It has often been stated that the so-called Four Gospels are actually four accounts of our Lord's earthly ministry as recorded by four different writers.  These four accounts are given to us in the Scripture, not as different gospels but as portrayals of our blessed Lord Himself in four different aspects.  Matthew portrays Him as King, Mark as Servant, Luke as Man and John as God; and each writer, while acknowledging the other aspects of Christ's person and place, keeps consistently to the particular aspect which he was inspired to portray.

Some have suggested that one biography, one composite picture, so to speak, would have been better, but one might as well try to depict a house by one composite picture.  It would seem rather odd to have the mop, the refuse can, the milk box and the connection for the hose all showing up on the front porch!  And where in the picture would there be room for all the doors and windows on all four sides?  Similarly four separate accounts of our Lord's ministry were necessary to set forth the four aspects of His person, position and work.

But while it is technically incorrect to call these four records four gospels, it is equally incorrect to say, as many have said, that the Scriptures present only one gospel.

First, the word gospel (Gr. evangelion) means simply good news and to say that the Bible presents only one gospel is like saying that God has sent man only one item of good news down through the ages.

Second, God uses distinctive terms to designate the various items of good news: e.g., "the gospel [good news] of the kingdom" (Matt. 9:35), "the gospel of the grace of God" (Acts 20:24), "the gospel of the uncircumcision" (Gal. 2:7), etc.  Surely if God distinguishes between these gospels they cannot be exactly the same.

Next, it should be noted that God has revealed His good news to man progressively.  To Adam and Eve He proclaimed the gospel, or good news, that the woman's seed should some day crush the head of the Serpent (Gen. 3:15).  To Abraham He preached the gospel, or good news, that in him all nations should be blessed (Gal. 3:8).  And all down through the Old Testament Scriptures we find God proclaiming more and more good news to man.  Finally the Lord sent His apostles to proclaim "the gospel of the kingdom" (See Luke 9:1-6), but mark well: at that time they did not even know that Christ was to die.  In this connection read carefully, Luke 18:31-34:

"Then He took unto Him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished.

"For He shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on:

"And they shall scourge Him, and put Him to death: and the third day He shall rise again.

"AND THEY UNDERSTOOD NONE OF THESE THINGS: AND THIS SAYING WAS HID FROM THEM, NEITHER KNEW THEY THE THINGS WHICH WERE SPOKEN" (Luke 18:31-34).

Note carefully that after the apostles had been preaching "the gospel" for some time (perhaps two or more years) they did not have the slightest idea what the Lord was talking about when He predicted His death.¹ Obviously, then, "the gospel" which they preached was not "the gospel" which Paul later preached or "the gospel" by which we are saved (See I Cor. 15:1-4). "The gospel" which they preached was "the gospel of the kingdom" (Matt. 9:35 cf. Luke 9:2), not "the preaching of the cross" (I Cor. 1:18).

This leads us to still another matter of vital importance in any consideration of God's good news to man: If a friend should come to the reader and say: "Did you hear the good news?" the reader would naturally inquire: "What good news?" We must always be sure to make this inquiry in our study of the Scriptures too when we come upon the term "the gospel," for this term alone in no way indicates what the good news might be.

This is illustrated by the passage referred to above.  Luke 9:6 says that the apostles "departed, and went through the towns, preaching the gospel." From this it has frequently been assumed that they went forth preaching salvation through the cross, as we do.  Yet Luke 18:31-34 makes it clear that they had no idea Christ would even die.  A glance at the context in Luke 9, however, makes it all plain, for in verse 2 we read: "And He sent them to preach THE KINGDOM OF GOD," not His death for sin.

From what has thus far been pointed out, it is evident that many gospels could be discussed in this chapter.  We will, however, limit ourselves to the five indicated on the foregoing chart, because in them we find something of the philosophy of God's dealings with men.

Before dealing separately with each of these gospels, the reader should turn to the chart and carefully note the following:

1.  The gospel of the kingdom takes us back to David, with whom the covenant of the kingdom was made.

2.  The gospel of the circumcision takes us back before David to Abraham, with whom the covenant of circumcision was made.

