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Author Topic:   What does 'The Gospel' mean to you - in 200 words or less
iano
Member (Idle past 1940 days)
Posts: 6165
From: Co. Wicklow, Ireland.
Joined: 07-27-2005


Message 1 of 93 (534938)
11-11-2009 9:31 PM


A believer on this site writes:
Most people in the USA have heard the gospel. People who come to religious internet sites certainly have.
Hmm?
Typically, having 'heard the Gospel' would mean something along the lines of having heard:
a) you are a sinner.
b) the above news is bad news - eternal, negative, consequences attach to your sin.
c) take heart! - there is good news (the Gospel): God has done something to ensure you don't necessarily have to face the consequences of your sin.
d) if only you would; believe, repent, work, rely on grace ... and/or the like, then you will escape the consequences of your sin and enjoy eternal, blissful, life forever.
---
But what do the words 'the Gospel' actually mean:
- to the believer; who tries to communicate what he/she believes to be 'very important information' to the unbeliever?
- to the unbeliever; who (if they are reading this) has probably been swamped by various folks' take on 'THE(sic) Gospel'?
---
In other words:
how would you;
- deliver 'the Gospel' as you understand it, to the unbeliever?
- understand 'the gospel' as it has been thus far delivered to you, as unbeliever?
..in 200 words or less (more or less).
Edited by iano, : No reason given.

Replies to this message:
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 Message 7 by purpledawn, posted 11-13-2009 1:24 PM iano has not replied
 Message 11 by Kaichos Man, posted 11-14-2009 8:03 AM iano has not replied
 Message 12 by Otto Tellick, posted 11-14-2009 11:39 AM iano has not replied
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 Message 79 by OLEGDEI, posted 01-03-2010 2:29 PM iano has replied

  
Admin
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Message 2 of 93 (534986)
11-12-2009 9:28 AM


Thread Copied from Proposed New Topics Forum
Thread copied here from the What does 'The Gospel' mean to you - in 200 words or less thread in the Proposed New Topics forum.

  
Stile
Member
Posts: 4295
From: Ontario, Canada
Joined: 12-02-2004


(1)
Message 3 of 93 (534991)
11-12-2009 10:00 AM
Reply to: Message 1 by iano
11-11-2009 9:31 PM


"The Gospel" according to Stile
From reading your post, I think I'd be classified as an "unbeliever," so I'll answer this question:
iano writes:
how would you:
- understand 'the gospel' as it has been thus far delivered to you, as unbeliever?
To me, "The Gospel" is the central tenets of the Christian religion. The Gospel houses all the important, life-changing, powerful, undeniable ideas that are at the core of the religion. Specifics on what these parts actually are and how they work vary widely from taking the text literally to incorporating "the Bible as a whole" in order to form many different interpretations. It should be noted that many who also claim to "take the text literally" actually do not, or at least do not agree with many others who also claim to "take the text literally."
The common aspect is that whatever these specific ideas actually are (covering topics including morality, purpose, afterlife and personal peace and happiness), they are always put forward as "the one and only answer for everyone that always concludes with positive results" (although sometimes not until the afterlife).
Identifying this common aspect is what makes it difficult to make a distinction between someone who is "professing The Gospel" and someone who is "selling snake oil." Along with the additional fact that no matter which specific version of The Gospel is being professed, there doesn't exist any group of people who actually possess the claimed positive results which are not also easily available to non-Gospel groups of people through non-religious means. That is, any and all observable results or conclusions that have been claimed to come through "the power of The Gospel" are equally available (and sometimes to a greater extent) without the use of The Gospel in any way.

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Peg
Member (Idle past 4929 days)
Posts: 2703
From: melbourne, australia
Joined: 11-22-2008


Message 4 of 93 (535110)
11-12-2009 9:33 PM


to me the Gospel, which literally means 'Good News', is the testimony and eyewitness accounts of the ministry of Jesus Christ. These were given at Gods direction as a message, of good news, for all mankind.
Mark reports on the purpose of the ministry of Jesus at Mark 1:15
where Jesus announced The appointed time has been fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has drawn near. Be repentant, you people, and have faith in the good news.
so the gospel is the announcement of the nearing of Gods kingdom...that is the theme of the 'good news' and its the aspect of gosple that I use to introduce non believers to it.

