So, exactly how are we a gospel community?

No matter how trendy the topic of Gospel-centeredness has become, it is not a passing theme or fading fashion. Only the simplicity of the gospel can hold together the complexities of God, humanity and life.

The gospel speaks to the past, present and future. It offers the truest meanings of faith, hope and love. It reveals best the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit as the only God. The gospel satisfies justice and mercy, law and prophets, God and man. This theme is inexhaustible and most worthy of intellect and passion, meditation and proclamation.

I’d like to state some obvious, yet exhilarating, ways we are a community around the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The gospel ministers to our past. (Faith)
1.We have a risen Lord who conquered death. The fear of death is the root of all other fears. So this means that we can live above and beyond the usual fears of humanity, whether lack, anxiety, ambition or striving for acceptance with all of our efforts. The proclamation of a living Lord is the most astonishing, most vivifying truth in all the universe.
2.We have the forgiveness of all our sins. Sin is the greatest dilemma of the human soul, because it brings separation between us and God, who is our source of life. Sin goes by many other names and struggles, but ultimately, sin is the reason for suffering, pain, loneliness and despair. The gospel ministers to our past by (a) being a historic event upon a cross that (b) satisfied the righteous wrath of God against our sin and (c) provided the full payment for all our sins.
3.Through the gospel, we have an eternal assurance of salvation; once saved, always saved. This sure basis of divine acceptance gives us the deepest joy, the greatest boldness to persevere, and forms the only true foundation for doing good works without trying to earn God’s favour.

The gospel ministers through our present. (Love)
1.We are saved into community. God puts the lonely into families; that is what He is like. Godly attributes only makes sense in community. How impossible would it be to see mercy, love or kindness if you lived alone on an island?
2.As a community, we live out the gospel to others. We live among others as a people under God. We look distinctively “other”. We are a people among peoples, a city within a city, and our love for one another is the greatest witness of our discipleship. We involve ourselves for social justice of the marginalized, and live as light travelers, passing through to our city, whose architect and builder is God.
3.We make culture. The gospel rescued us from obeying our sinful nature that only knows self-preservation, destruction and survival. We now live as heavenly citizens, cultural beings who love aesthetic beauty, order and creativity, because we were made in the image of our Creator. Reformation-revivals are accompanied by songs, arts, justice, hygiene, education and socio-economic renewal.

The gospel ministers unto our future. (Hope)
1. We live for eternity before an all-seeing God. This helps us to live beyond morality, and beyond the seen (not perfectly, but at least as an aim). This means that we are motivated beyond worldly offers and earthly wealth. Eternity is our hope.
2.We live for a precious inheritance from God. Beyond salvation, God promises reward for persistent faith in Him. We now realise most of life is a mere wilderness compared to our promised land. This helps us to understand our tests and difficulties, because we get to glorify God this side of death with our faith responses. Once we die, faith will be no more. Once we die, evangelism and generosity ends. Once we die, we see God. Knowing that there is real inheritance from God’s hand in this life and in the next, we “strive to enter the rest of God”. But some of our reward is even in this life! This means even though we are totally free and forgiven, it still matters how we live. That is why Hebrews contains warnings that does not threaten our security of salvation at all.
3.We hope for the New Jerusalem. We don’t see it as a non-physical, cloud and harp scenario of stasis up there somewhere, but a physical reality new bodies, in a renewed earth, dwelling with God and saints, working and governing, creating and worshiping God without sinful nature or sin-effect for all eternity.

The gospel provides the basis of all worship, fellowship and mission. We worship the risen Christ. We fellowship with brothers who were saved for purpose just like us. We go out on mission like Jesus to declare life to a world that is dead in sin.