The Good News

If you think the Good News of Jesus, presented in the gospels, is about getting to heaven, you’re not only missing the point, you’re misreading the texts.

– N.T. Wright

The term Good News (Evangelium) is practically ubiquitous and relates to the nature of Jesus’ teachings. Given the term’s centrality, it’s fair to ask what the content of this good news is. Not surprisingly, there are multiple versions.

Atonement theology, especially the theory of substitutionary atonement, the Protestant Reformation’s focus on individual salvation, and the Evangelical reduction of Christianity to various formulations of the Four Spiritual Laws have rendered the meaning of the Good News along the following lines:

All humans are sinners. Sin separates us from God. Our sins merit Hell as our eternal destination according to God’s justice. God, in his goodness, sent Jesus, his divine son, into the world to die on the cross to atone (pay for right) our sins.

If we let Jesus into our hearts and make him our personal Lord and Savior, we’ll live forever in Heaven. None of our actions or works matter; we’re saved by faith in Jesus alone.

Oddly, the above understanding of the Good News doesn’t align with the gospels. Yes, there are bits and pieces of the above in the texts, especially Jesus’ statement in the Gospel of John (John 3:16). But the dominant themes of the gospels are not about getting to heaven but embodying the kingdom of God now, in this life. God's kingdom, or reign, is portrayed as an Earthly reality.

Let’s examine Jesus’ announcement of the Good News in Luke’s Gospel:

Jesus came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. As usual, he entered the synagogue on the Sabbath day and stood up to read. The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him, and unrolling the scroll, he found the place where it was written and read:

The Spirit of the Lord is on me
because He has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me
to proclaim freedom to the captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to set free the oppressed,
and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.

– Luke, Chapter 4

Jesus read from a portion of Isaiah during the Sabbath in the Synagogue. Luke likely trimmed the reading for the sake of narrative convenience. Here’s a fuller version that Jesus likely read:

The Spirit of the Lord God is on me because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.

He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of our God’s vengeance, to comfort all who mourn, to give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, festive oil instead of mourning, and splendid clothes instead of despair.

They will rebuild the ancient ruins, restore the former devastations, and renew the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations.

I, Yahweh, love justice; I hate robbery and injustice; I will faithfully reward them and make an everlasting covenant with them. Their descendants will be known among the nations and their posterity among the peoples. All who see them will recognize that they are a people the Lord has blessed.

– Isaiah 61

While today’s standard Evangelical rendering of the Good News isn’t a contradiction of Jesus’ application of Isaiah, it certainly seems off the mark. Even a cursory reading above shows that the main message isn’t individual salvation (going to heaven) because of substitutionary atonement (Jesus died for your sins.)

Reading the selection from Isaiah, it’s hard not to notice the practical, social, economic, and relational concerns. The Good News seems to be about a more just, fair, loving world – this world – not some ethereal afterlife.

Further, given the practical nature of Jesus’ ministry of restoration, acceptance, inclusion, justice, food, and aid to the poor, the gospels seem to confirm this interpretation.

Finally, it’s hard to imagine why early Christianity spread if the message was about individual salvation – something neither Jews nor Pagans worried much about and which wasn’t much a part of their conceptual framework.

Jesus-centered communities spread and grew because of the alternative lifestyle that shaped their character – a practical character of provision, acceptance, love, mutual concern, affirmation, and generosity. The Good News certainly touches on spiritual aspects – but the content is eminently practical and focused on improving people’s lives and social-communal conditions here and now.

The Paradigm of Matthew 25

Matthew 25, a pivotal chapter in the Gospel of Matthew, profoundly explores Christian discipleship and the significance of actions in achieving salvation.

Jesus employs a series of parables to illuminate the importance of preparedness, service, and judgment, ultimately emphasizing that our deeds, rather than mere belief, determine our eternal destiny.  

The chapter commences with the parable of the ten virgins, five of whom are wise and possess extra oil for their lamps, while the other five are foolish and unprepared. When the bridegroom arrives, the foolish virgins are locked out, unable to replenish their oil in time.

This parable underscores the necessity of spiritual vigilance and readiness for Christ's return. It suggests that salvation is not merely a matter of intellectual assent but requires constant spiritual alertness and preparedness.  

Subsequently, Jesus narrates the parable of the talents, in which a master entrusts three servants with different sums of money. Two servants invest and multiply their talents while one buries his. Upon the master's return, the diligent servants are rewarded, whereas the unproductive servant is condemned.

This parable highlights the importance of using our God-given gifts and abilities for His glory. It implies that our faith must be demonstrated through active service and good work rather than remaining dormant.  

The chapter culminates in the parable of the sheep and the goats, in which Jesus describes the final judgment. He separates people based on their actions toward the hungry, thirsty, naked, sick, and imprisoned.

Those who have shown compassion and mercy are welcomed into the kingdom of heaven, while those who have neglected the needy are condemned.

