WHAT IS THE REAL GOSPEL?

bbbbbbb said:

I will ask you to kindly tell me what you consider the "real" gospel to be.

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No problem. This was answered early on in the thread as "all scripture" with the central theme of Christ and him crucified...

Q1. WHAT IS THE EVERLASTING GOSPEL? v6

REVELATION 14:6, And I saw another angel fly in midheaven, having the EVERLASTING GOSPEL [εὐαγγέλιον meaning good news] to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and tribe, and tongue, and people,

NOTE: The GREEK Word used here G2098 εὐαγγέλιον means simply good news; So the first angels message is preaching the everlasting GOOD NEWS to all people of the earth.

WHAT DOES THE EVERLASTING GOSPEL REPRESENT?

1 PETER 1:25, But THE WORD OF THE LORD ENDURES FOREVER [EVERLASTING WORD OF GOD]. And this is the word which by the GOSPEL [GOOD NEWS] is preached unto you.

LUKE 21:33, Heaven and earth shall pass away: BUT MY WORDS SHALL NOT PASS AWAY [EVERLASTING WORD OF GOD].

ISAIAH 40:8, The grass withers, the flower fades, But THE WORD OF OUR GOD STANDS FOREVER [GOD’S WORD IS EVERLASTING].

JOHN 17:17, SANCTIFY THEM THROUGH THE TRUTH, YOUR WORD IS TRUTH [GOD’S WORD IS TRUTH AND WE ARE SAVED BY IT – Good news indeed].

MATTHEW 4:4 Man does not live by bread alone but by EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD [LIFE FROM THE WORD OF GOD]

JOHN 1:1-4; 14
[1], In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and THE WORD WAS GOD.

[2], The same was in the beginning with God.

[3], All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

[4], In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

[14], And THE WORD WAS MADE FLESH, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

NOTE: JESUS is the living WORD OF GOD.

[12], But as many as received him [THE WORD OF GOD], to them gave he power to become the children of God, EVEN TO THEM THAT BELIEVE ON HIS NAME [MATTHEW 1:21, And she shall bring forth a son, and you shall call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.]

NOTE: v12 and MATTHEW 1:21. JOHN 1:12 As many as received him [THE WORD OF GOD] to them he gave POWER to become the children of GOD. His name is JESUS [THE WORD OF GOD] because he [THE WORD OF GOD] will save all who receive him [BELIEVE AND FOLLOW THE WORD OF GOD]

1 PETER 1:22-23,

[22], Seeing you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto sincere love of the brethren, see that you love one another with a pure heart fervently:

[23], BEING BORN AGAIN, NOT OF CORRUPTIBLE SEED BUT OF INCORUPTIBLE, BY THE WORD OF GOD, which lives and ABIDES FOREVER [EVERLASTING].

LUKE 8:11, NOW THIS IS THE PARABLE; THE SEED IS THE WORD OF GOD.

1 JOHN 3:9, Whoever is born of God does not commit sin; FOR HIS SEED REMAINS IN HIM: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.

1 JOHN 5:4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world: and this is the victory that overcomes the world, EVEN OUR FAITH [in the WORD OF GOD; the SEED must remain in us through FAITH].

PSALMS 119:11, YOUR WORD HAVE A HID IN MY HEART, THAT I MIGHT NOT SIN AGAINST YOU [in the WORD OF GOD; the SEED must remain in us through FAITH].

And this is the victory that overcomes the world, EVEN OUR FAITH in God’s WORD that is IN US.

JOHN 15:4-5,
[4] ABIDE IN ME AND I IN YOU [THE WORD OF GOD]. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can you, except you abide in me. [5] I am the vine, you are the branches: He that stays in me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit: for WITHOUT ME [THE WORD OF GOD] YOU CAN DO NOTHING. [6], If a man abides not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. [7], IF YOU ABIDE IN ME [THE LIVING WORD OF GOD] AND MY WORDS ABIDE IN YOU abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done to you. [8], Herein is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit; so shall you be my disciples. [9], As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you: continue you in my love. [10], IF YOU KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS, you shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love.

NOTE: We cannot bear the fruit of obedience unless God’s WORD abides in us as we BELIEVE and follow him who calls us in love to love.

