What is the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ? If you want a one verse summary, look no further than Mark 1:15.

“The time is fulfilled.” This means of course that all the long years of waiting for God to keep His Old Testament promises are over, as they have all been fulfilled in Jesus. He is the Passover Lamb (Exodus 12:6-7) Who sheds the blood of the covenant (Exodus 24:8), dying so that all His people might be forgiven. Moreover, He is the Messiah, the Son of David Who has come to rule and reign over all His people forever (II Samuel 7:16).

And that leads us to the second part of the gospel: “The Kingdom of God is at hand.” This can have two meanings. First, Jesus already has all authority in Heaven and on earth today (Matthew 28:18). But second, the revelation of this Kingdom to the unbelieving world, which will take place when Jesus comes again, is just around the corner.

And how are we to respond to these facts about Jesus? “Repent.” There’s no escaping this part of the gospel. In order for the coming of the King to be good news to any of us, we must turn away from our sin, our rebellion against Him. We must not only accept His gracious pardon, but submit ourselves to His righteous rule over every area of our lives, even when His requirements don’t make sense to us.

But we are also to “Believe in the gospel,” the good news that even the most recalcitrant rebels can be saved by God’s grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. Because He has died for sinners like us, we know that our King loves us with an unconditional, self-sacrificial, everlasting love. Moreover, we know that He will treat all who come to Him not as prisoners of war, but as beloved children, no matter what we may have done or left undone.

But there’s one more way we must respond to the gospel. We must heed the call which Jesus extends in Mark 1:17: “Follow Me.” If we really believe what Jesus has said about Himself and His ministry in verse 15, we must share that truth with others. And that involves not just the words we speak, but the life we live in consistent surrender to our King. We must live as He lives and love as He loves if we are to draw others out of their rebellion and into loyal submission to King Jesus.

Peter and Andrew, James and John believed the gospel and left everything to follow Jesus (Mark 1:18, 20). Will we do the same thing?

Mark 1:14-20 (NASB)

14 And after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God,
15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”
16 And as He was going along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen.
17 And Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.”
18 And they immediately left the nets and followed Him.
19 And going on a little farther, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who were also in the boat mending the nets.
20 And immediately He called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went away to follow Him.