3.  The gospel of the uncircumcision takes us back before David and Abraham to Abram who, as an uncircumcised heathen, was justified by faith.

4.  The message of reconciliation² takes us back before David, Abraham and Abram to Adam, the "one man" by whom the world was alienated from God.

5.  The mystery² takes us back before David, before Abraham, before Abram, before Adam to God Himself and "the good pleasure of His will."
 
 

The gospel of the kingdom, as we have seen, takes us back to David.  This good news was based on a promise made to King David:

"AND THINE HOUSE AND THY KINGDOM SHALL BE ESTABLISHED FOR EVER" (II Sam. 7:16.  See also verses 4-7, I Chron. 17:4-15 and Psa. 89:34-37).

David's kingdom was to be established forever, of course, because Christ, the Son of David, was to occupy the throne and make it truly the seat of God's rule over the earth.  For this reason we read that it "shall never be destroyed" or "left to other people," but "shall stand forever" (Dan. 2:44).

This glorious kingdom, which "the God of heaven" was--and is--to establish on earth is, as we have seen, the goal of God's great prophetic plan.  This plan is comprehensively outlined in Jer. 23:5,6:

"BEHOLD, THE DAYS COME, SAITH THE LORD, THAT I WILL RAISE UNTO DAVID A RIGHTEOUS BRANCH, AND A KING SHALL REIGN AND PROSPER, AND SHALL EXECUTE JUDGMENT AND JUSTICE IN THE EARTH.

"IN HIS DAYS JUDAH SHALL BE SAVED, AND ISRAEL SHALL DWELL SAFELY: AND THIS IS HIS NAME WHEREBY HE SHALL BE CALLED, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS."

This is why, when our Lord arrives on the scene, we find Him preaching "the gospel [or good news] of the kingdom" (Matt. 4:23, 9:35, etc.).
 
 

The difference between the prophecies concerning the kingdom and "the gospel of the kingdom" was that the kingdom once predicted was now proclaimed "at hand."

John the Baptist, our Lord and the twelve, of course, preached many things, but the theme, the subject of their message, during our Lord's earthly ministry, was: "THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS AT HAND." There can be no question as to this, for the record is most explicit here:

Matt. 3:1,2: "In those days came JOHN THE BAPTIST, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea,

"And saying, Repent ye: for THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS AT HAND."

Nothing else?  This is all that is said here because this was the subject of his message.  We read elsewhere (Luke 3:18) that "many other things in his exhortation preached he unto the people," but this is given as the theme of his message.

Matt. 4:17: "From that time JESUS began to preach and to say, Repent: for THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS AT HAND."

Nothing else?  Again this is all that is said here because this was the theme of His message, though, indeed, He said many other things in connection with this theme.

Matt. 10:5-7: "THESE TWELVE Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of theGentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not:

"But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

"And as ye go, preach, saying, THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS AT HAND."

But were they to preach nothing else?  Once more this is all that we are told here because this was to be the theme of their message.

Thus the gospel, or good news which John the Baptist, our Lord and the twelve proclaimed before Christ's death and resurrection was not "the preaching of the cross" but the good news that the long-promised kingdom was now "at hand."
 
 

It should be carefully noted that we do not have an actual offer of the kingdom until after the resurrection of Christ (See Acts 3:19,20), for the prophets had consistently testified of "the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should FOLLOW" (I Pet. 1:11). The order had always been the same in prophecy: first the shame, then the glory; first the cross, then the crown.  From Joel 2:28-32 alone it is clear that there could be no offer of the kingdom until the Spirit had been "poured out." Moreover, the circumstances confirm this for, suppose the kingdom had been offered and accepted before the cross, would Judas have occupied one of the twelve thrones in the kingdom?  Furthermore, the offer of the kingdom could be made only on the basis of the New Covenant, which was not made until the death of Christ (Matt. 26:28).

The Apostle John informs us that when some would have made Jesus king by force, He hid away from them (John 6:15) and that when a multitude from Jerusalem came acclaiming Him as king, He responded by riding to meet them on "a young ass"--not a very royal figure, to say the least (John 12:13,14, cf. Zech. 9:9).