..............

CONCLUSION: WHAT IS THE EVERLASTING GOSPEL OF REVELATION 14:6?

The EVERLASTING Gospel is JESUS <Jesus means Savior; John 1:29> and JESUS is THE WORD OF GOD (John 1:1-14; 17:17; 14:6). THE WORD OF GOD is the GOSPEL BECAUSE BY FAITH IT IS OUR SAVIOR and this the IS GOOD NEWS to those who BELIEVE. (John 1:1-14; John 1:29; John 17:17; 14:6; Matthew 4:4) ALL OF GOD’S WORD IS THE EVERLASTING GOSPEL. It is the EVERLASTING GOSPEL because JESUS AND HIS WORD is EVERLASTING.

ALL THE WORD OF GOD IS THE EVERLASTING GOSPEL [GOOD NEWS].

God bless

bbbbbbb said:

Thank you. Please note that nowhere in your chapter of Revelation is the everlasting gospel actually defined. Instead, you have developed your own definition.

What do you think of this definition?

I Corinthians 15:1 Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.

3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; 7 then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; 8 and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also. 9 For I am the least of the apostles, and not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me. 11 Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

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As shown in the rest of the scriptures provided in the post you left out, the everlasting gospel is the "good news" εὐαγγέλιον of the word of God (Jesus) which is everlasting. His Words are everlasting and we are saved by His grace as we believe and follow what His Word says. This is not very hard.

Take Care.

DEFINING THE GOSPEL

The Gospel is JESUS <Jesus means Savior; John 1:29> and JESUS IS THE LIVING WORD OF GOD (John 1:1-14; 17:17; 14:6) that gives us His spoken and written (scripture) Words. THE WORD OF GOD (Living, Spoken and Written) is the GOSPEL BECAUSE BY FAITH IT IS OUR SAVIOR and this the IS GOOD NEWS to those who BELIEVE. (John 1:1-14; John 1:29; John 17:17; 14:6; Matthew 4:4)

The death, burial and resurrection of Christ is the central theme of the Gospel but the biblical definition of the gospel is every Word that proceeds out of the mouth of God *Matthew 4:4

Lets look at the scriptures...

The Gospel means; G2098 εὐαγγέλιον euaggelion n. a good message; Good news).

Ok I think most know that the word Gospel means good news or a good message. So if you only believe that the Gospel is the death burial and resurrection of Christ, how do we harmonize the following scriptures......

THE GOSPEL IS EVERY WORD OF GOD (spoken and written that leads us to the living Word - Jesus)

After Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist before his death and resurrection.....

Mark 1:15 [15], And saying, The time is fulfilled, and THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS AT HAND REPENT AND BELIEVE THE GOSPEL.

Wait a minute? Jesus is ONLY JUST STARTING HIS MINISTRY and has NOT DIED, has not been buried and if he has not died and not been buried he certainly has not been resurrected. Yet here we have Jesus BEGINNING his MINISTRY and preaching the GOSPEL

and again..................

Mark 8:35 [35], For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but WHOSOEVER SHALL LOSE HIS LIFE FOR MY SAKE AND THE GOSPELS, THE SAME SHALL SAVE IT.

Well here we have it again the Gospel is being preached BEFORE the death of Jesus and again......

Matthew 4:23 [23], And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and PREACHING THE GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.

Seems like Matthew and Mark both agree that Jesus is preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom before the death of Jesus...

Matthew 9:35 [35], And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and PREACHING THE GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.

Yep Jesus still going about everywhere preaching the Gospel. His whole Ministry BEFORE His DEATH was preaching the GOSPEL..

Matthew 11:4-5 [4], Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: [5], The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and THE POOR HAVE THE GOSPEL PREACHED TO THEM.

and again..............

Matthew 24:14 [14], And this GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM SHALL BE PREACHED IN ALL THE WORLD for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

Yep Jesus is still preaching the Gospel before His Death and Resurrection. Mathew and Mark both agree.....
Luke talks about Jesus in the Synagogue.....

Luke 7:22 [22], Then Jesus answering said unto them, Go your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor THE GOSPEL IS PREACHED.