  
Larni
Member (Idle past 164 days)
Posts: 4000
From: Liverpool
Joined: 09-16-2005


Message 5 of 93 (535156)
11-13-2009 7:44 AM
Reply to: Message 1 by iano
11-11-2009 9:31 PM


That we can never live up to the Law but that we should aspire to and that Jesus takes our sins onto himself to save us from hell.

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Buzsaw
Inactive Member


(1)
Message 6 of 93 (535160)
11-13-2009 8:42 AM


1. Adam was told, the day you sin you die. Sin = death and separation from God.
2. God instituted a remedy whereas innocent life would pay the death penalty via animal sacrifice to cover until an ultimate acceptable sacrifice would be made.
3. God, via a virgin caused his own sinless son to be born and to become the ultimate sacrifice for the sins, via death on cross, of all mankind who would receive it as per God's conditions being:
a. Acknowledgement of sins, lostness and guilt.
b. Believing that Jesus died for sins.
c. Calling upon Jesus to save.
d. Receiving Jesus as savior by asking. (Holy Spirit of Jesus enters recepient's being making the convert a new spiritually born creature)
d. Publical public acknowledgement by baptism (immersion)
e. Result = changed life to grow from babe in Christ to mature Christian via reading and study of scripture.

BUZSAW B 4 U 2 C Y BUZ SAW.
The immeasurable present eternally extends the infinite past and infinitely consumes the eternal future.

  
purpledawn
Member (Idle past 3457 days)
Posts: 4453
From: Indiana
Joined: 04-25-2004


Message 7 of 93 (535180)
11-13-2009 1:24 PM
Reply to: Message 1 by iano
11-11-2009 9:31 PM


The Gospel of Jesus
In a nutshell: Respect God, love/benevolence towards others, and repent and forgive when necessary.

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Modulous
Member
Posts: 7801
From: Manchester, UK
Joined: 05-01-2005


(1)
Message 8 of 93 (535183)
11-13-2009 2:10 PM


The end of the world as we know it is coming. God's final judgement is near. Stop worrying about whether accidentally knocking chattel on the Sabbath is considered 'work'. Forget hypocritical priests. Forget judging a person based on their beliefs or practices - your neighbour is the one that would pick you up when you are down, nothing else. Just follow Jesus and love your neighbour as yourself. Be nice, give away all your money to charity, make no aggressive act even if provoked. Prepare for the end, repent your sins before it is too late. Tartarus awaits those that have committed certain sins unrepentantly. Help the sick, care for the poor, and don't worry about your own wellbeing because God will look after you. And do it all in secret, knowing your reward is from God not in the praise of others. Wear sunscreen.
An anointed King of Israel has arisen and performs miracles to prove his credentials before ushering in the Golden Kingdom of Israel.
That's my short summary of the core message I get from, principally Matthew plus or minus a few other bits that I've been exposed to from the other Gospels.
Edited by Modulous, : No reason given.

Replies to this message:
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SammyJean
Member (Idle past 4073 days)
Posts: 87
From: Fremont, CA, USA
Joined: 03-28-2009


Message 9 of 93 (535184)
11-13-2009 2:24 PM
Reply to: Message 8 by Modulous
11-13-2009 2:10 PM


Everybody free to wear sunscreen
Wear sunscreen.
The long term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists...

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bluescat48
Member (Idle past 4189 days)
Posts: 2347
From: United States
Joined: 10-06-2007


(1)
Message 10 of 93 (535205)
11-13-2009 5:57 PM


The Gospel is
To me the Gospel is a nice piece of historical fiction on line with the Illiad and Gone With the Wind.

There is no better love between 2 people than mutual respect for each other WT Young, 2002
Who gave anyone the authority to call me an authority on anything. WT Young, 1969
Since Evolution is only ~90% correct it should be thrown out and replaced by Creation which has even a lower % of correctness. W T Young, 2008

  
Kaichos Man
Member (Idle past 4488 days)
Posts: 250
From: Tasmania, Australia
Joined: 10-03-2009


Message 11 of 93 (535267)
11-14-2009 8:03 AM
Reply to: Message 1 by iano
11-11-2009 9:31 PM


