Introduction
If someone asked you, “What is the gospel?” could you answer clearly in a few minutes? Many of us can talk about church or morality, yet struggle to explain the actual good news. Pastor Conrad Mbewe of Kabwata Baptist Church in Lusaka answers that question in a short Ask an African Pastor video from The Gospel Coalition Africa. He begins with Romans 1:16–17, then walks through our fallenness, Christ’s perfect life and substitutionary death, and the free gift of His righteousness to those who repent and believe.
Preacher: Conrad Mbewe — Reformed Baptist pastor of Kabwata Baptist Church, Lusaka; Council member of The Gospel Coalition Africa; serves with African Christian University.
Embedded Video
If the video doesn’t load, watch it on YouTube. Source: TGC Africa – What Is the Gospel?.
Key Lessons
- The word gospel means good news: God Himself provides the way for sinners to be reconciled to Him, transformed, and finally brought to heaven.
- We are fallen in Adam—liable to judgment and corrupted in nature—so every religion of human effort fails.
- Christ lived a perfect life, took His people’s guilt, and paid the ultimate price as their substitute.
- Those who turn from sin in genuine repentance and believe this good news receive Christ’s righteousness freely and begin to live in union with God.
Learn · Grow · Do
- Learn: The gospel is “the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16, NASB 1995), centred on Christ who was made sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21).
- Grow: Move past vague religion to a clear trust in Christ’s finished work, not in your own reaching up to God.
- Do: Write the gospel in four short lines of your own words, then read Romans 1:1–17 and check whether your summary matches Paul.
Related Scripture
- Romans 1:16–17 (primary passage in the teaching)
- 2 Corinthians 5:21 (cited in the transcript)
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “But the righteous man shall live by faith.”” (Romans 1:16–17, NASB 1995)
“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21, NASB 1995)
