Gospel ABC's

 

To commemorate March 4^th once again, let us reflect on the fundamentals of the Christian faith, and what we have believed to be given the title of Christian. Before that, however, I wanted to relate a conversation I recently had with another professing believer that attends a church here in Duluth. I won’t mention names, but she and I engaged in a conversation about the Bible, Jesus Christ, and salvation, and I was sorrowful to discover that she did not know what the gospel was. Her impression of salvation, derived it seems from her church, was that good acts outweigh the bad, and by this one is saved. In summary, she believed the gospel of works salvation.

I’m glad to God that I could clarify for her what the gospel really was, and how we are all saved by faith alone in Jesus Christ alone. More than that, it saddened me that a professing church did not articulate the gospel to its congregation. If a church (or an individual) fails in this aspect, they have failed in every avenue of the Christian life. The purpose of the church is to educate the flock and bring them into a closer walk with the Lord; but above that it is imperative to hear and believe the gospel by which all mankind must be saved. If you have not believed the gospel then you are not saved and therefore not a part of the church. You may be in the building, but you are not set apart and born again by the Holy Spirit through faith in Jesus. So then, what is the gospel?

 

I have heard some critics of the Bible actually level the charge against it that Scripture does not make it clear how one is saved. This criticism, while sophomoric, may also be sincere and must be answered clearly, because the Bible does furnish a concise response. That response is found in 1 Corinthians chapter 15, which we will focus on and exegete, to highlight the gospel message, and what it should mean to those who have believed, or have yet to believe, for that matter.

 

Paul writes this to the Corinthian church: “Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand,” 1 Corinthians 15:1. The verb, “declare” means, “to state, to announce.” Paul is announcing the gospel, the good news that he personally preached to this church. Furthermore, he not only preached the gospel, but also testifies that they likewise received it, and now stand in it. It is the gospel, “in which you stand.” The idea is positional. They stand in the liberty of the good news, having passed through the open door of salvation Paul showed them. Paul couldn’t compel them to enter; no, the Corinthian Christians needed to hear and believe individually.

 

He has not reached the gospel message itself yet. Continuing, Paul writes, “by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain,” 1 Corinthians 15:2. Putting events in order: #1: Paul preached the gospel. #2: the Corinthians received it, synonymous with having believed the gospel. #3: they currently stand in the gospel. Notice how “preached,” and “received” are past tense verbs; Paul did the former, the Corinthians did the latter. But the verb “stand” connotes a continuous action, which may be paraphrased, “you continue standing.” It is a positional shift from their former worldview, which was contrary to God, resulting in a stance that placed them firmly in spiritual death. #4: the Corinthians were saved by the good news. The good news was the catalyst for the rebirth that brought the Corinthian believers out of their stand in death, to stand in the liberty of eternal life. “Hold fast,” would be akin to “continue believing.” Paul cautions the church that the stance they have taken reflects the message of the gospel they were saved by and urges them to continue believing it, much like John encouraged his own audience, 1 John 5:13.

 

When Paul writes, “unless you believed in vain,” he’s warning about the historicity of the resurrection, and the danger believers face by rejecting its reality, as championed by some within the early church already, 1 Corinthians 15:12. Peter attests to the same, when he wrote, “For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty,” 2 Peter 1:16. Why is this important? Because Paul’s gospel, the only gospel by which we may be saved, involves the bodily resurrection of Jesus our Lord. The HCSB renders that portion of Corinthians, “unless you believed for no purpose.” Believing in something that isn’t real won’t make it so; reality does not acquiesce to the delusions of religious mania. So in this instance, to believe in vain would be to say that the Corinthians believed in something that never happened; their faith is misplaced in a Man that never rose from the dead, 1 Corinthians 15:13-16. The stand the Corinthians initially took involved the complete reception and retention of the gospel message, by which they were saved. An incomplete message, or an errant message manufactured by liars does not, which is why Paul commends holding fast the word initially given to them, unless their belief was misplaced, because the resurrection was a fable. Such faith cannot save, because they would be trusting in a Jesus that never rose from the dead; they would still need a Savior, 1 Corinthians 15:17.

 

But what does Paul say? He reminded the Corinthian Christians, now being seduced by ravening wolves that denied the bodily resurrection, what the gospel message was. “For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,” 1 Corinthians 15:3. In the epistle to the Galatians, Paul assured them that no human agency revealed the gospel to him. “For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ,” Galatians 1:12. One verse earlier he also adds, “But I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man,” verse 11. Paul received the gospel from Jesus Himself, likely on the Damascus road, when the Lord appeared in glory to Paul. Paul, like Peter and John, considered themselves witnesses of these events, which were real, historical happenings translated to their hearers so that they may place their faith in the One that conquered death. Luke records in Acts that one of the last things Jesus told His disciples before ascending was, “you shall be witnesses to Me,” Acts 1:8. A witness relates what they know factually in an effort to reveal the truth. A correlating passage can be found in 1 Corinthians 15:5-8, where Paul lists witnesses for the risen Christ, including Cephas (Peter), the twelve, 500 brethren at once, James, all of the apostles, then finally Paul. They were witnesses that served to relate their testimony that Jesus Christ died, was buried, and rose again, having conquered death. This gospel was the good news Paul preached, and which the Corinthian church received, making them a link in the chain of testimony.

