“according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust” (1 Timothy 1:11).
The word “glorious” is an important Biblical concept that is often poorly defined or misunderstood. One author provides us with a brief overview of the word “glory” from a Biblical perspective…
“The word glory in Hebrew, kabod, derives from a root word meaning ‘weight.’ For example, the value of a gold coin was determined by its weight. To have weight, therefore, is to have value or worth.
The Greek word for glory, doxa, originally meant ‘opinion.’ This word refers to the worth or value which we, in our opinion, assign to someone or something. The Hebrew idea speaks of what is inherent in God—His intrinsic value or worth; the Greek idea speaks of the response of intelligent and moral beings to the value or worth they see manifested by God’s Word and works.” (1)
In light of this, we can say that the honorable, valuable, and praiseworthy nature of the gospel is reflective of the blessed God from whom it proceeds. This brings us to the subject of the “gospel,” a word that originally referred to “glad tidings” or “good news.”
In a Scriptural context, the gospel refers to the “good news” regarding Jesus’ sacrifice on our behalf. That sacrifice atones (or “makes up”) for our sins and enables us to enter a relationship with God by grace through faith in Christ.
We can identify the foundational elements of the gospel message with a look at the following passage from 1 Corinthians 15:1-4…
“Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures” (NIV).
The gospel message is something that requires immediate attention, for as Paul the Apostle will later go on to add in 2 Corinthians 6:1-2…
“In our work together with God, then, we beg you who have received God’s grace not to let it be wasted. Hear what God says: ‘When the time came for me to show you favor, I heard you; when the day arrived for me to save you, I helped you.’ Listen! This is the hour to receive God’s favor; today is the day to be saved!” (GW).
(1) Joel R. Beeke, Living for God’s Glory: An Introduction to Calvinism © 2008