Yep Matthew, Mark and Luke all agree the Gospel was being preached BEFORE the DEATH, BURIAL AND RESURRECTION OF JESUS.

Luke 20:1 [1], And it came to pass, that on one of those days, as he taught the people in the temple, and PREACHED THE GOSPEL, the chief priests and the scribes came upon him with the elders,

Yep there goes Jesus again teaching the people in the temple and preaching the GOSPEL before the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.....

So ok lets bring it all together............

The Good New (Gospel) is JESUS and Jesus is the WORD OF GOD. It is the WORD OF GOD THAT IS THE GOSPEL that we are to BELIEVE IN AND LIVE BY. (Matt 4:4; John 1-1-4; John 3:16). It is by GRACE that we are SAVED <HOW?> THROUGH FAITH and NOT of your selves it is a GIFT of GOD and NOT of WORKS LEST ANY MAN should boast.

Jesus's ministry started since he was a child but more so after the Baptism of John and his temptation in the wilderness where he soon after started preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and REPENT FOR THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS AT HAND! (Matthew 4:17; 23; 9:35; 11:5; 24:14; 26:16)

Did you know that the Gospel was being preached BEFORE the NEW Testament scriptures (Hebrews 4:2)? The GOSPEL is indeed JESUS; the Word of God and he is the good news of the Old and NEW Testament scripture that we are to BELIEVE and FOLLOW.

The Gospel is JESUS <Jesus means Savior; John 1:29> and JESUS is THE WORD OF GOD (John 1:1-14; 17:17; 14:6). THE WORD OF GOD is the GOSPEL BECAUSE BY FAITH IT IS OUR SAVIOR and this the IS GOOD NEWS to those who BELIEVE. (John 1:1-14; John 1:29; John 17:17; 14:6; Matthew 4:4)

Mark 1:1 The beginning of the GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST; THE SON OF GOD <the WORD OF GOD; John 1:1-14; 17:17; 14:6>

THE GOSPEL WAS PREACHED IN THE OLD TESTAMENT....

Galatians 3:8 [8], And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, PREACHED BEFORE THE GOSPEL UNTO ABRAHAM, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed.

Yep once again seems like Abraham had the Gospel in his day in the OLD Testament well before Mt Sinai...

Luke 4:17 [17], And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, [18], The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because HE HAS ANNOTATED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, [19], To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

Well it seems like Isaiah from the OLD TESTAMENT knew about the Gospel (Isaiah 52:7 pointing to Jesus in Luke 7:22) so the Gospel indeed was being preached BEFORE the DEATH, BURIAL AND RESURRECTION OF JESUS even in the OLD TESTAMENT.......

The Gospel was preached to God's people leaving Egypt...

Context...

Hebrews 3:7-19
[7], Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice,
[8], Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness:
[9], When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years.
[10], Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known my ways.
[11], So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.
[12], Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.
[13], But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.
[14], For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end;
[15], While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation.
[16], For some, when they had heard, did provoke: howbeit not all that came out of Egypt by Moses.
[17], But with whom was he grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcases fell in the wilderness?
[18], And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not?
[19], So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.

Continuing...

Hebrews 4:1-4
[1], Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.
[2], FOR UNTO US WAS THE GOSPEL PREACHED AS WELL AS UNTO THEM; BUT THE WORD PREACHED DID NOT PROFIT THEM NOT BEING MIXED WITH FAITH IN THEM THAT HEARD IT.
[3], For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.
[4], For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works.

...............

CONCLUSION: According to the scriptures THE TRUE GOSPEL IS ALL THE WORD OF GOD of the old and new testament scriptures that points to JESUS as the living Word of God and God's plan of salvation revealed through His Word which is "good news" for all those who believe and follow them. It is God's Word that is the gospel in both the old and new testament scriptures because both point to Jesus and Jesus is the central theme of the God's good news for mankind pointing to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus and God's sacrifice for the sins of the world.

Hope this is helpful. (I will link this to the OP so it is easy to find)

LoveGodsWord said: ↑ How can the weekly Sabbath point to rest in Jesus when it points backwards to the finished work of creation before mankind sinned?

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Your response here...