 

The first portion of the truth the gospel reveals is that Jesus died on our behalf. And He did so in accordance with the manifold prophecies that Old Testament prophets spoke regarding Him. Our Lord died, but not for Himself. He took our sins upon Himself and suffered the penalty God’s justice demanded: namely, separation from a holy God. Jesus died for all of our sins. Sin is a revelation of an unholy and ungodly nature. Sin is a rebellion against what is moral or just. Sin demonstrates man’s spiritual death, and how we think, say, and do things contrary to the attributes and person of our holy Creator. Sin is an affront to righteousness, a blemish that marred God’s image in us, and forced God to remove His holy presence, resulting in spiritual death. Sin is that unholy part of us that craves autonomy and resists the Holy Spirit; we secretly desire to eat of the fruit of knowledge and become gods, like Lucifer the great deceiver falsely promised. Sin is contempt and hatred for God, and all that He is. Sin isn’t merely imperfection, it’s a catastrophic loss of life, as the Creator passed judgment on human rebellion. What happens when there is no life left? Decay settles in, rather speedily at that, and the condition of that person grows worse and worse while we strive for godhood and scoff at sin’s ramifications. It causes blindness in how we construe the results of our actions, and callouses our conscience. While we blame God for all the “evil out there” we pay no attention to the evil “in here,” as we lie, cheat, steal, practice sexual abandon, exalt ourselves, hate, etc. Christ took this immense wickedness on Himself on the cross, and died to set us free from its penalty. We have all gone astray, seeking our petty schemes, hating God and envying each other, but God laid on Christ all of our iniquity. Do we appreciate the enormity of what Jesus accomplished for us? May it inspire humility and love for our Redeemer.

 

 

Continuing, Paul writes, “and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,” 1 Corinthians 15:4. The gospel is comprised of three components, all of which focus, not on us, but on Jesus Christ. #1: Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures. The Old Testament prophets, beginning in Eden with God’s declaration to the serpent, foretell this Coming One. The suffering Savior would liberate Adam’s sons from the bondage of sin. #2: Jesus was buried. The gospels are harmonious in their united testimony that Jesus died on the cross and was buried in Joseph of Arimathea’s tomb, Luke 23:53. In fact Luke, being a learned man, took great pains to sort out the details regarding Jesus’ ministry and death, to deliver this testimony to a man named Theophilus, Luke 1:3. Jesus’ crucifixion was public, the Pharisees and scribes bore witness, as did the women that followed Jesus, as well as John. He was dead before the thieves had their legs broken, and was stabbed in the side with a spear to make certain. The Roman soldiers would not have permitted Him to be taken away, having only swooned, since they would be hanging on the cross next if someone ordained to such a death eluded justice. Manifold witnesses could attest to His demise, and Luke was confident he had interviewed the people that could edify him regarding the details, Luke 1:2, 3. Furthermore, he began his gospel by affirming that many had set out to put the events of Jesus’ ministry and death in order, Luke 1:1. The historical record is conclusive: Jesus Christ lived and died as the gospels proclaim it; but that is only part of the story.

 

#3: Jesus rose from the dead, according to the Scriptures. Like His vicarious sacrifice for our sins, the Old Testament prophets, once more beginning in Eden, foretold that the suffering Savior would also be conquering King. However, first He must suffer before He would reign. The Seed of the woman in Genesis 3:15 would be gravely wounded, but the serpent would be fatally wounded. Hebrews 9:28 attests that Jesus will return, not to contend with sin (because He already did so on the cross), but to usher in His reign, collect His bride, and save all of Israel from her enemies. Return to Acts 1:8, where Jesus tells His disciples that they will be His witnesses: a term employed by Peter, Paul, and others throughout the rest of the book of Acts, which records the first thirty-odd years of the church. What were they witnessing to? The risen Christ, and the fact that He appeared to chosen witnesses, who related what they had seen and experienced to others. This is the essence of the gospel; the factual, historical account of Jesus Christ: God incarnated as a Man, who came as a ransom to save Adam’s children. Furthermore, He would rise from death to demonstrate that He had triumphed over sin, death, and the Devil, and that by returning to life, all who placed their faith in Him could also have perfect confidence that they, too, could experience newness of life.

 

Christians don’t worship a philosophy or system; we do not advocate religion or something esoteric. We witness that there was a Man sent by God, and that Man was in fact God the Son, sent from Heaven to save mankind from sin. These are not cunningly devised fables. Jesus was not a made up person, because, as Paul affirmed decades later to King Agrippa, these things were not done in a corner, Acts 26:26. We worship God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We are saved into the family of God through faith in the One that died for us, to pay for the sin that would eternally separate us from a holy God. This One was buried. This One rose again, and was seen by those, “to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God,” Acts 1:3. The gospel, or the good news Paul proclaimed to the Corinthian church, reminding them of its salvific power, was (and remains) grounded in historical reality. Even His enemies didn’t deny His existence or impact on those that heard Him; rather, they endeavored to be spin doctors, playing damage control in an effort to sabotage the truth, Matthew 28:13-15. Yet the truth remains. The gospel alone saves; all else is sinking sand. As we continue our march forth, let us, who are God’s children through faith, reflect on the ABC’s, because sometimes the fundamentals still have much to teach us. Amen.