The Everlasting Gospel (Part II)

       The gospel is not only labeled as the "everlasting gospel" Rev. 14:6, but the gospel is defined in Rom. 1:16-17.  The Word records, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.  For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, the just shall live by faith."

     The gospel is defined as the power of God in which the righteousness or right doing (righteousness means right doing) of God is revealed to recreate lost humanity.  All this righteousness or right doing of God, mankind receives by faith.  Please be sure to remember and understanding that all God's righteousness or right doing is done by and in the power of God. Now let us focus on the clear fact that the gospel reveals the righteousness or right doing of God alone.  Note beloved, that the gospel does not even mention the righteousness of mankind when it speaks of the gospel.  In fact, when we see the Holy Record presenting the righteousness of mankind it declares in Isa 64:6, "We are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousness are as filthy rags".  So let it be forever noted that the everlasting gospel reveals only the righteousness of God, done by His infinite power and wisdom.

     It is very important to understand here beloved, the nature of the God who is both Creator and Saviour.  We receive our first glimpse of the nature of our Maker in His wording in the creation of mankind, whom God made in His own image.  We read in Gen. 1:26-27, "and God said, let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness...So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him: male and female created he them."  It is worthy to note that God said let Us make man in Our image and after Our likeness.  So God made one man, yet, he was more than one; or we may say, that God made one man yet that one man is more than one person.  Inherent in that one man was women and all mankind.  So as we focus back on God's language in the creation of man, when God said  let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness, we see that mankind is only a reflection of His Creator.  God is one God who is three persons.  There is but one God who is three beings.  The inspired Word declares in 1 John 5:7, "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost, and these three are one."  Again in the first chapter of the gospel of John verses 1-2 we see mentioned, "the Word was God and the Word was with God."  These are two members of the Godhead, who are later mentioned in verse 18 as the Father and the Only Begotten Son.  Then in verse 32-34 there is mentioned the third person of the Godhead.  Here the Bible writer speaks of the Spirit, and He is referred to as the Holy Ghost.

   The God of the Bible - the Creator of all, both the heavens and the earth is one God, yet, three persons.  One in spirit, one in nature, one in mind, one in heart, and one in purpose.  When ever one member of the Godhead is active in any way or form, all three are always involved.  In the creation of the heaven and the earth and mankind, the thoughts of the Father were made audible by the Word, who spoke into existence what the Holy Spirit made manifested reality.

   In the New Testament, recorded in Matt 3:16-17 we see the one God of eternity who is three persons clearly revealed.  The scriptures declare, "And Jesus when he was baptized went up straightway out of the water: and lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting upon him: and lo a voice from heaven, saying, this is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."  The gospel truth is, there is nothing that the God of the Bible says or does that does not include all three members of the Godhead.  That is simply the nature of God and how our God works.

   So the sum of the matter is, the gospel is a revelation of the power of the one God who is three persons, in which the Godhead's right doing or righteousness is revealed to save all mankind who will accept the salvation by faith.  Those who by faith choose to accept salvation have much more than all the heavenly angelic host to help.  They have working in their behalf, past, present, and future the right doing of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost.  From beginning to end, it alone is the righteousness or right-doing of the one God who is three persons, that saves.  The gospel always has been, and forever shall be, the righteousness of God given to us as a gift that saves us.  As surely as we accept by faith the righteousness of a Living God, we are accounted perfectly righteous, and the fruit of being declared righteous by the living God  who alone has creative power occurs, which is, we are born again.  One is God's right doing for us, and the second is the results of God's righteousness for us, which is God's right-doing in us.  Whether for us or in us it is all the righteousness of one God who is three beings.