PREACH CHRIST

1 Corinthians 15:1-8 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; by which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the scriptures: and that He was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: after that, He was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. After that, He was seen of James; then of all the apostles. And last of all He was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.

It was during Paul's second missionary journey, that, after leaving Athens, he came to Corinth to preach the gospel of Christ. ...he continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them (Acts 18:11), ...and many of the Corinthians hearing believed, and were baptized (Acts 18:8). Paul, as he begins the 15th chapter of his letter to the church at Corinth, reminds them of the days past when the body of Christ was established among them in their city. It was this gospel message that they had received, and it was the very foundation on which they were able to stand. Due to the arguing, strife, and division that existed among its members, and was evidently harming, the church of Christ at Corinth, Paul reminded them of the unity that existed when this body of Christ was first established. It was this message of salvation that they had originally received, and on which they had originally stood firm.

Paul told them that it was the acceptance of, and obedience to, the gospel message by which also ye are saved. That is, they were in a saved state - their salvation depended on being in the body of Christ, and faithfully remaining in this saved state. Most certainly their salvation was not assured, because Paul follows with this qualifying phrase: if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you. Their salvation depended on, not only scripturally becoming a Christian, but also remaining a faithful, obedient Christian. The doctrine of Christ that he had delivered to them initially, was to continue to govern their lives. They were to continue to believe it, live by it, retain it, and hold fast to it, and use it to counter the doctrine of false teachers, that were causing divisions within the body of Christ at Corinth.

Paul told them that, turning from the gospel of Christ would, at this time, demonstrate the vanity of their original conversion to Christianity. These opening comments, by Paul, set up the message he was now delivering to them with this epistle - that their obedience to the gospel of Christ would have been in vain, if Jesus Christ had not conquered, and arisen from Satan's grip of death. This fact is, indeed, the foundation on which the church at Corinth, and the church of Christ throughout all ages, is to firmly stand. This fact, Paul proceeds to plainly and clearly establish, not ambiguously, but in straightforward, unequivocal terms, using God's wisdom to its fullest extent.

It is through the eyes of those that saw Jesus alive, after His death on the cross at Calvary, and after His burial in the sealed tomb of Joseph, of Arimathea, that prove, without question, that He conquered, both death and Satan, through His resurrection. This fact alone, allow the Christians of Corinth, and Christians throughout all ages, to see Jesus Christ with an understandable, clear vision, that He is the Messiah, the Son of God, and the Savior of the world. The prophesy found in Old Testament scriptures revealed that Christ died for our sins (Isaiah 53). Jesus, Himself, quotes this fact, which was recorded in Luke 22:37. It was not possible for death and the grave to prevent the resurrection of Jesus; ...He rose again the third day according to the scriptures (See Hos. 6:2; Jonah 1:17; Matt. 12:40; Luke 24:46. The resurrection of Jesus was the very core of Peter's sermon on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:25-33). It was also the innermost part of Paul's sermon delivered in the synagogue in Antioch of Pesidia (Acts 13:26-37).

Many different people saw Jesus, after His resurrection, and on many different occasions. This was the necessary proof needed to confirm His resurrection from the dead. Although Paul does not mention all occasions, he does tell us that Peter and all other apostles saw Jesus, as did five hundred brethren at once, James (the Lord's brother), as well as he, himself. God's plan of eternal salvation cannot be taught by Paul, by any other gospel preacher, or by you or I, either then or now, unless we Preach Christ!