The gospel of Jesus Christ and him crucified is the gospel of grace. We receive the gospel by faith and it is the power of God unto salvation. The salvation is not temporal or earthly but is eternal and with power. In that power we have been translated from the power of darkness into the kingdom of God's dear Son. That kingdom is not on earth nor is it of the earth but from above in heaven where we have been positionally made to sit together in heavenly places in Christ. We are members of Christ's body here on earth which is represented by the church as ambassadors of Christ. The message of this gospel is not of the kingdom but is a word and ministry of reconciliation through the blood of Christ.
This gospel is one of the death, burial and resurrection of Christ and it involves God's imputed righteousness, justification by faith and the cleansing of all sin, including the purging of all dead works from the conscience through the blood of Christ. Christ is the head of the church and we are the members of his body, flesh and bones. The body is a living organism and each member has a supply of the Spirit to contribute. We have need of one another and through the supply of the Spirit we contribute to that which is lacking. Each member is one in particular being born of the Spirit and the incorruptible seed of God's word. We are a kingdom of royal priests but we function as a body of believers in the royal law of love. We are here to be a partakers of Christ's sufferings for a servant is not greater than his master.
We are to lay our life down for one another as servants and we wash one another's feet. We bear one another's burden and in doing so we fulfill the law of Christ. We edify and build up one another and comfort one another in the forbearance of God. We are to live in the Spirit and walk in the Spirit being filled with the fruit of the Spirit instead of walking in the flesh. We have no continuing city but we seek one to come. We are to be occupied with Christ, building ourselves up in the most holy faith and love of God and abstaining from fleshly lusts that war against the soul as sojourners, strangers and pilgrims in this life. This is part of the life of the believer in the body of Christ, the church.
2 Peter 1:1-11
1 Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,
3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9 But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.
10 Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:
11 For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