The Liturgist said:

For a number of reasons, which are fairly comprehensive, as about as comprehensive as we can get in terms of cataphatic theology:

• God is an eternal being, and Jesus Christ is likewise eternal, having been begotten of the Father in eternity, “before all ages” as the Nicene Creed (which is the basis of the CF.com) expresses it so eloquently. This is also expressed in the Gospel According to John (in the Incarnation Pericope, John 1:1-18).
• Through Christ, all things were made (John 1:2), which again, is a central article of faith in the Nicene Creed. Since spacetime is a thing, this means that God created spacetime and has dominion over it. If spacetime were not a creature, because of the centrality of spacetime to the physical universe, it would have the effect of undermining the Christian doctrine of creation ex nihlo, and one could even make an argument that God the Holy Trinity was a demiurge, with spacetime being the true deity; this metaphysical point is one of my chief criticisms of Mormonism (which is conceptually similiar, albeit worse, insofar as Mormonism postulates that matter existed from eternity and that God merely rearranged matter, as opposed to the account in the Gospel of John wherein the Father by His only begotten Son and Word, creates all things.
• Because of the intimate involvement of the only begotten Son and Word of God, Jesus Christ, in the process of creation, we can state with Evangelical and Scriptural confidence that it would be entirely erroneous to associate the ministry of God the Son only with His intervention to free us from the wages of sin, which are death, through His glorious resurrection, and His future (from our perspective) juridicial ministry as Christ Pantocrator, because while they are critically important soteriological and eschatological events, Scripture also attests to Christ our Savior, as the Logos or Word of God, being the means by which all things were made (John 1:1-18 , with particular emphasis on John 1:1-2)

From this, we can understand the saving work of Christ on the cross as a recreation of Humanity in His image, in which we were glorified, as hinted at before His entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday at the Transfiguration, when Moses and Elijah were momentarily present with our Lord amidst the uncreated light of Tabor. And likewise, we can understand the future dread judgement seat of Christ as a further recreation of humanity, this time, not just the human nature itself, but rather the entire resurrected humanity on an individual level, with those who embrace our Lord being united with Him for all eternity and those who continue in wickedness being consigned to the Lake of Fire for all eternity*.

*As CS Lewis liked to point out, this is the preference of those who are damned; I think his remark that the Gates of Hell are locked on the inside is an extremely insightful comment on the profoundly self-destructive aspects of impassioned human behavior.

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How does anything in your post provided here answer any of the questions asked of you in the post you are quoting from? - It doesn't. The question that was being asked was "How can the weekly Sabbath point to rest in Jesus when it points backwards to the finished work of creation before mankind sinned? This question was asked because there where no shadow laws, no Priesthood, no Sanctuary, no laws for remission of sins, no Feast days and ceremonial Feast sabbaths and no plan of salvation given to mankind because there was no sin when the Sabbath was made for mankind (Mark 2:27; Genesis 2:1-3). There was only sinless Adam and Eve when the Sabbath was made for man who were created on the sixth day of the creation week *see Genesis 1:26-31. How can the weekly Sabbath point to rest in Jesus and be a "shadow law" pointing to things to come in the future, when it points backwards *Exodus 20:8-11; Genesis 2:1-3 to the finished work of creation before mankind sinned? There was no gospel given because there was no sin when God made the Sabbath for all mankind. Do you understand what is being said here and do you agree or not? If not please show why you do not agree from the scriptures.

Take Care

The Liturgist said:

Indeed, there is only one Gospel contained in the four canonical gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, the Apocalypse of St. John, and in the Epistles of the Holy Apostles Paul, Peter, John, James, Jude and the Epistle to the Hebrews, which may or may not be of Pauline authorship (it seems more likely than not that someone else penned it, but it could still reflect Pauline thought, so this is an open question). This Gospel is prophesized and foreshadowed in the books of the Old Testament, including the 150 canonical and 5 deuterocanonical Psalms, and the complete set of protocanonical and deuterocanonical scriptures (the Book of Wisdom, also known as the Wisdom of Solomon, and Tobit, are particularly meaningful anticipations of the Gospel, as is the longer version of Esther).

