Justin Buzzard recently asked D.A. Carson 4 questions “about the gospel, the upcoming generation, and doing ministry in unchurched regions like the San Francisco Bay Area.” The first question is, “In a paragraph, what does it mean to be gospel-centered in one’s Christian life?” Carson’s answer:
Some think of the gospel as so slender it does nothing more than get us into the kingdom. After that the real work of transformation begins. But a biblically-faithful understanding of the gospel shows that gospel to be rich, powerful, the wisdom of God and the power of God, all we need in Christ. It is the gospel that saves us, transforms us, conforms us to Christ, prepares us for the new heaven and the new earth, establishes our relations with fellow-believers, teaches us how to work and serve so as to bring glory to God, calls forth and edifies the church, and so forth. This gospel saves — and “salvation” means more than just “getting in,” but transformed wholeness. It would be easy to write many pages on how a gospel-centered ness affects all of life, but one must begin with a full-orbed understanding of what the gospel is and does.
Check out his post for the answers to other questions.