Thus while the kingdom is proclaimed "at hand" during the period covered by the "four gospels," we find no offer of it until the early part of the book of Acts.

It was already evident when our Lord was on earth, however, that the leaders in Israel would not inherit the kingdom.  John had called upon them to "bring forth . . . fruits meet for repentance"; so had Christ and the twelve, but instead they plotted to kill Christ (Matt. 21:33-39).  Hence our Lord said to them:

"Therefore say I unto you, THE KINGDOM OF GOD SHALL BE TAKEN FROM YOU, AND GIVEN TO A NATION³ BRINGING FORTH THE FRUITS THEREOF" (Matt. 21:43).

Who was to constitute the "nation" to which the Lord would give the kingdom?  This is answered for us in Luke 12:32:

"FEAR NOT, LITTLE FLOCK; FOR IT IS YOUR FATHER'S GOOD PLEASURE TO GIVE YOU THE KINGDOM."

And the princes in this kingdom were to be none other than the twelve apostles,⁴ for in Matt. 19:28 it is written:

"And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, YE ALSO SHALL SIT UPON TWELVE THRONES, JUDGING THE TWELVE TRIBES OF ISRAEL."

The twelve apostles, then, and the "little flock" of Christ's followers, were to replace the chief priests and elders of that day as Israel's rulers in the kingdom. If we would gain a clear understanding of the gospel of the grace of God, it is essential that we understand these truths associated with "the gospel of the kingdom."
 
 

Such terms as "the gospel of the kingdom" and "the gospel of the grace of God" are relatively easy to understand but it is doubtful whether one believer in a thousand has any idea of the meaning of the term "the gospel [or good news] of the circumcision" (Gal 2:7).

This gospel takes us back before David to the great Abrahamic Covenant, for the "sign" of circumcision was given to Abraham, not only to separate him and his seed from the ungodly and licentious Gentiles, and as a "seal" of the righteousness of faith (Rom. 4:11), but also, and mainly, as a token of God's covenant with him (Gen. 17:11).

According to this covenant, Abraham's multiplied seed (later called "the Circumcision") was to become a blessing to all nations.  There was much more than this, but this is the particular part of the covenant which concerns us here.  It was after Abraham had offered to God his beloved son Isaac, that God promised:

"That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I WILL MULTIPLY THY SEED AS THE STARS OF THE HEAVEN, AND AS THE SAND WHICH IS UPON THE SEA SHORE; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;

"AND IN THY SEED SHALL ALL THE NATIONS OF THE EARTH BE BLESSED; because thou hast obeyed my voice" (Gen. 22:17,18).

The "gospel of the circumcision," then, was the good news based on this covenant.  We read in Gal. 2:7 that "the gospel of the circumcision,⁵ was [committed] unto Peter" and we find him preaching it in Acts 3:25,26:

"YE ARE THE CHILDREN OF THE PROPHETS, AND OF THE COVENANT WHICH GOD MADE WITH OUR FATHERS, SAYING UNTO ABRAHAM, AND IN THY SEED SHALL ALL THE KINDREDS OF THE EARTH BE BLESSED.

"UNTO YOU FIRST GOD, HAVING RAISED UP HIS SON JESUS, SENT HIM TO BLESS YOU, IN TURNING AWAY EVERY ONE OF YOU FROM HIS INIQUITIES."

This, in a nutshell, is "the gospel of the circumcision" and those of the Circumcision who heard should certainly have considered it good news that the blessing of all nations through them was now imminent.

But the fact that the gospel of the circumcision was committed to Peter does not mean that it was not also committed to the rest of the twelve, or that he did not at the same time preach the gospel of the kingdom, or that our Lord had not also preached the gospel of the circumcision.

The "gospel of the kingdom" and "the gospel of the circumcision" are very closely related, as are the Abrahamic and Davidic Covenants.  Whereas the former concerned the nation, the latter concerned that nation's government and throne.

It is significant that the New Testament Scriptures open with the words:

"The book of the generation of JESUS CHRIST, THE SON OF DAVID, THE SON OF ABRAHAM" (Matt. 1:1).

