Don’t Assume the Gospel

Weekly Update – June 8th, 2023

In Philippians 1:4, the apostle Paul starts off his letter by expressing his thankfulness for the Philippians “partnership in the gospel.”  This coming Sunday, we will see Paul talking about his situation in prison as a circumstance that will serve “to advance the gospel” (1:12).  With Paul starting off his letter with this word “gospel” and continually using it throughout, it was necessary for us on Sunday to take some time to clearly define what the “gospel” is, instead of merely assuming we all know what it means.  To often in our church culture the gospel simply gets assumed instead of clearly proclaimed.  We take for granted that our children hear this message in Vacation Bible School or that our adults have heard it at some point in the past.  What then results is an assumption that everyone knows the gospel, when in fact, many would struggle to articulate it, and there may even be some who don’t believe it. 

There is another major problem with assuming the gospel though.  An assumption of the gospel will typically lead to a losing of the gospel completely.  Here is how the progression works.  It doesn’t usually happen all at once, but instead it takes what Mack Stiles describes in his book titled Marks of the Messenger a four step progression. It begins with the gospel being accepted to the gospel then being assumed.  From the gospel being assumed it moves to the gospel being confused with the eventual result of the gospel being lost.  Unfortunately we live in a day when many in our church culture assume that those around them have heard the gospel, when in fact the gospel message is confused or even already lost.

Instead we see another type of progression in the Scriptures.  In 2 Timothy 2:2, the apostle Paul talks about a progression in sharing the gospel.  He tells Timothy to take what he has heard from him and to pass it on the faithful men, who might then teach others.  In other words, Timothy is told to remember the gospel message he first heard from Paul, then pass this same message on to others, who will then pass on this same truth to those whom they teach.  Jude 3 says something similar.  Jude writes, “…I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.”  Scripture is clear and elsewhere, that we need to be faithful in declaring the full truth of the gospel message and not assume that it has already been proclaimed enough.

Therefore our goal is to be absolutely clear with this gospel message.  That is why you will hear it every single Sunday morning that we gather.  We want to always be proclaiming the good news about who Jesus is, what He came to do and why we so desperately need Him.  The gospel that we proclaim says that God is infinitely holy, man is utterly sinful and in his atoning death, Jesus was perfectly righteous.  Therefore, we as sinful men and women need what Jesus did through his righteous life and his atoning death to be applied to us.  This comes through repentance of sin and faith in Christ alone.  Our desire is that this message would clearly permeate through every service and every ministry of our church.  

There are many advantages to being upfront and clear in our gospel proclamation.  Through our declaring of Christ, we confront unbelievers who might be in our midst on a continual basis.  We don’t need to have a special evangelist focus Sunday for this either.  Every passage of Scripture should lend itself to gospel proclamation.  As Charles Spurgeon said, we take the text and make a beeline for the cross in every service.  But then the gospel ought to be spoken in our Equipping Classes, our home groups, in our prayers, through our conversations and then displayed in our very lives.  This is what our mission statement means when we say that we as First Baptist Church will strive to speak and live out the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

We can’t assume that those around us know this message.  But even if we are sure that they do know it, we still desperately need to hear it every day.  We need to be reminded continually that Christ came to save sinners.  This affects not only our souls for salvation, but our very view of how we approach every situation and circumstance in our life.  Therefore, let us be a people who are clear in our understanding of the gospel, but also clear in our telling of the gospel too. 

Serving Him with You,
Pastor Michael Nelson

Written by Pastor
Michael Nelson

Fighter Verse for the Week

"Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit"—yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes."
- James 4:13-14

Announcements:

Food Pantry: We are in need of pop-top and ready to eat items for our food pantry. These items are needed specifically for the homeless in our community that stop by the church building throughout the week looking for a meal.

Meal Train: If you would like to be a part of the meal train for Gideon and Heather Wild, click HERE.

Clothes Closet: On Saturday, June 17th, from 8:00am-11:00am, First Baptist Church will open the clothes closet for the community. If you would like to help, come that Saturday at 8:00am.

Vacation Bible School: Mark your calendar. This year, we will host Vacation Bible School on Monday, July 10th-Friday, July 14th from 5:45-8:00pm. More information on how you can help is available on the bulletin board in the hall and more information about how to register your child is available HERE. We are now collecting items for VBS decorations. We are looking for large square cardboard boxes, white wrapping paper, black wrapping paper, large sheets of insulations foam, large sheets of sturdy cardboard, and any leftover interior acrylic paints in bright colors, pastel colors, black, or white.

Volunteers Needed: Volunteers are still needed during the 10:30am nursery time. Check the update or email the office for more information on how you can serve.

Members’ Meeting: Our regular quarterly members’ meeting will be held on Sunday, June 25th. Following the morning service, we will head to the Faith Center for a potluck lunch and then back into the sanctuary for the meeting. Be sure to sign up for the potluck on the bulletin board in the hall this Sunday.

Annual Church Picnic: the annual church picnic potluck dinner will begin at 5pm on Sunday, July 2nd, at Freedom Park. Visit the church calendar for more information about this and other upcoming events.

Awana

We had a great year this year! We look forward to starting again in September.

Equipping Hour

We have three classes held at 9:15am on Sunday mornings. “Evangelism: Engaging the Lost” will meet in the Sanctuary, a biblical exposition of 1 and 2nd Thessalonians will meet in the Fellowship Hall, and a Ladies’ class studying the Old Testament will meet in the classroom next to the nursery. You can find more information HERE.

Giving

To Give Online, Go HERE. 

You can also mail your offering to: 1416 Main Street, Grandview, MO. 64030

Home Groups

Home Groups typically meet on the first and third Sunday of each month. Please contact Pastor Michael if you would like to join a Home Group. You can find more information HERE.

Prayer

An updated Prayer Guide can be accessed HERE. 

Prepare for Sunday

Guide for Worship can be found HERE.