He sent the message to the Israelites, proclaiming the good news of peace through Jesus Christ—he is Lord of all. (Acts 10:36)
I think for most of my life, the gospel has been basically presented to me this way:
- God loves you.
- Your sin separates you from him.
- Jesus died for your sin and rose again.
- If you put your faith in him, you will be forgiven and your relationship with him will be restored.
Additional aspects such as “heaven” and “God has a plan for your life” are also often mixed in.
I’m not saying that this presentation is wrong. It helped save me, after all.
That said, it’s not exactly the way Peter, Paul, and the rest of the apostles seem to present the gospel throughout Acts.
Rather, as I’ve mentioned several times now as we’ve gone through Acts, the gospel they preached seems to center on this one truth: Jesus Christ is Lord of all.
You see that clearly in the above passage.
Unfortunately, though, this is not so clear in many translations. “He is Lord of all” is treated as a parenthetical statement, as if Peter was saying, “Oh by the way, just to let you know, Jesus is Lord of all.”
But the Greek pretty much reads this way:
The message sent to the sons of Israel proclaiming good news of peace through Jesus Christ: this Jesus is Lord of all.
In short, “Jesus is Lord of all” is not a parenthetical statement. It is the very core of the gospel message.
Peter was probably referring back to Isaiah 52:7.
How lovely on the mountains
Are the feet of him who brings good news,
Who announces peace
And brings good news of happiness,
Who announces salvation,
And says to Zion, “Your God reigns!” (NASB 95)
Not convinced?
Follow the flow of Peter’s sermon.
After proclaiming that Jesus is Lord of all, he showed how Jesus demonstrated his Lordship by exercising authority over the demons and reversing the curse of sin by healing people, physically and spiritually.
Peter showed that this is no tyrannical Lord we need to fear. Jesus is a good Lord who does good to his people.
And after the people killed him, God raised him from the dead, appointing him to be…what? Savior? Redeemer?
Both are true. But that’s not what Peter said.
He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be the judge of the living and the dead. (Acts 10:42)
Because Jesus is Lord of all, the inescapable truth is that we are all accountable to him. And the day is coming when he will judge all people and make all things right.
That’s good news, right? This broken world will finally be made whole!
Except for the fact that we’re part of the reason this world is broken.
If Jesus is to make all things right, he needs to judge us.
That would be scary, except for one thing.
All the prophets testify about him that through his name everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins. (Acts 10:43)
And so we come back to the beginning of Peter’s message: the good news of peace through Jesus Christ. He paid the price for our sin on the cross. And now if we embrace him as our King, he will forgive our sins.
So all that is said in the “traditional” formula of the gospel I grew up with is true. I just think it needs to be remixed.
- Jesus is Lord of all.
- This is great news! Because he is a good Lord. He will judge all people and make all things right.
- So repent and embrace your King. And you will find peace and joy under his good reign.
Is that the gospel you’re sharing with others?
More importantly, is that the gospel you’re living and rejoicing in?