In some previous posts, I have written that while the gospel is huge and complex, the gospel invitation is clear and simple. I have received many comments, Tweets, and Facebook messages about this, so let me try to clarify even further.
There are thousands of gospel truths in the Bible. Clearly, one cannot believe all of them, nor must one understand and believe all of them in order to receive eternal life. Thankfully, Jesus Himself (as well as the Apostles) consistently show that there is one small set of gospel truths that must be believed to receive eternal life.
I call this “the gospel invitation.”
The Gospel Invitation
The gospel invitation is one truth three parts. A person is invited to:
- Believe
- In Jesus
- For everlasting life.
Another way to think about this is that we are to (1) believe (2) in a person (3) for a promise.
Let us briefly consider each.
Believe
First, we invite people to believe.
Since the New Testament almost universally uses the verb “believe” or the noun “faith” it is not wise to substitute other words such as trust, commit, submit, decide, repent or any other word that implies some sort of action or work on our behalf. Believing and faith are the words the Bible most often uses (which is only one word in the Greek with a verb and noun form), and so we garble the gospel when we choose to use other words.
Yes, it is important to understand what the words “believe” and “faith” mean, which in itself is a huge study, but I will walk through this study with you in a future course I will offer.
Believe in a Person
Second, we invite people to believe in a person, namely, Jesus Christ.
We do not just invite people to just believe; they are invited to believe in Jesus.
Also, since Jesus has come and revealed God to us, it is not sufficient to invite people to believe in God. Someone can believe in God (or a god) and still not believe in Jesus.
But what exactly do they believe about Jesus? That He was human? That He was God incarnate? That He died on the cross and rose from the dead? That He was born of a virgin and lived a sinless life? When we believe in Jesus, what about Jesus must we believe? This leads to the third gospel invitation truth.
Believe in a Person for a Promise
We invite people to believe in Jesus for everlasting life.
There is a bit more flexibility with this term than with the other two. For example, instead of everlasting life, you could also use the words eternal life, the righteousness of God, or justification. Yet since some of these latter terms may require further explanation, it seems best to use the words Jesus Himself used, and stick with “everlasting life” or “eternal life.”
But whatever terminology you use, it is important to emphasize the promise Jesus makes to those who believe in Him. We are to believe in Jesus for His promise of eternal life.
It is not sufficient (or even the same thing) to believe that Jesus was God, or to believe that Jesus died on the cross for our sins and rose again from the dead, or to believe that Jesus really existed, or any of these other true facts about Jesus. If you take a look at each one of those facts, while all of them are true, none of them include a promise, and it is entirely possible for someone to believe that Jesus truly existed, that Jesus was God in the flesh, and to believe that Jesus died on the cross and rose again from the dead, while at the same time, failing to believe in Jesus for everlasting life.
Even the most legalistic, works-righteousness, religious Christians believe that Jesus was God and that He died on the cross and rose again. But they do not believe that Jesus gives eternal life to those who simply and only believe in Him. Instead, such people believe that we must somehow work for, earn, and keep our eternal life through a life of good works. Such people believe a lot of good things about Jesus, but they do not believe in Jesus for everlasting life. As such, the gospel invitation is not complete if it does not mention the promise of eternal life.
The Clear Gospel Invitation
So the central invitation of the gospel is that we can believe in Jesus for everlasting life. It is that simple and that clear.
Do you believe this?
Do you believe in Jesus for eternal life? If so, you have it. Jesus guarantees it.
Can you also share this with other people? Of course you can!
Just like Jesus did, you can invite people to believe in Jesus for eternal life.
You do not need to invite them to forsake their sin, repent, confess, commit, submit, or any of the other common words and terms that are found in modern gospel presentations but are not found on the lips of Jesus.
If you want to invite people to receive eternal life, you can do no better than use the words Jesus Himself used. Simply invite people to believe in Jesus for everlasting life.
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Good article! But I believe that those who use other terminology like “I believed in Christ for His salvation when I was a little child” are Christians even though they may not “use the correct wording.” The emphasis is on believe — being convinced of the truth of a matter —being convinced that Jesus is my Savior—that what He did on the cross was for me.
Yes, yes! Thanks for the clarification. Absolutely. I agree that many have believed in Jesus for eternal life without being able to properly explain it or use the “right” words. Many have likely believed in Jesus for eternal life, and then later been taught by a pastor or teacher that they did something else, and now use this “something else” to explain how they became a Christian.
I was one of those, but what I share we people when I present the “Gospel” is that Jesus who died, was buried, and was resurrected for
our sins offers eternal life to anyone who will believe in Him for it.
Love it! Perfect.
I was one of those, but what I share with people when I present the “Gospel” is that Jesus who died, was buried, and was resurrected for
our sins offers eternal life to anyone who will believe in Him for it.
All good things to share.
I found it so plain and simple.
