What is the Gospel?

“Preach the Gospel everyday, when necessary use words.”

The above quote from Saint Francis of Assisi serves as the mission statement of the Crossroads Missions Team. As our mission team began our week of work in Mexico, we read together the mission statement that Jesus read as he began his public ministry of teaching and serving. This clear declaration of Jesus’ mission is recorded in the Bible in the Gospel of Luke.

Jesus read the following Scripture that described in advance his mission on Earth: “The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the LORD’s favor has come.” Luke 4:18-19 NLT

The project manager of Crossroads Missions challenged our group every day with the question: What is the Gospel? We discussed that the Gospel which definitely includes the Good News that Jesus died for our sins, was buried in a grave, and yet overcame sin and death through the resurrection was taught and proclaimed prior to Jesus going to the cross (as seen in the above scripture).

We were encouraged to continue to contemplate the question: What is the Gospel? We were to contemplate that question not just in our quite times of reflection in the mornings, but throughout the day was we carried out various work projects (see the photo above) that included weather proofing a community building in the neighborhood with black paper, chicken wire, and stucco.

The question that continues to challenge my heart: Am I bringing Good News to others though my words and actions?