The Gospel of Jesus Christ (Pt. 2) - Many Blessings of the Gospel
Scriptural Anchors
Romans 1:16
Romans 8:31-32
What matters most to God?
In this second sermon of our series titled “The Gospel of Jesus Christ” we started off emphasizing these points:
Our ability to preach the gospel means more to God than anything else.
Our spiritual gifts and physical blessings are still for the purpose of preaching the gospel.
We proved this with the help of these scriptures:
Isaiah 61:1-3
Luke 4:18-19
Both of these scriptures are similar in the sense that they both begin with “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed me to….”. After which a few other “assignments” are mentioned. What’s important to note is the very first assignment in both of these scriptures. Which is “…to preach the good news”. Everything else (i.e. healing the brokenhearted, proclaiming liberty to the captives, comforting those who mourn etc.) is secondary.
This is all to highlight that God's preoccupation upon the face of the earth today is to see the gospel preached more than anything else. In other words, the Spirit of God in us, is first and foremost for our capacity to preach the gospel and is considered more important than the rest of the abilities it gives us to extend other physical or spiritual gifts.
In verse 3 of Isaiah chapter 61, we’re told why the Spirit of God is on us to carry out these assignments. It says “...That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified”. This means everything else after the first assignment (i.e. preaching of the gospel) is still for the purpose of preaching the gospel. Hence, the healing, the deliverance, the setting free of the oppressed etc. was still to attract and open the hearts of people to receive the gospel. Because it is only through the gospel, they can be made righteous. Here are some examples:
Scriptural examples of using spiritual gifts for the gospel
In Acts 13, Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, cursed the sorcerer Elemas to blindness, opening the hearts of the people to hear the gospel. Similarly, in Acts 2, when the Holy Spirit caused them to speak in different tongues at Pentecost, it attracted a crowd, giving Peter the opportunity to preach the gospel. In Acts 16, Paul and Silas, after being miraculously freed from prison, chose not to escape but stayed to share the gospel with the jailer, leading to his and his family's salvation. These examples show how spiritual gifts, miracles, and signs can be used to present the gospel.
Connecting our needs to the gospel
The Bible says in James 4:3 that “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures”. Sometimes the reason why some of our prayers go unanswered is because we have not identified the opportunities for the advancement of the gospel in what we’re asking for. Doing this can be considered a spiritual hack to becoming a prosperous person if done with sincerity and honesty.
How about testifying? Making sure we share our testimonies with unbelievers is another way to connect our needs to the gospel because it piques their curiosity. It attracts them to considering the gospel. Demonstrating the wisdom and power of God also piques their interest. Showing love to them disarms them. And this is all to the end that it opens their hearts and gives us an opportunity to present the gospel to them. This is why Jesus healed the son of the royal official in John 4:48 when he said “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will never believe”. This should be the end goal in everything we ask from God, in everything we do, and our reason for living exemplary lives as Christians.
The many blessings of the gospel
The gospel brings us into salvation, and salvation opens us up to many other blessings, especially spiritual ones, and secondarily physical ones. The moment we give our hearts to Christ, we enter into a new life—a different economy filled with blessings that God has already prepared for us. While these blessings may not always be visible, they are real, tangible, and deeply significant.
When the gospel of Jesus Christ is preached, we are reminded that Jesus died for our sins because God loves us. His death wasn’t symbolic or accidental; it was a sacrificial death with a purpose, as 1 Corinthians 15:3 tells us: Christ died for our sins. By putting our faith in Him, we gain salvation. Beyond that, the gospel brings us into a new way of living—a new habitat filled with limitless possibilities prepared by God for us.
Now beyond salvation, here are some of the many blessings of the gospel. Salvation could have happened without these additional benefits:
1. We’re justified
One of the many blessings of the gospel is that we are now justified. Justification is a legal term that means we are declared "not guilty." Even though we were guilty, we are no longer condemned—amen! Think of a courtroom where someone pleads "not guilty," hoping their lawyer can defend them despite the evidence. But in our case, it’s not just wishful thinking. Romans 8:33 says, "Who shall lay a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies." Through Christ, all the charges against us have been nailed to the cross. We are not guilty, no matter how often the enemy tries to condemn us. We can boldly declare, "I am innocent, I am free!".
2. We’re made righteous
Another blessing of the gospel that comes to our hearts when we give our lives to Christ is that we are made the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. We are not just freed from condemnation; we are actually made righteous. 2 Corinthians 5:21 tells us that God made Jesus, who knew no sin, to become sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. The benefits of the gospel go beyond just being saved, which means being freed from sin and its consequences. God could have saved us without justifying us, but instead, He makes us the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus.
3. We’re a new creation
In 2 Corinthians 5:17, we are told that if anyone is in Christ, they are a new creation. The old has passed away, and everything has become new. This is a powerful revelation for overcoming any form of legal bondage or negative generational inheritance. Understanding that we are new creations in Christ is key—the old self is dead, and the new self is alive in Christ. Therefore, Satan cannot hold us captive.
The reason Christians sometimes suffer spiritual oppression is because we don’t fully understand what Christ has done for us. While it’s true that Christians should never be demonized, it’s also true that many are because they don’t realize their new identity. Being a new creation means we not only have salvation but also justification, righteousness, and divine life—the very life of God. Peter reminds us of this in 2 Peter 1:4, where he says that we are partakers of the divine nature. This is the reality we now live in as new creations in Christ.
4. We’re joint heirs with Christ
Romans 8:16-17 says that if we are children, then we are heirs, and if we are heirs, we are joint heirs with Christ, co-heirs with Him, and we will reign with Him. He did all the fighting, and we get the spoils. If we come from families that aren't wealthy, we might not fully understand the value of inheritance. Inheritance means two people of the same age can be at different stages in life due to what they’ve inherited. It's a blessing that we have an inheritance in Christ—someone has worked for it, and we get to enter into His labors, as the Bible says.