Both before and after Pentecost God's great program to bless the nations through Israel with Christ as King was recognized, but before Pentecost the emphasis had been on the kingdom while after Pentecost the emphasis was on the fact that Israel was to be the channel of blessing to the world.  Hence in the gospel records we read of "the gospel of the kingdom," while in Gal. 2:7 we read that "the gospel of the circumcision" had been committed to Peter (as distinct from Paul).  This matter will be discussed more fully at the end of this chapter.
 
 

Whereas the gospels of the kingdom and of the circumcision were proclaimed by our Lord on earth and the twelve apostles, the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed to Paul--and the twelve recognized this, for in Gal. 2:7 Paul says of their leaders that "they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me."

In the gospel of the uncircumcision all is by grace and through faith.  This good news is not based on any covenant,⁶ for the Apostle Paul in proclaiming it takes us back beyond David and Abraham to Abram, the ungodly heathen who received full justification by faith alone long before he was circumcised.

Proving from the case of Abraham himself that God was not obliged to justify the circumcised alone, or to send salvation to the heathen through them, he points out that God had justified the very father of the Hebrew nation by grace, through faith, entirely apart from circumcision, and that he had received circumcision years later as a sign of the righteousness which he had already received by faith:

"Cometh this blessedness then upon the circumcision only, or upon the uncircumcision also?  for we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness.

"HOW WAS IT THEN RECKONED? WHEN HE WAS IN CIRCUMCISION, OR IN UNCIRCUMCISION?  NOT IN CIRCUMCISION, BUT IN UNCIRCUMCISION.

"AND HE RECEIVED THE SIGN OF CIRCUMCISION, A SEAL OF THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF THE FAITH WHICH HE HAD YET BEING UNCIRCUMCISED: THAT HE MIGHT BE THE FATHER OF ALL THEM THAT BELIEVE, THOUGH THEY BE NOT CIRCUMCISED; THAT RIGHTEOUSNESS MIGHT BE IMPUTED UNTO THEM ALSO" (Rom. 4:9-11).

The apostle thus demonstrated that simply because God had chosen Abraham's seed as the channel through which to bless all nations, they must not presume that He could not bless them in any other way; much less that He meant to bless and save Israel alone, for God had justified their own father Abraham through faith, entirely apart from circumcision.  Why could He not now do the same?

We must not overlook the fact that whereas "the gospel of the circumcision" is exclusive, "the gospel of the uncircumcision" is inclusive, taking in all believers, whether Jews or Gentiles, for Paul's whole point in Romans 4 is that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness before he was circumcised "that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised." Thus "the gospel of the uncircumcision" takes in both Jew and Gentile.  Indeed, it is most significant that in view of Israel's rejection of Christ, God should now send forth Paul to point this out and to offer salvation by faith alone to Jew and Gentile alike.

Under "the gospel of the kingdom" the twelve were explicitly commanded not to go to the Gentiles or the Samaritans, but only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel (Matt. 10:5,6).  Under "the gospel of the circumcision" these same apostles were explicitly instructed to go to Israel first (Luke 24:47, Acts 1:8).  In both cases the reason was that God had promised to bless the nations through Israel.

But now, with Israel refusing to become the channel of blessing, God temporarily suspends the fulfillment of the covenants, raises up another apostle, and sends him forth with the glorious "gospel of the uncircumcision," in which:

"THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE⁷ BETWEEN THE JEW AND THE GREEK: FOR THE SAME LORD OVER ALL IS RICH UNTO ALL THAT CALL UPON HIM.

"FOR WHOSOEVER SHALL CALL UPON THE NAME OF THE LORD SHALL BE SAVED" (Rom. 10:12,13).

It should be clearly noted that Paul's ministry to the Gentiles with "the gospel of the uncircumcision" superseded our Lord's earthly ministry and the Pentecostal ministry of the twelve.  This is emphatically stated in two passages in Romans and Galatians.  The first, in Romans 15, shows how Paul's ministry superseded that of Christ on earth:

"Now I say that Jesus Christ WAS a minister of the circumcision [the Hebrew nation] for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers:

"And that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy; as it is written . . ." (Rom. 15:8,9).