The true Gospel is not legalistic; rather, it represents the Good News that through faith in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, we can hope to be with him following our repose, and then at the time of the general resurrection, we might be raised incorruptible and received into the World to Come. Our faith in Christ also enables us to perform good works, which can be summarized as the following his two commandments, that we love Him with all our heart and mind and soul, and love our neighbor as ourselves, but the Gospel is not a Pelagian exercise in works righteousness (Pelagianism and legalism are false Gospels).

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So your agreeing with the OP? The gospel or "good news" is all the Words of God given for our admonition. Not some of it like many teach here today. I agree with this Liturgist. Thank you for sharing.

com7fy8 said:

ok > to me, it looks like Paul is saying the Law of Moses is used to bring us to Jesus. But Jesus is the One who saves us > Galatians 3:24-25.

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Agreed! So God's law is a part of the gospel right?

pescador said:

Wrong! The gospel is the good news that, because of Christ's sacrifice, He has freed us from the law. Romans 10:4, "For Christ is the end of the law, with the result that there is righteousness for everyone who believes."

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No! Not at all but let me explain why from the scriptures. Christ is the end of the law for righteousness for everyone who believes because the law shows us that we are all sinners in need of Gods' forgiveness. It looks like this....

GOD'S LAW >>>>>>>>> SINNER BROKEN GOD'S LAW>>>>>>>>> CHRISTS DEATH FOR SIN (END)

Christ is the end of the law because God's law leads us to Christ so we can receive Gods forgiveness for our sins. This means there is no more condemnation, sin and death as we receive God's forgiveness through Jesus *see Romans 8:1-4. If there was no law their would be no knowledge of what sin is *Romans 7:7. If we have no knowledge of what sin is then we have no need of a Savior to save us from our sins *see Matthew 9:12-13. If we have no Savior then we are still lost in our sins and the scripture is fulfilled in Romans 2:12-13 [12] For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law; [13], For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.

This is why it is also written Galatians 3:22-25 [22], But the scripture has concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe. [23], But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up to the faith which should afterwards be revealed. [24], Why the law was our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. [25], But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.

That is, God's law teaches us as a mirror to show us as we look into it, that we are all sinners in need of God's Grace, mercy and forgiveness (James 1:23; Romans 3:20; Romans 7:7; 1 John 3:4) because according to Romans 3:19 we are only "under the law" when we stand before God guilty of breaking God's law. The purpose of God's law in the gospel is to show us that we are all sinners in need of God's salvation. It is our school master or our teacher that gives us the knowledge of good (moral right doing) and evil (moral wrong doing); sin (moral wrong doing) and righteousness (moral right doing) *Romans 3:20; Romans 7:7; 1 John 3:4; Psalms 119:172. Christ is the end of the law because this is where the Law points us as sinners to receive God's grace, mercy and forgiveness through the death of Gods' dear son.

Do you understand now why I posted earlier that God's law is a part of the gospel?

Danthemailman said:

Amen! The gospel is the “good news” of the death, burial and resurrection of Christ (1 Corinthians 15:1-4) and is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that BELIEVES. To “believe” the gospel is to trust in the death, burial and resurrection of Christ as the ALL-sufficient means of our salvation.

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Kind of but not quite but allow me to explain what I mean from the scriptures. The gospel (meaning good news) is every Word that proceeds out of the mouth of God (Matthew 4:4) as all of God's Word is good news of God's plan of salvation given to God's people in the old and new covenant (Hebrews 4:1-3) to those who believe and follow what Gods' Word says (John 3:36). Of course the death and resurrection of Jesus is the central theme of the gospel as this is what the old covenant and new covenants both point to. The gospel is all scriptures written for our admonition upon who the ends of the world have come. Not some of it.

Hope this is helpful Dan.

com7fy8 said:

I didn't say that or mean that.
I know Paul clearly says the gospel is the death and burial and resurrection of Jesus.

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Where does Paul say that the gospel is the burial of Jesus Christ or that the gospel is only the death burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ? There is no scripture for that is there? I do believe that the death and resurrection is the central theme of the gospel however. Did you read the OP and the posts on the first page? If so what to you think it is saying? While we are here how can we know what sin is if there is no law? - Please read post #735 linked.