George Ladd, On the Nature of the Gospel in God’s Kingdom

“How men need the Gospel! Everywhere one goes he finds the gaping graves swallowing up the dying. Tears of loss, of separation, of final departure stain every face. Every table sooner or latter has an empty chair, every fireside its vacant place. Death is the great leveler. Wealth or poverty, fame or oblivion, power or futility, success or failure, race creed or culture – all our human distinctions mean nothing before the ultimate irresistible sweep of the scythe of death which cuts us all down. And whether the mausoleum is a fabulous Taj Mahal, a massive pyramid, an unmarked spot of ragged grass or the unplotted depths of the sea one fact stands: death reigns. Apart from the gospel of the kingdom, death is the mighty conqueror before whom we are all helpless…But the good news is this: death has been defeated; our conqueror has been conquered. In the face of the power of the kingdom of God in Christ, death was helpless. It could not hold Him, death has been defeated; life and immortality have been brought to life. An empty tomb in Jerusalem is proof of it. This is the gospel of the kingdom.” (The Gospel of the Kingdom, pg. 128)