That we were thrust into this world, not of our own choosing, to make the best fist of it that we can.
That God first set some very hard parameters to our behaviour. Thou shalt not commit adultery. Then He made them impossible. Whomsoever looks on a woman with lust has already committed adultery in his heart.
And we stumbled on, weak and fallible, falling and failing, easy prey to the unholy trinity of the world, the flesh and the devil. And God sat there, the steely-eyed judge, waiting for the day of slaughter.
We were found guilty of the very crimes God pre-disposed us to commit. We were the clay, waiting to be shattered by the very potter who mismade us.
We didn't deserve it.
So God came down to earth in human form. He lived a perfect life. And then he died the perfect death; vilified, whipped, spat upon, mocked and tortured.
And with his dying breath, he did a curious thing. He said "Forgive them, Father, they know not what they do." And in so saying he exchanged his innocence for our guilt, His perfection for our depravity, His peace for our agony and His eternity for our fading, fading light.
And guess what?
We didn't deserve that, either.

This message is a reply to:
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Otto Tellick
Member (Idle past 2330 days)
Posts: 288
From: PA, USA
Joined: 02-17-2008


Message 12 of 93 (535287)
11-14-2009 11:39 AM
Reply to: Message 1 by iano
11-11-2009 9:31 PM


The Gospel is a collection of stories and assertions originally written in languages that I don't know (Greek, Aramaic, ...), translated into English at various times by various people using various methods, resources, predispositions and levels of ability, and having different varieties and stages of English as the target language for translation.
While I can't read the original text myself, my general knowledge about human language leads me to take this as an unavoidable fact: the original text contains a number of statements and expressions that are open to numerous understandings and interpretations, due to vagueness, ambiguity, or the very abstractness of some of the things being discussed. This has been borne out in the multiplicity of mutually incompatible creeds that are all founded on the same scripture.
I also know that each translation into English is subject to the same multiplicity of meanings, and incompatible sects are seen to arise from a single English translation.
Having multiple interpretations does not make a text meaningless, and does not in itself devalue any given meaning that a person finds in a text. But the important point for me, for my relationship to scripture and to "believers", is that this text by itself does not carry authority, and any given interpretation of it cannot claim authority based only on the notion of being "from scripture."
A lot of sectarian incompatibility stems from applying the text in different ways to matters not discussed directly by the original writers. This kind of extrapolation tends to cause the worst abuses, and repeatedly demonstrates the danger of attributing authority to the text.
Edited by Otto Tellick, : slight phrasal adjustment for clarity
Edited by Otto Tellick, : ditto

autotelic adj. (of an entity or event) having within itself the purpose of its existence or happening.

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jaywill
Member (Idle past 1941 days)
Posts: 4519
From: VA USA
Joined: 12-05-2005


Message 13 of 93 (538561)
12-07-2009 10:19 PM


God became man so that man might become God, in life and in nature but not in His Godhead, for a corporate expression of the mingling of divinity and humanity for our eternal enjoyment and God's expression and kingdom. For this Christ came to redeem the fallen and Satanified man and became a life giving Spirit to enter into us and transform us into His image. The mingling of God and man is the meaning of the creation of the universe. The believer's destiny is the New Jerusalem, the incorporation of divinity in humanity for man's deification and the Triune God's indwelling.

Replies to this message:
 Message 14 by iano, posted 12-09-2009 12:53 PM jaywill has replied

  
iano
Member (Idle past 1940 days)
Posts: 6165
From: Co. Wicklow, Ireland.
Joined: 07-27-2005


Message 14 of 93 (538727)
12-09-2009 12:53 PM
Reply to: Message 13 by jaywill
12-07-2009 10:19 PM


What can I say but...
Jaywill writes:
God became man so that man might become God, in life and in nature but not in His Godhead, for a corporate expression of the mingling of divinity and humanity for our eternal enjoyment and God's expression and kingdom. For this Christ came to redeem the fallen and Satanified man and became a life giving Spirit to enter into us and transform us into His image. The mingling of God and man is the meaning of the creation of the universe. The believer's destiny is the New Jerusalem, the incorporation of divinity in humanity for man's deification and the Triune God's indwelling.
..wow!

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Replies to this message:
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jaywill
Member (Idle past 1941 days)
Posts: 4519
From: VA USA
Joined: 12-05-2005


Message 15 of 93 (538811)
12-10-2009 10:15 AM
Reply to: Message 14 by iano
12-09-2009 12:53 PM


Re: What can I say but...
lol! And under 200 words too. If you'd like to read more -
God‘s Economy: recovered by Witness Lee, enjoyed by local churches

This message is a reply to:
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