This was in line with the prophetic program.  Christ confirmed the promises made unto the fathers.  Had Israel, at Pentecost, accepted Christ, these promises (of her future blessing) would have been fulfilled and the Gentiles would have (as they some day will) glorified God for His mercy.

But though these promises had been so conclusively confirmed, Israel rejected Christ and now Paul, by inspiration, writes to the Roman believers:

"Nevertheless, brethren, I have written the more boldly unto you in some sort [in a sense], as putting you in mind, because of the grace that is given to me of God,

"THAT I SHOULD BE THE MINISTER OF JESUS CHRIST TO THE GENTILES, MINISTERING THE GOSPEL OF GOD, THAT THE OFFERING UP OF THE GENTILES MIGHT BE ACCEPTABLE, BEING SANCTIFIED BY THE HOLY GHOST" (Rom. 15:15,16).

The second passage, in Galatians 2, shows how Paul's ministry superseded that of the twelve:

"And I went up by revelation, and communicated unto them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to them which were of reputation, lest by any means I should run, or had run, in vain."

"BUT . . . WHEN THEY SAW THAT THE GOSPEL OF THE UNCIRCUMCISION WAS COMMITTED UNTO ME, AS THE GOSPEL OF THE CIRCUMCISION WAS UNTO PETER;"

"AND WHEN JAMES, CEPHAS, AND JOHN, WHO SEEMED TO BE PILLARS, PERCEIVED THE GRACE THAT WAS GIVEN UNTO ME, THEY GAVE TO ME AND BARNABAS THE RIGHT HANDS OF FELLOWSHIP; THAT WE SHOULD GO UNTO THE HEATHEN, AND THEY UNTO THE CIRCUMCISION" (Gal. 2:2,7,9).

Mark well: the twelve, who had first been sent into "all the world" to preach "the gospel" to "every creature," "beginning at Jerusalem," now recognized that the present fulfillment of this great commission had been interrupted through Israel's unbelief and, acknowledging the new commission given to Paul, their leaders shook hands with Paul and Barnabas in a solemn agreement that Paul, with Barnabas, should now go to the Gentiles, while they confined their ministry to Israel.  This is how it came that Paul could write in Rom. 11:13:

"FOR I SPEAK TO YOU GENTILES, INASMUCH AS I AM THE APOSTLE OF THE GENTILES, I MAGNIFY MINE OFFICE."
 
 

The message of reconciliation, like that of the uncircumcision, was first committed to the Apostle Paul.  The message takes us back before David, before Abraham, before Abram, to Adam, the father of the human race, the "one man" by whom "sin entered into the world," and explains why God was now to deal with Jew and Gentile on the same basis.

The Lord Jesus, while on earth, did not proclaim the message of reconciliation.  Only once, so far as the record goes, did He even use the word reconcile, and then only in reference to the reconciliation of two brothers.  Neither did the apostles at Pentecost proclaim reconciliation, much less the reconciliation of Jew and Gentile to God in one body.

Likewise, we do not find our Lord on earth or the twelve at Pentecost going back to Adam in their preaching.  They speak again and again of the promises made to David and Abraham, but never even mention the name Adam.  Our Lord did once refer to Adam, without mentioning his name, but in this case He was dealing with the matter of marriage and divorce and stated simply: "He which made them at the beginning made them male and female."

The message of reconciliation could not be preached to all the world until the casting away of Israel, for the simple reason that friends need not be reconciled, and Israel, in early Acts, was still God's favored people.  Therefore we read:

"FOR IF THE CASTING AWAY OF THEM [ISRAEL] BE THE RECONCILING OF THE WORLD, what shall the receiving of them be but life from the dead?" (Rom. 11:15).

Reconciliation postulates alienation; hence it was not until God had begun to set aside Israel that He began to offer reconciliation through Paul.  Moreover, it was when Israel joined the Gentiles in rebellion against God and His Christ that man's natural alienation from God was fully demonstrated. This is why Paul, in the message of reconciliation, takes us back, not to David and Abraham, with whom the covenants had been made, but to Adam, by whom all mankind had been alienated from God.

" . . . BY ONE MAN SIN ENTERED INTO THE WORLD, AND DEATH BY SIN; AND SO DEATH PASSED UPON ALL MEN, FOR THAT ALL HAVE SINNED" (Rom. 5:12).