I mostly did not include the promise of eternal life,so this is a great reminder to include this wonderful promise to whoever believes in the Lord Jesus Christ has eternal life.
THis truly is the HOPE of the gospel.
It is this hope that carries us through whatever comes our way,knowing this life is only temporary. Thank you for the simple clarity of presenting the gospel.
Not that I necessarily disagree with your post, but you don’t clearly define who the Jesus we are supposed to believe in is. Logically you would never have to mention the cross to even be saved. You could tell someone to believe in Jesus for everlasting life without ever mentioning sin, spiritual death, a substitutionary atonement since these are just fluff or evidences yet they might be a stumbling block so if you just harp on eternal life isn’t that neglecting the death and resurrection. I’d assume you’d mention it, but what you are saying is Logically the cross never has to cross your lips for someone to be saved. Dwight mentioned that we need to be convinced That Jesus is our savior, and what he did on the cross was for me. Arent you saying thats unnecessary. Why do we need a savior?
Excellent question, and one I answer at great length in my course. The basic answer is that the gospel contains numerous truths. The goal of all gospel truths is to bring us to the point where we believe in Jesus for eternal life, and then lead us on into a life of discipleship after we believe.
So the sorts of gospel truths you mention are helpful to persuade or convince a person to believe in Jesus for eternal life. They are what I call “preparation truths.”
Dr. Anthony Badger said he distinguishes between the gospel message and the gospel offer. My only problem is you can give the gospel offer without ever mentioning the gospel message. Just simply Believe in someone named Jesus for eternal life and you are saved. I guess its the someone named jesus I have a problem with because doesnt the Mormon jesus or the Jehovah witness Jesus offer eternal life to, and what if they leave out their preparation truths and just give the offer does that jesus save you?
I have never read/heard Dr. Badger on this, so I am not sure what he says about it.
I don’t think anybody would ever believe in Jesus if they knew nothing about him. If I said I know a guy name Greg who wants to give you $1 million, what questions would you have?
Similarly, if someone know nothing about Jesus, God, eternity, sin, etc, and I said, “Hey! If you believe in Jesus, He’ll give you eternal life,” there would be LOTS of follow-up conversations that would follow. This is where the rest of the gospel truths come in.
It was in a personal email coversation, he is my free grace guru. I agree completely with what both you and Dr. Badger have stated.
My question to you would be what about the person who says to you I believe in Jesus for eternal life yet they are a mormon like my deceased grandmother or a Catholic like my living grandmother? They both would adamantly state they believe in Jesus and they are going to heaven because of Jesus. Would you just ask questions to see if they are trusting in Jesus Christ alone to go to heaven? Also in the case of my grandmother who has passed, her Jesus she believed in isn’t the biblical Jesus, God incarnate so even if she believed in the Mormon jesus and that alone for eternal life does that save her?
I think Jeremy, that your stating Jesse’s question is a bit deeper than your post was intended? Sort of like your post is knocking on the door but Jesse’s question is the threshold?
I’m also curious about your statement, “…one cannot believe all of them…” in reference to the gospel truths of the Bible. Who picks which you choose to believe and doesn’t your statement also undermine the very foundation of belief?
Tim not to speak on his behalf but I’ve been reading a lot of material on this and essentially the position is that believing in a list of things (such as the cross, virgin birth, His deity, ect which are all very true) doesn’t save you only beliving in the free offer of eternal life in Christ Jesus alone saves. Also the free grace view of belief is simply being convinced that aomething is true, like how I’m convinced you are a pretty nice guy. Jeremy feel free to correct me if I’ve misrepresented you, I get hung up on the mormon jesus offering eternal life scenario I mentioned.
Jesse the Jesus the mormons put there faith in is not the same Jesus as Christians profess
i found this article brentnz
http://www.equip.org/perspectives/what-is-the-difference-between-the-mormon-jesus-and-the-jesus-of-the-bible/
Jesse and Tim, Yes, my post was just a surface-level introduction to some of the numerous gospel-related issues about evangelism and discipleship. I have 15 hours of instruction on all of these sorts of questions in the course. Clearly, it is impossible to 99% of this in a short post.
The bottom line is that the gospel contains thousands of truths, all of which are provided to help people believe in Jesus for eternal life and then bring believers into conformity to the life of Jesus Christ.
Jeremy Myers I’ll check out the free course because I’m curious to see if you address my question about the Mormon Jesus who offers eternal life.