5. We’re seated in heavenly places
Another blessing is that the Bible says we are seated with Christ in heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6). We could have been saved without being seated in heavenly places, but God did a thorough job. We are seated together with Christ in the heavenly realms. While we are physically here, spiritually, we are with Christ in heavenly places.
People in heavenly places speak differently, with a victor’s mindset. Whether we realize it or not, this is our reality now. Our experience reflects our knowledge, but the truth remains: we are seated with Christ in heavenly places
6. We’re housing the spirit of God
Another blessing is that we now house God—God lives inside us. The Bible says, "Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit?" The same Holy Spirit who only had to come upon Mary for her to conceive now dwells within us. We carry the Holy Spirit inside us.
The Bible also says that we have an unction from the Holy One, meaning we know all things because the one who knows all things resides within us. Our bodies are not just the house of the Holy Spirit, but His temple. There’s a difference between a house and a temple, and according to the gospel, we are the temple of the Holy Spirit.
7. We possess spiritual authority
Also, spiritual authority has been given to us. We could have been saved and still been defeated by Satan, but Jesus didn’t allow that. He made provision for everything—we have authority. This authority comes through the power of attorney, meaning we can use His name. The Bible says, "In My name, you will cast out devils; in My name, you will heal the sick."
No unbeliever has authority over Satan, but as believers—even if we have just been saved for five minutes—if we have the right knowledge and use the name of Jesus, it carries weight. It’s like a father giving us his checkbook and saying, "You can sign for me; whatever is in the bank, you can use in my name."
When we use Jesus' name, we show up with the same authority He had. When Jesus entered certain environments, even demons begged Him to leave. That is authority, and by the grace of God, we carry that same authority.
8. We have access to the Father
We have been granted access to the Father, as expressed in the song, "I enter the Holy of Holies". In the Old Testament, only the high priest could enter God's presence once a year, but through Jesus' sacrifice, we now have direct access to God. Hebrews 10:19-20 says, “Since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus...” and Ephesians 2:18 states, “For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.” Because of Christ, we can confidently approach God, experiencing His presence through the Holy Spirit, something not possible before His sacrifice. This is the privilege we have as children of God.
9. We carry the good news
Another blessing is that we are now carriers of good news. The Bible says, "How beautiful are the feet of those who carry the good news." This means that when we show up, we can use our standing with Christ to bring deliverance, healing, and comfort to others. We can comfort those who mourn, giving them the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness, as Isaiah 61 describes.
We are carriers of good news, and people should be happy when we arrive. It's not just that God has done things for us—He has made us people who bring blessings to others. Everywhere Jesus went, He “went about doing good, healing all who were oppressed by the devil” (Acts 10:38), and that is our testimony too. When we show up, people rejoice because they know we bring a heavenly perspective and a visitation of heaven into that environment. This is because we have a consciousness of who we carry and where we stand.
So how do we respond to the gospel?
Our response to the gospel of Christ, and the salvation we’ve received, should be multifaceted. Here are some key responses:
Gratitude: When we fully grasp what God has done for us, our gratitude should overflow. Many of us may feel down or burdened, but if we truly see ourselves the way God sees us—seated with Christ in heavenly places—nothing in the physical realm can affect our emotions. Gratitude should be our natural response, especially when we remember that we are saved, justified, and carry the very life of God within us. This gratitude should drive us to worship, not needing motivation. Like David, we should worship God with passion and abandon, recognizing that we are undeserving of His grace.
Faith: Faith is not just believing that God can do something, or that He will do something—faith is believing that God has already done it. If we are still waiting for God to act, we are not in faith. Our faith should rest in the truth that God has already provided everything we need, and our role is to step into that reality. When we understand this, it transforms how we face challenges, knowing that God has already taken care of them.
Joy: Knowing what God has done for us should fill us with joy, regardless of our circumstances. Even in difficult situations, like Paul in prison, we should maintain a joyful heart, encouraging others to rejoice. Our joy comes from the reality of what Christ has done for us, and it should be so evident that it might seem almost irresponsible to others who don't understand the source of our joy.
In short, gratitude, faith, and joy are all responses to the gospel that should shape our daily lives as believers. These responses show that we truly understand and live in the reality of the salvation we have received.
Conclusion
The reason many of us don't fully grasp the significance of our new identity in Christ is because we focus too much on our physical appearance and circumstances. Think about this—If in a moment, a person suddenly gets access to all the wealth, knowledge and influential people in this world, the outward appearance of the person may remain the same, but their psychology and confidence will change drastically. The same applies when we give our lives to Christ, though our physical appearance may not change, our spiritual reality is completely transformed. If we could see ourselves from a spiritual perspective, we would carry ourselves differently, walk differently, and approach life with a new understanding of who we are in Christ.
The blessings of the gospel are spiritual blessings, as Ephesians 1:3 tells us, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with spiritual blessings in heavenly places.” These are spiritual realities, but the spirit realm influences the physical realm. So if we have a deep revelation of these spiritual realities, they can begin to manifest in our physical lives.
What God has done for us spiritually will eventually have a physical manifestation. We must allow the gospel to penetrate our hearts so that it shapes our behavior. If we are seated with Christ in heavenly places, the economy or circumstances of the world should not limit our possibilities. The gospel must be in our hearts, and it should change how we live.
For example, how can we carry the spirit of joy inside and still be depressed? How can we have the Prince of Peace within and experience anxiety? These contradictions to the gospel must be addressed. We must speak against them with the revelation of what the gospel says, and though it may take time, we should persist in standing firm on God's word, aligning our reality with the truth of the gospel.