Israel's fall was natural, for the children of Israel were the children of fallen Adam too. God had put a difference between Israel and the Gentiles, among other reasons, simply to show that basically, essentially, "there is no difference."⁸

This was what God was now to teach by setting Israel aside and offering reconciliation to Jew and Gentile on an equal basis.  This gracious offer is not based on covenant promises, but on the facts of man's alienation from God, his desperate need and God's infinite love and mercy.

Thank God, the message of reconciliation is not concerned exclusively with the "one man" by whom sin entered into the world.  Indeed, it is chiefly concerned with "the second Man," "the last Adam," the "one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus" (I Cor. 15:45,47, I Tim. 2:5).

"THEREFORE AS BY THE OFFENCE OF ONE [or, ONE TRESPASS] JUDGMENT CAME UPON ALL MEN TO CONDEMNATION; EVEN SO BY THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF ONE [or, ONE RIGHTEOUS ACT] THE FREE GIFT CAME UPON ALL MEN UNTO JUSTIFICATION OF LIFE.

"FOR AS BY ONE MAN'S DISOBEDIENCE MANY WERE MADE SINNERS, SO BY THE OBEDIENCE OF ONE SHALL MANY BE MADE RIGHTEOUS" (Rom. 5:18,19).

It is by this other "one Man" and His death on Calvary, that sinners--Jewish and Gentile alike--may be reconciled to a holy God.  In Col. 1:21,22 the apostle of reconciliation declares:

"And you, that were sometime ALIENATED AND ENEMIES in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath He RECONCILED

"IN THE BODY OF HIS FLESH THROUGH DEATH, TO PRESENT YOU HOLY AND UNBLAMEABLE AND UNREPROVEABLE IN HIS SIGHT."

Thus, "when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son" (Rom. 5:10 and cf. Eph. 2:11-18).

As we have seen, the proclamation of this glorious message is our great commission, as we are distinctly told in II Cor. 5:18,19.  We quote the passage here with more of its context, so that the reader may understand and appreciate it more fully:

"WHEREFORE HENCEFORTH KNOW WE NO MAN AFTER THE FLESH: YEA, THOUGH WE HAVE KNOWN CHRIST AFTER THE FLESH, YET NOW HENCEFORTH KNOW WE HIM NO MORE.

"THEREFORE IF ANY MAN BE IN CHRIST, HE IS A NEW CREATURE: OLD THINGS ARE PASSED AWAY; BEHOLD, ALL THINGS ARE BECOME NEW.

"AND ALL THINGS ARE OF GOD, WHO HATH RECONCILED US TO HIMSELF BY JESUS CHRIST, AND HATH GIVEN TO US THE MINISTRY OF RECONCILIATION;

"TO WIT, THAT GOD WAS IN CHRIST, RECONCILING THE WORLD UNTO HIMSELF, NOT IMPUTING THEIR TRESPASSES UNTO THEM; AND HATH COMMITTED UNTO US THE WORD OF RECONCILIATION.

"NOW THEN WE ARE AMBASSADORS FOR CHRIST, AS THOUGH GOD DID BESEECH YOU BY US: WE PRAY YOU IN CHRIST'S STEAD, BE YE RECONCILED TO GOD.

"FOR HE HATH MADE HIM TO BE SIN FOR US, WHO KNEW NO SIN; THAT WE MIGHT BE MADE THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD IN HIM" (II. Cor. 5:16-21).

This is our great commission; may we discharge it faithfully!

We insist that it is an offer, however, not a promise of universal reconciliation.  The apostle does not beseech men to be reconciled in this life, merely, so as to escape a short period of discipline.  There is no hint in his plea that all will eventually be reconciled regardless of their response to his offer.  On the contrary, he pleads with them to be reconciled now, since "now is the accepted time"; he begs them to be reconciled before it is too late, so that they may not have received the gracious offer "in vain" (Read carefully the verses which follow: II Cor. 6:1,2).  It is true, indeed, that at the name of Jesus every knee shall one day bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth and things under the earth, and that every tongue shall eventually confess Him as Lord (Phil. 2:10,11), but this is universal subjugation, not reconciliation. This final subjugation of all beings, celestial, terrestrial and infernal, to Christ will not be the result of the present offer:

"THAT IF THOU SHALT CONFESS WITH THY MOUTH THE LORD JESUS [JESUS AS LORD], AND SHALT BELIEVE IN THINE HEART THAT GOD HATH RAISED HIM FROM THE DEAD, THOU SHALT BE SAVED" (Rom. 10:9).

