The Bible encourages believers to "go into all the world and preach the Gospel." I'm expecting that most of us have been exposed to this idea. So, what's your conception of it? What do you feel the message is that's intended to be transmitted?[
The gospel is the good news about the purpose and plan of God for humankind. It is not about Christ per se, but about the Kingdom of God: "Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel" (Mark 1:14-15).
1. God exists and is a divine family of beings that created and now governs the universe (the "Kingdom of God").
2. Humans were created in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:26) for the purpose of becoming a part of this divine family and partaking in the governance of the universe. ("entering the Kingdom of God").
3. Although humans rebelled against God and rejected the rule of His Kingdom on this earth, accepting human and demonic rulers instead, God has been working with selected individuals and groups on this earth (the "elect," "firstfruits") to ultimately overthrow the current worldly forms of government and reestablish His Kingdom on the earth.
4. A member of the Godhead, Jesus, appeared as a human to reconcile humans to God and His Kingdom, by living a perfect life, dying, and overcoming death through His resurrection; qualifying as the first human to be reborn as a glorified divine being and the ruler of the Kingdom, and allowing those whom God calls and who trust in Him to follow in the way He manifested and likewise overcome death, be reborn into glory, and enter the Kingdom of God as rulers ("For whom [God] did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren," Romans 8:29).
5. Jesus will return to the earth again, to finally and definitively remove all human and and demonic governments and establish the Kingdom of God on the earth, ruled by Jesus and those, now resurrected, who served him in this life ("And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever," Daniel 2:44; "Then the King will say to those on His right hand, 'Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." Matthew 25:34). Evil, injustice, and suffering will be abolished (Isaiah 11:1-9).
6. All humans who ever lived will be resurrected, God will reveal Himself, making plain the gospel and His way of life to them, and they will be given a chance to enter this Kingdom, based on the how they live in response to this revelation ("And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more," Jeremiah 31:34; "And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works," Revelation 20:12-13).
7. Those who, with full revelation of God, still reject Him, will be annihilated in the Lake of Fire ("Hell, the "second death"; "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him," John 3:36). The rest will live forever, absent evil and suffering, ruling the New Heavens and Earth in loving fellowship with God and each other (Revelation 20:14-15;21-22).
The purpose of evangelism is not specifically to convert others; this is God's job, although He often uses evangelism to accomplish it. Everyone will receive a revelation by God and a chance at salvation when He deems it the appropriate time ("No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me," John 6:44-45). Rather it is to "preach the gospel for a witness" (Matthew 24:14). Think of a witness in court, whose responsibility is to just to tell the truth, regardless of whether anyone beliefs him (though, naturally, he will want people to believe him). It's like the parable of the sower: he scatters the seeds and doesn't worry about where they fall; some grow, some don't. Such is the evangelist, as long as he's proclaimed the gospel, he's done his job, and conversion is up to God. So there you go, there's your sermon for the day, no need to go to church tomorrow (as I'm sure you all were faithfully planning on doing).
