The Mystery of the Gospel

In a Roman prison cell for proclaiming the gospel, Apostle Paul reflects on God’s “eternal purpose?carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (verse 11) To borrow the words Winston Churchill used to characterize Russian military strategy during World War II, “It is a riddle wrapped in a mystery in an enigma.”

From the pregnant pause prior to the big bang beginning of time, evolving through history toward the fullness of God’s promised future beyond the end of time, God’s self-giving love yearns to gather all people of all cultures, creeds, classes and colours, into God’s universal holy communion of grace. In the cross of Jesus Christ, an ancient method of capital punishment designed by oppressive political power, God fulfills that glorious mission

In the crucified Jesus of Nazareth, all the sin, evil and death of the human condition that alienates us from God are incorporated into the very substance of God’s divine being. And in Jesus’ resurrection from the dead, God’s life-giving Holy Spirit breathes divine immortality into mortal humanity, gathering all people as “members of the same body, and sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.” (verse 6)

Immortal God, we give you thanks for the mystery of the gospel, which calls us to eternal life within your infinite love, revealed in, with and through your incarnate word, Jesus Christ. Amen. — PL

Contributed by The Mystery of the Gospel

In a Roman prison cell for proclaiming the gospel, Apostle Paul reflects on God's "eternal purpose?carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord." (verse 11) To borrow the words Winston Churchill used to characterize Russian military strategy during World War II, "It is a riddle wrapped in a mystery in an enigma." From the pregnant pause prior to the big bang beginning of time, evolving through history toward the fullness of God's promised future beyond the end of time, God's self-giving love yearns to gather all people of all cultures, creeds, classes and colours, into God's universal holy communion of grace. In the cross of Jesus Christ, an ancient method of capital punishment designed by oppressive political power, God fulfills that glorious mission In the crucified Jesus of Nazareth, all the sin, evil and death of the human condition that alienates us from God are incorporated into the very substance of God's divine being. And in Jesus' resurrection from the dead, God's life-giving Holy Spirit breathes divine immortality into mortal humanity, gathering all people as "members of the same body, and sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel." (verse 6)
Eternity for Today