Evaluation of Gospel Plans

Introduction

Gospel plans and tracts are beneficial ways of sharing the Gospel clearly, for they often incorporate a substantial amount of Scripture and present the Gospel in a form that is appealing to the eyes through graphics and understandable to broad audiences. This brief paper will examine four plans in light of various elements of the Gospel: humanity and sin, God and Christ, and faith and repentance.¹

Experiencing God’s Grace Model

In the “Experiencing God’s Grace” Model, the Southern Baptist Convention uses the GRACE acronym to demonstrate the Gospel: God, Rebellion, Atonement, Conversion, and Eternal Life.² This model is ultimately Christocentric as shown by the graphic on double imputation: Christ receives our sin and its penalty, and we receive His righteousness.³ This Christocentric focus is a strength of this plan, for salvation is accomplished by Christ alone: “By His life, Jesus attained righteousness on sinners’ behalf. By His death, Jesus paid the penalty that sinners owed. By His resurrection, Jesus defeated death for all who will follow Him.”⁴ A downside of this presentation is that the responses of faith and repentance are not included explicitly in the acronym, yet the section on conversion does speak on these. It states, “To receive Jesus as Savior and Lord, we must trust in Him alone for salvation… We must turn from our sins (repent) and turn to Him in love and obedience.”⁵ Overall, this plan is biblical and most beneficial in understanding the work of Christ in that “He (God) made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”⁶

The Greatest Words Ever Spoken

Another helpful plan is the “Greatest Word” tract, which provides quotes from various famous philosophers and politicians. However, these words do not compare to the greatest words ever spoken: “It is finished!”⁷ Therefore, this tract presents the Gospel similarly to the GRACE model, for it focuses on the work of Christ. It demonstrates the sinfulness of humanity, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way,” and the propitiation of Christ, “The Lord has laid on Him the sin of us all.”⁸ Through His death, Jesus paid the price for our sin and declared that it was over and done with. In His death, Jesus purchased true life for His people. Just as the GRACE model demonstrates that Christ gives His people His righteousness, this tract tells that Jesus paid the price and offers His own life to all who confess faith in Him. Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment but has passed from death to life.”⁹ While this plan captures the biblical message of the Gospel, I believe it could focus more on the response of repentance, for all it mentions is that when believers ask for forgiveness, they must also ask God to change their ways.¹⁰

The Gospel: God’s Plan for Us

Missio’s “The Gospel: God’s Plan for Us” plan declares, “The [G]ospel is the good news, the message about Christ, the kingdom of God, and salvation,” recommending the Gospel to be shared in the following way:¹¹

[The original includes Missio’s five-icon sequence: GOD RULES · WE SINNED · GOD PROVIDED · JESUS GIVES · WE RESPOND.]

This plan is delivered through the five points: God is King over everything and created the world good; humans rebelled and disobeyed God; Jesus is the way; Jesus takes our punishment and gives us His righteousness; and we respond by trusting Jesus and turning from our sinful ways.¹² This is a simple representation of the Gospel and delivers the saving message concisely. This is because this particular tract is directed toward young students, yet its simplicity may prove helpful to those who have never heard or understood the Message.

The Three Circles

The final Gospel presentation is from the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC). In “The 3 Circles,” the EPC explains the Gospel as a recovery of God’s original design.¹³ God designed the world well, yet sin caused the world to enter a state of brokenness. Therefore, God sent His Son, Jesus, to pay the penalty of sin for those who “repent and believe” in Him. This action gives believers the power through the Holy Spirit to “recover and pursue” God’s original design for the world. This restoration will take place in all its glory when God makes the world new. “The 3 Circles” plan and tool for evangelism differs from the previous plans, for it not only focuses on the imputation of sins to Jesus but also on the recovery and restoration of all of creation, which is lacking in the previous plans.¹⁴

[The original includes the EPC “3 Circles” diagram: God’s Design → (Sin) → Brokenness → (Repent and Believe) → Gospel → (Recover and Pursue) → back to God’s Design.]

Conclusion

Overall, all of these Gospel plans are helpful for different purposes. The former two’s emphasis on the work of Christ is a highlight, while the latter two focus on sharing the Gospel with children and restoring God’s design. Depending on the context of the evangelistic encounter and the specific audience of it, these presentations will be useful to varying degrees. However, a Gospel presentation that captures all of the elements of the Gospel is always better than a presentation that does not. Therefore, we should utilize plans that demonstrate the Gospel thoroughly and cautiously utilize other resources that complement these plans.

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Footnotes

1. Timothy K. Beougher, Invitation to Evangelism: Sharing the Gospel with Compassion and Conviction (Grand Rapids: Kregel Academic, 2021), 103-111. ↩

2. “Experiencing God’s Grace”; class handout in Evangelism and Discipleship (Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Spring 2024), 2-18. ↩

3. Ibid., 12. ↩

4. Ibid., 13. ↩

5. “Experiencing God’s Grace,” 14-15. ↩

6. 2 Cor. 5:21, qtd. in “Experiencing God’s Grace,” 12. ↩

7. John 19:30, qtd. in “The Greatest Word”; class handout in Evangelism and Discipleship (Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Spring 2024). ↩

8. Isa. 53:6, qtd. in “The Greatest Word.” ↩

9. John 5:24, qtd. in “The Greatest Word.” ↩

10. “The Greatest Word.” ↩

11. “The Gospel: God’s Plan for Us,” Missio Church. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5ace72fe1aef1d5a1761f466/t/62d57b6fb219d103fa1fefa6/1658157936143/01_tgp4_v4_yk_leader_guide+%28dragged%29.pdf ↩

12. Ibid. ↩

13. “The 3 Circles,” Evangelical Presbyterian Church. https://epc.org/wp-content/uploads/Files/3-How-We-Do-It/1-CPR/The3Circles.pdf ↩

14. This link provides some background on “The 3 Circles” and a helpful video. https://epc.org/threecircles/ ↩