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Part III · Christ’s Work·Week 11 of 30

Gospel

Pencil drawing of a town crier with a horn addressing a joyful crowd.
A crier lifts a horn in a crowded street. People lean in, faces open. He is not leading a seminar. He is announcing something that has happened.

Before you gather

  • Read Day 11, Gospel, in The Visual Gospel. Do not reteach the essay.
  • Read 1 Corinthians 15:1–5 in your Bible. The excerpt below is only a backup.
  • Your people should already have answered the day’s reflection questions. Do not ask those again.

1 · Icebreaker · 7 min

Open the room

What is news you could not keep to yourself — a birth, a score, a job, a recovery? How fast did you tell somebody?

Leader. Speed and joy. You are training the instinct to announce. Do not ask “the best news you have ever received.” They answered that in the book. Say that passing is allowed, especially the first few weeks.

2 · The word · 8 min

See it, then say it

If you need the words

Say: The drawing is a town hearing news. The gospel is not first “here is how to live.” It is “here is what God has done in Jesus.” If we turn it into tips, we have put the horn down.

Definition, from the book
The gospel is the good news of what God has done in Jesus Christ to save sinners through His life, death, resurrection, and exaltation, calling all people to repent and believe for forgiveness of sins and eternal life.
In the original language
Greek euangelion — good news, a message announced, not advice offered.
Memory verse · Luke 2:10–11
And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

Together, open the flashcard for Gospel. Say the word, the definition, and the verse once. Then put the phone away.

3 · Open the Bible · 15 min

1 Corinthians 15:1–5

Paul tells a church what the gospel is, of first importance: events, in history, according to the Scriptures. This is the definition text, and it was not their reflection assignment.

Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you — unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.

Have two readers if you can. Bibles open. The excerpt is only here so a forgotten Bible does not stop the night.

From the passage

  1. 1.Paul lists events. What are they? What kinds of things are missing from his list?Core

    Leader. Died for sins, buried, raised, seen. Missing: advice, politics, self-help, even many true doctrines. The center is Christ’s saving work in history.

  2. 2.He says “of first importance,” and that they are being saved by it if they hold fast. What would it mean for a church to keep this news first instead of merely agreeing it is true?

    Leader. First means other good things — community, mercy ministries, moral reform — stay servants of the announcement, not replacements for it.

4 · Around the room · 20 min

A conversation this chapter did not assign

  1. 3.Where have we turned the gospel into tips for a better life? Name a phrase we use that could be said by someone who does not believe Jesus rose.Core

    Leader. “Follow your heart,” “be a good person,” “live generously,” even “God has a plan” with no cross. The horn has to say Christ.

  2. 4.Romans 1:16 calls the gospel the power of God, not only information. Have you seen this news do something an argument could not do?

    Leader. Stories of a changed will, a repaired conscience, courage. If the room is quiet, tell one of your own in four sentences and ask again.

  3. 5.Isaiah 52:7 says the feet of the messenger are beautiful because the news is. If this is public news and not a private hobby, what would a simple announcement sound like in ordinary words to a neighbor?

    Leader. Have two people try it out loud, badly. Clumsy and true beats polished and vague. Do not make this the devotion’s “who will you tell today” guilt trip. Practice the sentence.

5 · Say it · 5 min

In one sentence

The gospel is the announcement that Jesus died for sins, was buried, and rose again, and that we must turn and trust Him.

Ask for two volunteers, not the whole circle. They may look at the sentence, then try it without looking. Clumsy and true is the goal.

6 · Pray · 8 min

Leave silence between these

  1. Thank God for news this good.
  2. Ask forgiveness for the times we have made it smaller than Christ.
  3. Ask for one open door this week to say the sentence out loud.

Before you stumble

Guard the word “gospel.” People will use it for everything they like about church. Bring them back to 1 Corinthians 15. The other weeks are facets of this news, not replacements. If a guest is here, this is the week they can actually hear the announcement. Do not assume the room.

With students

Have a student explain the gospel in thirty seconds without the words “just” or “relationship,” then let the group add only what 1 Corinthians 15 requires. It will be humbling and useful.

If you still have time

Acts 2:22–24, 36–38. Peter’s announcement ends in “repent and be baptized.” Use it if the group separates the news from the response.