The gospel is not merely a proclamation of good news. It is the power of God to save. It comes not only in word but in power and in the Holy Spirit (1 Thessalonians 1:5). It is the instrument of God's effectual call (2 Thessalonians 2:14). It is the occasion of his regenerating power (1 Peter 1:23). It accomplishes what God sends it forth to do.

The gospel is the word of God. It is the voice of the Lord. And we know that

The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars...
The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness...
The voice of the Lord strips the forests bare;
and in his temple all cry "Glory!" (Psalm 29)

Paul refers in Colossians 1:23 to "the hope of the gospel." And there is no sweeter message of hope in all the world than to hear God announce that when you get up in the morning miserable and depressed with a sense of guilt and estrangement before a holy God, you can go to bed that very night'this very night'with a quiet and peaceful heart knowing that every sin you have ever committed and ever will commit is forgiven and you are reconciled to the Almighty by the death of his Son. That's the free offer of the gospel!

If last week we saw that we were chosen by grace, and called by grace, and sanctified by grace, and sustained in faith by grace, and glorified by grace, today we learn that all that grace was purchased by the blood of the cross and is emphatically a grace for estranged and hostile sinners.

And the gospel is the good news that there is hope for sinners, the worst of sinners'the hope of forgiveness (a weeping harlot saved by faith); the hope of reconciliation (a broken prodigal coming home); the hope of holiness (a leper cleansed by the touch of Jesus).

But the hope of the Gospel is more. It is a world wide hope, and nothing else will satisfy our hearts in the end. It is the voice of the Lord that strips the forests bare. It is living and active and sharper than a two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit (Hebrews 4:11-12). It is like fire, says the Lord, and like a hammer which breaks the rock in pieces (Jeremiah 23:29). It goes forth from his mouth and does not return empty, but accomplishes that for which he sent it (Isaiah 55:11). The grass withers and the flowers fall but the word of our God stands for ever (Isaiah 40:8).

And therefore it will reach to every people and tongue and tribe and nation; the ransomed will be called; the full number of the gentiles will come in; the eyes of all Israel will be opened; and the Son of Man will come on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. The wheat and the tares will be divided: one into the furnace of fire, the other into the masters granary. And those who have believed the gospel will shine like the Son in the kingdom of their Father. And they shall reign for ever and ever in light.

This is the great global hope of the gospel! Let him who is thirsty come. Let anyone who desires take the water of life without price. Receive the gospel. Stand in it. Hold it fast. There is no other hope than "the hope of the gospel"!

-- John Piper