Nor must we confuse the prediction of universal subjugation with God's purpose to "reconcile all things unto Himself . . . whether they be things IN EARTH, or things IN HEAVEN"⁹ (Col. 1:20).

Concerning our responsibility to proclaim God's offer of reconciliation to the lost, one thing is certain: If we would faithfully discharge our great commission, we must be so constrained by the love of Christ (II Cor. 5:14) that, though men may consider us "beside ourselves" (Ver. 13), we will live for Him who died for us (Ver. 15), "beseeching" men and "praying" them, in Christ's stead, to be reconciled to God (Ver. 20), knowing that "NOW is the accepted time" and "NOW is the day of salvation" (6:2).
 
 

We have already discussed "the mystery" at some length, but must consider it here in connection with the various gospels.

Just as the kingdom of Christ is the subject of the prophetic Scriptures, so the body of Christ is the subject of the great mystery revealed to and through the Apostle Paul.

The apostle defines this "mystery," made known to him by revelation (Eph. 3:3), as follows:

"That they who are of the nations should be joint heirs, and a joint body, and joint partakers of His promise in Jesus Christ by the glad tidings" (Eph. 3:6, New Tr.).¹⁰

There are, as we have seen, many aspects of the mystery, but the great central truth is that God was to form of believing Jews and Gentiles one joint body in Christ.

It will be readily seen that this glorious truth concerning the body naturally follows the revelation concerning the gospels of the uncircumcision and of reconciliation.  Indeed the apostle himself points out that the joint body is the product of the reconciliation of Jews and Gentiles to God.  Explaining how God "hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us," he goes on to say that this was done

". . . FOR TO MAKE IN HIMSELF OF TWAIN ONE NEW MAN, SO MAKING PEACE;

"AND THAT HE MIGHT RECONCILE BOTH UNTO GOD IN ONE BODY BY THE CROSS, HAVING SLAIN THE ENMITY THEREBY:

"AND CAME AND PREACHED PEACE TO YOU WHICH WERE AFAR OFF, AND TO THEM THAT WERE¹¹ NIGH.

"FOR THROUGH HIM WE BOTH HAVE ACCESS BY ONE SPIRIT UNTO THE FATHER" (Eph. 2:14-18).

We have already pointed out that until we come to the writings of Paul we do not find one single word as to this great mystery or any of its associated mysteries.  But this does not mean that it was an afterthought on God's part, for in proclaiming the mystery the apostle takes us back before David and Abraham, before Abram and Adam, to God, who planned it all.

Though the most spiritual believer at Jerusalem could not have known what God would do when Israel rejected His risen, glorified Son, God had a gracious, glorious plan in mind from the beginning.  He simply says that it was "KEPT SECRET since the world began" (Rom. 16:25), that "in other ages [it] was NOT MADE KNOWN" (Eph. 3:5), that "from the beginning of the world [it] had been HID in God" (Eph. 3:9), that it had been "HID from ages and from generations" (Col. 1:26), but in all this He makes it most clear that the whole plan was

"ACCORDING TO THE ETERNAL PURPOSE WHICH HE PURPOSED IN CHRIST JESUS OUR LORD" (Eph. 3:11).

How we should rejoice that the (temporary) casting away of Israel, the offer of justification to Jew and Gentile alike, and the reconciliation of both Jews and Gentiles to Himself in one body, was God's wonderful plan from the beginning; the surprise of His grace, to be revealed when sin had risen to its height!  How we should worship Him

"Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, NOT ACCORDING TO OUR WORKS, BUT ACCORDING TO HIS OWN PURPOSE AND GRACE, WHICH WAS GIVEN US IN CHRIST JESUS BEFORE THE WORLD BEGAN" (II Tim. 1:9).
 
