The mystery of the gospel

The words stopped short of my lips. Almost there. Almost uttered into the air. But held back. I knew they were the most important words in the world. Simple. Direct truth. The gospel.  

But I hesitated. And blamed shyness. Blamed my inadequacy to express it correctly. No matter how many times I memorized Bible verses and methods of explaining the good news, it never seemed to come out right. What if my stumbling attempt to share the gospel hit someone the wrong way and turned them away from seeking Jesus? 

Ask for boldness

Then I read Acts 4:29 and the request of the early church became my personal prayer request. I wrote it on the inside cover of my Bible: “…enable your servant[s] to speak your word with great boldness.” 

It astounded me that the Apostle Paul had a similar request in Ephesians 6:19—“Pray also for me, that the message may be given to me when I open my mouth to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel.”  

To make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel.

Abide in Christ

Asking for boldness changed me. It started with abiding in Christ daily. Through prayer. Through the Word of God.  Asking Him to open my eyes to see, my ears to hear and my mouth to speak His truth in obedience.

The more I opened my mouth to make known the mystery of the gospel, the bolder I became.  And it didn’t look like what I had imagined. It was surrender and dependence. The weak, earthen vessel equipped and empowered in the moment.

Speak salt and light

The Lord continues teaching me to sprinkle conversations with salt and light. To really listen to people and ask Him for wisdom before I speak. “Lord, show me where You are at work. Help me to keep in step with the Spirit,” has been a frequent prayer. 

Sometimes I share truths I’m learning from God’s Word, or offer to pray for a need.  Other times someone’s story reminds me of a story or verse in the Word—and I take a deep breath and simply tell it. I share my own experience of trusting Jesus.

It’s not neatly packaged.  But it’s truth spoken in the everyday. Mystery breathed into conversations. 

Share the gospel

Through the years, I’ve had opportunities to share the unadorned, simple gospel. I’ve asked people if they would like to turn and follow Jesus. And  I’ve witnessed varied responses to this message. 

The radical truth catches people by surprise. It makes them uncomfortable. It pierces through the layers.  Some turn away. Some try to soften the exclusive claims of Jesus. Others keep coming back to the conversation, drawn to the mystery. Some choose to turn and follow the One and Only Son, the Way of salvation. 

I am not ashamed

This week I had the absolute joy of praying with two people as they received this free gift of eternal life in Christ Jesus.  I knew there were others along their journey who had been faithful to share the truth of the gospel.  I just happened to be there at the moment when they decided to take this step of faith by repenting and believing.  

Watching people walk out of darkness into His marvelous light? Stunning. And the cry of my heart was, “Lord God, You are GLORIOUS!”

Their response to the love of Christ compels me to continue asking. Asking for boldness. Asking for opportunities to share this mystery of the gospel with those who do not know abundant, eternal life in Him.

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes…” (Romans 1:16 CSB).

What about you?

What has been helpful as you’ve sought to share the mystery of the gospel in your setting? What gives you the courage to continue speaking His truth to those around you?

Helpful resource: In recent years, The Three Circles by Jimmy Scroggins has been a useful tool for me in sharing the good news. The 3 Circles app is available for your phone.  Below is one way I’ve shared the gospel.

The gospel is simply this:

God created the world and it was good. He created man and woman, placing them in a beautiful garden. But God’s perfect design was corrupted when man and woman chose to sin. Sin led to brokenness and death. The Bible says in Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” And Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death….”

All have sinned. And we don’t have to go very far to see the evidence of that. We see it in our own lives and in the brokenness of our families, our communities, our country, and all around the world. In every society and culture, people are looking for a way to address this sin problem. We’ve tried to fix it in so many ways. But we just can’t.

That’s why we need the gospel. The good news that God sent His Son to live among us and make a way to cleanse us of our sin.  Long before Jesus was born on earth, God foretold through the prophets that this would take place.

The authorities were against Jesus and His teaching. They sentenced Him to die on a cross.  Jesus took the curse of our sin upon Himself and became the perfect sacrifice for our sin when He died on that cross. The Bible calls Him “The Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).

He was buried in a tomb.  Then, on the third day, God raised Him from the dead. He was victorious over sin and death.

He appeared to many—over 500 people!—then ascended to heaven.

And someday He’s coming back to judge the living and the dead.

The gospel is only good news if you receive it. How?

• Repent of your sin (repent means you turn and walk in a new direction).
• Believe in your heart what Christ accomplished for you through His death and resurrection.
• Confess with your mouth that He is Lord.

Romans 10:9 says “If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Would you like to pray and receive this gift from God today?