I don’t address that specific question, but regardless of who I was having a conversation with, the basic approach would be the same… The gospel contains truths which speak to EVERY issue/question a person might face regarding Jesus. We can engage people and build friendships through gospel-focused, Jesus-centered conversations with them. This is what I have done with Mormons, Muslims, etc.
standard GES position, right? Zane Hodges
That’s not THE Gospel invitation, it’s A Gospel invitation, especially prominent in the 4th Gospel. The historical Jesus was likely preaching DO the will of God and repent of your sins and receive eternal life. Jeremy Myers https://edward-t-babinski.blogspot.com/2016/01/christian-theology-is-all-over-map-part_24.html
That’s not THE Gospel invitation, it’s A Gospel invitation, especially prominent in the 4th Gospel. The historical Jesus was likely preaching DO the will of God and repent of your sins and receive eternal life. https://edward-t-babinski.blogspot.com/2016/01/christian-theology-is-all-over-map-part_24.html
See also https://edward-t-babinski.blogspot.com/search/label/atonement
See also these pieces on how to be saved and the questionable logic of “atonement”
https://edward-t-babinski.blogspot.com/search/label/atonement
“You do not need to invite them to forsake their sin, repent, confess, commit, submit, or any of the other common words and terms that are found in modern gospel presentations but are not found on the lips of Jesus.”
Jesus mentions repentance in Matthew 4:17, and Mark 1:15
“And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.”
Yes. I am not denying the calls for repentance or the requirements to live in the Kingdom of God. I am just saying that these calls are not the same thing as invitations to receive eternal life. I explain all this in greater detail in the course.
I think it is very helpful to see ( for a start ) two of the occasions when Jesus encountered people that He wished to present with the good news. One was the woman at the well at Sychar in which Jesus caught her interest by going from well water to living water.
I think that Jesus recognised a person who was thirsty for love and companionship. She had tried this by doing the rounds of the men, but Jesus introduced her to the primary relationship, that of God. He made the intro suit the hearer. Other things came later.
With Zaccheus, Jesus simply invited Himself to Zaccheus’ place for a meal. I reckon because Zaccheus was a social pariah and Jesus showed that He rose above such discrimination. That was the intro that would get Zaccheus’ attention; social acceptance. Repentance and salvation followed later.
I could be wrong but I think Jeremy Myers might be driving at something that has actually hindered the presentation of the good news ( gospel ). That is the tendency for would be evangelists to think that they have to do the whole job at once. Introduce the gospel, persuade the hearer to repent, explain the whole theological path of the atonement and persuade the hearer to make a choice or commitment of faith. All in one session.
There is a verse somewhere that says something like ” one sows and another reaps” Isn’t it supportable by scripture that just a small word about believing in Jesus might be enough for a starter.
Then down the track , God may have an opportunity for someone else to carry the conversation further, and so on.
Surely the project of announcing the good news and calling those of faith to repent is God’s project. Our part in it may well be a small part, much smaller than our swelled heads might imagine.
Good stuff
I have always found that Jeremy takes us into the very core of our beliefs In Jesus Christ and confronts them with carefully considered scriptural contructs. They force us to become reflective thinkers about our beliefs/faith. I have always believed the Gospel measage was really not meant to be complex (other wise I would not have been led to Christ many years ago). So the message has be clear, concise, accurate and easily understood. As Neville points out its a beginning of a journey for a person not a start and finish. Neville also points out what Christs entry strategy was with people He encounted. They were also simple. Meet the person where they are at and listen to their story. Providing grace and mercy to people as a result of their story opens the door for more listening/help and sharing the good news when the time is right. Sharing the good news through the power of God the Holy Spirit will no doubt include forgivness, repentance and relationship building depending on what the persons struggles are. First though is belief in Jesus Crist for eternal life. The rest will follow.
Jeremy,
“The goal of all gospel truths is to bring us to the point where we believe in Jesus for eternal life…”
Doesn’t this beg the question – why should I want “eternal life”?
Christians are taught to say the only alternative to eternal life is eternal punishment so we are using a loaded term that is more complex than it appears. The assertion now becomes:
“The goal of all gospel truths is to bring us to the point where we believe in Jesus for deliverance from eternal punishment …”
I suggest that a gospel that is short, sweet, and authentic reads:
“The goal of all gospel truths is to bring us to the point where we believe in Jesus for this life and whatever lies beyond…”
Jeremy thanks for clarifying that eternal life is just in believing in Jesus Christ nice and simple once we believe in him we are saved.brentnz
Hi Jeremy. I am way behind in blog reading because of the general pace of life at the moment so I don’t know if my question has already been dealt with elsewhere.
I was wondering how you would define eternal life? I see it as ‘seeking after immortality’ (in Him) which is what I get from 1 Tim 6 and 2 Tim 1. Would you agree or do you see it another way?
Paul talks about being absent from the body and being present with the Lord. He tells us that while we now have natural bodies, one day we will have spiritual bodies. He refers to it as “the redemption of our body”. He tells us when the saints are caught up by the Lord that we will “meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord”. John tells us in his epistle ” that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.” (1 John 5:11-13) When we get saved we are in Christ and He lives in us through the Holy Spirit. Jesus is that eternal life and because we are united with Him at salvation we have eternal life right now and because He is eternal we will live with Him for all eternity.