 

It will be noticed on the foregoing chart that the two portions covering the gospel of the kingdom and the gospel of the circumcision are shaded.  This is because these two gospels are intimately linked together.

1.  Both were based on covenants and did not reveal "the exceeding riches of God's grace" as Paul's good news did.

2.  Both were related to prophecy, not to the mystery.

3.  Both were bound up with ordinances and signs.  Circumcision was the sign of the Abrahamic Covenant (Gen. 17:11).  Water baptism was the sign of the Davidic Covenant (Ex. 29:4, cf. Ex. 19:5,6, Isa. 61:6, Matt. 3:1-6).

4.  These two gospels were proclaimed by John the Baptist, Christ and the twelve.

5.  Matt. 1:1 introduces Christ as "the Son of David, the Son of Abraham," and the Abrahamic Covenant, concerning the nation is, of course, intimately bound up with the Davidic Covenant, concerning the King to reign over that nation.

The remaining three messages (the outer three on the chart) are also closely linked together.

1.  These three are based on grace alone, not on covenants or promises.

2.  All three were previously kept secret, not foretold. ¹²

3.  None had any relation to ordinances or signs.¹³ We are circumcised and baptized in Christ (I Cor. 6:11, Phil. 3:3, Col. 2:9-12).

4.  All three of these messages were first committed to Paul.

5.  These gospels are inseparably linked as one progressive revelation.  This is why the Apostle Paul speaks of "my gospel" (Rom. 2:16, 16:25, II Tim. 2:8) and uses the general term "the gospel of the grace of God," when referring to his whole Christian ministry (Acts 20:24).

It may be further noted that John the Baptist, Christ and the twelve, in their proclamations, went from the particular to the general, while Paul went from the general to the particular.  This is because the prophesied program was passing off the scene at the same time when the program of the mystery was appearing on the scene.

Thus, Christ Himself is first announced in the gospels; then His Messiahship is proclaimed in "the gospel of the kingdom" and after His crucifixion Israel's opportunity to become a blessing to the world is stressed in "the gospel of the circumcision." Or, to put it another way: Christ, the Son of David is first presented; then the Davidic Covenant of the kingdom is recalled and, after the cross, the broader Abrahamic Covenant.

Conversely, as Israel persisted in her rejection of Christ, the Apostle Paul began with the broad "gospel of the uncircumcision" as a basis for the message of reconciliation, by which both Jews and Gentiles were to become one body in Christ.  So he began with what the Scriptures had clearly foreseen (though not foretold) and ended with the mystery itself, which was "KEPT SECRET since the world began."

The above may be illustrated by the following outline:

1.  What is misleading about the term: "The Four Gospels"?

2.  Why was it necessary to have four separate accounts of our Lord's earthly ministry?

3.  What is wrong with the contention that the Bible presents only one gospel?

4.  Why is it particularly necessary to bear the context in mind when we read the simple phrase "the gospel"?

5.  Draw from memory the chart on the five gospels discussed in this chapter.

6.  How was the kingdom proclaimed before the cross?

7.  What two Scripture passages tell us that the kingdom was to be "taken from" Israel's rulers and "given to" the "little flock" of Christ's followers?

8.  What passage contains our Lord's promise that the twelve will occupy twelve thrones in the kingdom?

9.  When was the kingdom first offered to Israel?

10.  The "gospel of the circumcision" was based on what great covenant?

11.  Explain how the gospels of the kingdom and of the circumcision were related.

12.  On what great facts was "the gospel of the uncircumcision" based?

13.  Where do we read that "the gospel of the uncircumcision" was particularly committed to Paul?

14.  What does reconciliation postulate, or presuppose?

15.  Where do we find that the message of reconciliation is related to the casting away of Israel?

16.  The message of reconciliation revolves mainly around what two men?

17.  Explain the significance of the fact that according to II Cor. 5, the proclamation of reconciliation is not a promise, but a plea.

18.  Explain how the formation of the body is related to the proclamation of reconciliation.

19.  Give three Scriptures proving that "the mystery" was not revealed until Paul.

20.  Show how the gospels of the uncircumcision, reconciliation and the mystery are related.