The essential message of the church is that Jesus is Lord and that he came to rescue us. In Acts 2, Peter preached that Jesus was crucified according to God’s plan and then raised from the dead, proving he is Lord and Messiah. That message calls for a response. Not religion, which tries to earn God’s favor, and not relativism, which ignores how we live, but repentance and faith in Jesus.
The Message the Early Church Preached
Churches today do a lot of things: worship services, kids’ programs, small groups, outreach events. Those are good, but none of them is the main thing. When the church was born on the day of Pentecost, Peter stood up in front of thousands of people in Jerusalem and preached one simple message about Jesus.
Acts 2:23-24 This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.
Notice the two sides of this message. The cross wasn’t an accident or a tragedy that caught God off guard. It was part of his plan to deal with our sin. And the resurrection proved that Jesus was exactly who he claimed to be. Peter concluded that God has made Jesus “both Lord and Messiah” (Acts 2:36). That is the gospel, the essential message every church is called to proclaim.
The First Wrong Response: Religion
When people hear that message, one common response is to turn it into a to-do list. Religion says, “If Jesus is Lord, then I’d better start living a good enough life to earn his approval.” It sounds noble, but it’s actually legalism. It puts the weight of salvation back on our own performance.
The problem is that no one can carry that weight. Legalism either crushes people under guilt or puffs them up with pride. It also makes Christianity deeply unappealing to people who are searching, because it presents God as a demanding boss rather than a loving rescuer. The gospel is good news precisely because Jesus did what we could never do.
The Second Wrong Response: Relativism
The opposite mistake is just as dangerous. Relativism says, “Since I’m saved by grace, it doesn’t really matter how I live.” It treats Jesus as Savior but not as Lord. Paul anticipated this attitude and answered it directly.
Romans 6:1-2 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?
Grace doesn’t give us permission to keep living our own way. It gives us power to live a new way. If Jesus really is Lord, then he has the right to shape every part of our lives, not just our eternal destination.
The Right Response: Repentance and Faith
When Peter’s listeners realized what they had done, they were cut to the heart and asked what they should do (Acts 2:37). Peter’s answer shows the response God is looking for.
Acts 2:38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Repentance means turning from our own way to God’s way. Faith means putting our total trust in Jesus and what he did on the cross, not just knowing the facts about him. Baptism publicly expresses that faith, and Christians understand its role in different ways, as we explore in What Does Acts 2:38 Teach About Baptism and Salvation? And God gives every believer the Holy Spirit to help us grow. If you’d like to learn more about putting your faith in Jesus, check out How can I become a Christian?
The Takeaway
What is the essential message of the church? Jesus is Lord, proven by his death and resurrection, and he came to rescue us. The wrong responses are religion, which tries to earn salvation, and relativism, which ignores his lordship. The right response is repentance and faith in Jesus.
