 What's
The Good News?
by Lois Tverberg
"But
the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring
you good
news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in
the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is
Christ the
Lord. " Luke 2:10-11
People
who lived through World War II often say that there was no greater joy
than on May 8, 1945, when the victory was declared in Europe. More recently,
the scenes most remember in our lifetime with joy are the felling of the
Berlin Wall, and recently, the toppling of the statue of Saddam Hussein.
Iraqis
were shouting for joy, and many who had lived in fear of torture and murder
for decades said that they felt like they had been "reborn."
In all of these cases, the
"good news" was that of the end of a war, or a removal of an
evil political power. It was as if a nightmare was suddenly over, and
a new morning had come.
Interestingly,
the word in Greek that we translate "good news" or "gospel," euaggelion, has exactly that connotation in Greek. It is great
news of a victory in war, or the rise of a powerful new king.
It
is a translation of the Hebrew word
besorah, which is wonderful news
of national importance about a political change, or war won.
When
we understand that the main messianic image of Jesus is that of
a king,
we see how this fits into what the angels were saying. They were proclaiming
the news to the whole world that a new king had come, the one
God had
anointed (Christ) to be ruler (Lord) over all.
When
Paul called himself
an "ambassador of Christ," proclaiming
the
"gospel of the kingdom," he was also really saying that the
anointed king of the world had come.1
Although Caesar may seem to be in power, Paul's mission was to be a representative
to the real king to proclaim
his victory and invite people to enter
under
his reign.
Let
us not forget that we serve a victorious king, who has won the war against
sin and death. And may we spread the good news of
his reign everywhere
on earth.
1
See the article "Paul's
Gospel and Caesar's Empire" at this link by N. T. Wright.
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