapters of John we have the gospel. If we begin with the first verse, we can see clearly that the first item is not sin. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Verse 4 says further, “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.” Have you ever regarded this as the gospel? Consider John 15. “I am the true vine, and My Father is the husbandman....I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit....You did not choose Me, but I chose you, and I appointed you that you should go forth and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain” (vv. 1, 5, 16). These verses too are part of the gospel. John 17, the deepest, highest prayer of the Lord Jesus, is also part of the gospel. “These things Jesus spoke, and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son that the Son may glorify You....Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth” (vv. 1, 17). We have considered passages like this as deeper truths for the edification of the saints, not as part of the gospel to be preached to unbelievers.
We surely need a new view of the gospel. You may say that these passages we have referred to are too difficult for unbelievers to grasp. You may think that even those who have been in the church life a long time do not really understand them. If this is your opinion, you are deceived. It may be that the saints, and even the elders, find such verses hard to comprehend, but that is because your eyes are clouded and you already have the concept that these matters are too profound to be understood. You are deceived because of your prejudice.
Our idea of how to preach the gospel is to tell sinners things that they can easily follow. We tell them they are sinners, and then apply the point by saying that they have stolen from others. We warn them about the eternal fire burning in hell and urge them to choose heaven, where the streets are of gold, a wonderful tree grows, a river flows, and there are mansions. This kind of preaching appeals to our natural concept. If this is our approach, we have no need to depend on the Spirit.
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