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what is the gospel? what must we preach? what must we believe to be saved?

This is copied and pasted from my sermon notes on a sermon from Ephesians 6:24 (ἡ χάρις μετὰ πάντων τῶν ἀγαπώντων τὸν κύριον ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦν Χριστὸν ἐν ἀφθαρσίᾳ) on never abandoning the faith. I thought some may find it helpful.

The GOSPEL
i. God—God is a powerful God, eternally perfect, untainted by sin, and sovereignly just and righteous. He must do what is right.

ii. Man—Man is radically and totally affected by sin in every way, shape, or form. Man is not perfect, is not righteous, and is not pleasing to God. Man is sinful in thought, word, deed, and motive. We often reject worshipping God for the worship of self.

iii. Jesus—But God, justly deserving to POUR out his wrath on wicked sinners, chose to send His Son, Jesus—fully God and fully man—to this earth to live a perfect life which we could never do, and die a criminal’s death that we sinners deserved to die. And on that cross God flooded the eternal fury and violent wrath upon Jesus on the cross that should be poured out on sinners in hell.

iv. Faith—The only way sinners can be forgiven by God and have the punishment that we deserve pardoned in Christ is by means of faith in Jesus Christ and in his death in our place (substitution) and in his resurrection from the grave three days later showing his victory over sin and power over death and hell. It is by faith alone that we are saved—not by works.

v. Submission—After placing faith in Jesus Christ and being eternally saved and supernaturally justified (declared right with God and treated as a son), the only and inevitable result of salvation is declaring “Jesus is LORD” where He is master over the Christian’s life. This must result in a life of obedience, Lordship, submission, and suffering for Christ.
Romans 10:9 — 9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. (9 ὅτι ἐὰν ὁμολογήσῃς ἐν τῷ στόματί σου κύριον Ἰησοῦν καὶ πιστεύσῃς ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ σου ὅτι ὁ θεὸς αὐτὸν ἤγειρεν ἐκ νεκρῶν, σωθήσῃ·)

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