This parable unequivocally asserts that our treatment of others directly reflects our relationship with God. It emphasizes that loving our neighbor is an integral part of our faith and is essential for attaining salvation.  

In conclusion, Matthew 25 reveals that salvation is not solely contingent upon belief but is inextricably linked to our actions. The parables of the ten virgins, the talents, and the sheep and the goats collectively emphasize the importance of preparedness, service, and compassion.

They underscore the idea that our faith must be demonstrated through tangible acts of love and service toward others. Ultimately, Matthew 25 invites us to examine our lives and consider how our actions align with Jesus' teachings, recognizing that our eternal destiny hinges upon our response to His call to love and serve.

The traditional Protestant doctrine of sola fide, or salvation by faith alone, has been a cornerstone of theological discourse for centuries. However, carefully examining Matthew 25 presents a compelling challenge to this perspective.

While the New Testament undeniably emphasizes the importance of faith in Jesus Christ for salvation, this chapter suggests a more nuanced understanding of the path to eternal life.  

The parables in Matthew 25 are central to the argument against salvation based solely on faith or theological correctness. These narratives consistently foreground actions and behaviors as determinative factors in one's eternal destiny.

For instance, the parable of the ten virgins highlights the necessity of preparedness and vigilance. While all ten virgins professed belief in the bridegroom, only the wise ones were prepared for his arrival. This suggests that mere intellectual assent to a theological doctrine is insufficient; practical, lived faith is essential.  

The parable of the talents further reinforces this idea. The master rewards those who have multiplied their abilities, not those who possess them. Here, the emphasis shifts from the mere possession of faith to the productive use of spiritual gifts.

The implication is clear: faith without works is dead (James 2:17). Salvation is not merely a passive acceptance of a doctrinal system but an active engagement with the world in light of one's faith.

Perhaps most explicitly, the parable of the sheep and the goats presents a stark contrast between the saved and the condemned.

The criteria for judgment are not theological orthodoxy or the correct articulation of faith but acts of mercy and compassion towards the least of these.

This parable radically challenges the notion that salvation is primarily an individualistic, inward experience. Instead, it posits a profoundly social and ethical dimension to discipleship.  

While acknowledging the centrality of faith in Christian theology is essential, Matthew 25 invites a re-examination of the nature and extent of that faith. The chapter suggests that salvation is not merely a matter of intellectual assent or theological correctness but a holistic response involving both belief and behavior. It is a faith expressed in concrete actions of love, justice, and compassion.

In this way, Matthew 25 offers a corrective to a narrow understanding of salvation, challenging believers to consider the implications of their faith for the world around them.

It is important to note that this interpretation does not negate the importance of theology. Instead, it suggests that theological orthodoxy is not a solitary virtue but is inextricably linked to a life of obedience and service.

The Good News for Today

What are we to make of that teaching today? What’s the takeaway in our current context? What’s the Good News for us today?

Jesus taught a way of personal transformation through love and engaging the world with justice and compassion. At the heart of Jesus’ teaching is the power of kenotic love – the freeing ourselves from the conditioning that keeps us from being a blessing to all the families of the earth, human and otherwise.

Jesus did NOT teach very much about getting to heaven or being good boys and girls, so Santa-god will give us gifts, moral perfectionism, controlling your neighbor, tribalism, and anyone’s or any text’s infallibility.

He didn’t teach a new religion; instead, he seemed to teach the almost absence of religion. Besides the open table, he established no new rituals or rites, created no institutions or structures, and promulgated no rules, liturgies, or offices. 

The Good News was preached against the Empire. Today, we must ask ourselves what empires we struggle with. What forces of dehumanization face us today?

One needs only reflect ventures materialism; conformity spirits our current cul, consumerism, militarism, greed, and selfishness to realize that we, too, contend with Imperial powers and must live in resistance to them, even if it requires personal cost, loss, and sacrifice. 

Those of us who belong to organized, structured religions need to ask serious and complex questions about the role of ritual, law, and rules – the legalisms, literalisms, and ceremonialism of our communities.  Jesus teaches that holiness is primarily about wholeness and is not found in moralism, legalism, or literalism – that moral purity, theological finesse, or ceremonial perfection are not essential to a meaningful and valid spiritual life.

Those who claim to follow Jesus’ teachings must find ways of fostering alternative communities of love and inclusion – built on hospitality, love, and an open table – where people can find meaning and purpose for their lives, have their dignity affirmed, glean wisdom for how to live a good and whole life, engage in mutual generous support, and embrace a way of life that subverts the dehumanizing cultural and social forces of the empire of our day.  

The Good News is that meaning and wholeness can be found by living a life of love, mercy, and self-generosity. The Good News is that we do not have to live by the rules of empire, consumerism, individualism, or any other ideology.

The Good News is that embracing a path of love, mercy, compassion, and self-giving is the way to joy, freedom, personal wholeness, and a better world.