The church in the Western world has been in decline for some time now. We are struggling to find traction within our culture. Even within the walls of our church buildings we have found our effectiveness deeply wanting. We often say with words that the Gospel is “powerful” and changes lives, but it seems as though we rarely see it. What is wrong? Why is it that the Gospel is changing lives in China, India, and the Middle East, but the Western world seems not to be able to care less? Could it be that we have lost the full Gospel message? What IS the message of the Gospel? Can you put it into a few words? Maybe this is just the problem. Maybe we have tried to sum up the Gospel into quick and easy sound-bytes and have lost it in the process. The word “Gospel” means “good news”. What is this news exactly? The only real way to answer this question is to the listen to the four original evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. What did they say was the good news? And is that news still relevant today? Will the Western Church be surprised hear what they have to say? I believe that we will. Find out why in this week’s Gospel for Planet Earth Podcast!