“One the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb.  They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered , they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.  While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them.  In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead?  He is not here; he has risen!  Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee, “The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified, and on the third day be raised again.  Then they remembered his words.”
(Luke 24:1-8)

What is the Gospel message?

First, I will tell you what it is not.

It is not a promise that your problems will go away.  It doesn’t mean that you will go on to have a peaceful, trouble-free existence.  It doesn’t mean that you will have riches and prosperity.

Jesus said, in Matthew 18:36, “My kingdom is not of this world.” If his kingdom were here, Jesus would have appeared to Pilate, the Sanhedrin, the Roman political leaders, and a host of others. If it were he should have regrouped and carried on his earthy ministry.  Instead he appeared to a small band of followers, instructed them to preach repentance and forgiveness of sins in his name, and then ascended into heaven.

The Gospel is God’s eternal plan to save sinners from His wrath.  In the Gospel sinners are reconciled to a holy God.

“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, (1 Peter 3:18).

The whole world is under the control of the evil one (1 John 5:19) but because of the resurrection of Jesus “the prince of this world now stands condemned” (John 16:11b).

The Resurrection means that one day, when these broken earthen vessels succumb, we will rise up and say, “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O grave, is your sting?”(1 Cor 15:55).

Raised in honor, glory, and power, all indwelling sin and corruption will be completely removed and we will be like Jesus, in a glorified state.

We will spend eternity in His presence where we will worship and know everlasting joy.

This is our hope and apart from it we have no other.