The Gospel
1 Corinthians 151. Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
Remember
1Co 15:1 Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you,
Remember the gospel which was preached originally - which you have believed - the gospel that saved you. That's the gospel you need to remember and remain in. There is no other gospel.
Ga 1:6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:
Ga 1:7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.
Ga 1:8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
Ga 1:9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.
What I fear is that, in this day when there is such a spiritual hunger and a movement of spiritual things, both in and outside of the church, that people will be influenced by false doctrines and false prophets.
There is an emphasis on angels today. Books have abounded in the last ten years or so on the subject. Angels have been the focus of a number of movies in the last few years. People are ripe for deception. They are wide open and have been fed much misinformation about angels. I am certain that evil entities posing as angels will soon, if not already, manifest themselves and give "revelations' to people who are hungry for a revelation. Be careful.
There is also a great move of spiritual experience today. People rush to meetings where so-called prophets of God are giving 'revelations' supposedly from God, and manifestations of various sorts are following their ministries, which appear to give support to what they assert. Again, be careful. Not everything that has signs following is of God. In the last days -
Mt 24:24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
2Th 2:9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
Paul warned, "don't believe them." Be careful that the 'manifestations' are not really 'infestations'. There are deceivers out there and many will be fooled who should know better. If an angel or charismatic preacher preached it wrong today, many would believe it without even questioning.
Signs are not necessarily the proof. Everything must be based on the Word of God. Do not build on experience; build on God's Word.
Take a stand
"…which you received and on which you have taken your stand."
They received the word and took a stand on it. That is the key - taking a stand. Anybody can receive the word. Jesus told of those who received enthusiastically, but had no root - that is, they didn’t let it get hold of them. We must stand on it. Build you life on it. A life not built on the Word is a life built on shaky foundations. What good is it to have a good, firm foundation if you don't build anything on it?
2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
Hold on
1Co 15:2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.
This is a big IF. We don't need a gospel vaccination. We need a transplant.
If you don't hold it firmly, you have believed in vain. If it doesn't last, you didn't get enough.
3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
The message
Of primary importance -
"For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance:…"
This is the message God sent. This is the important thing to remember.
Jesus died for your sins. That is, he died in your place. That is the first thing. If he didn't, then you are still in your sins. But he did. And that according to the scriptures - according to prophecy.
Hundreds of years before, the prophets foretold of Messiah's coming. The savior - God's anointed- would come and take away the sins of the world.
Isa 53:4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
Isa 53:5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
Isa 53:6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Not only did he die, he was dead. That again, is an important fact because of the resurrection. Some said he didn't die. Then why did they bury him? Why did they seal his tomb? What were they afraid of?
Jesus was indeed dead. He was buried. His disciples believed that he was gone. They forgot he promised to rise again. But the Pharisees didn’t. They made sure he was dead and buried and sealed in.
He rose again. Our entire gospel hangs on this fact. If he didn't rise, then he wasn't who he said he was. He was a false prophet - a dreamer. But he did. And that according to prophecy.
Ps 16:10 For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.
Ps 30:3 O LORD, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave: thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.
Jon 1:17 Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
Jon 2:10 ¶ And the LORD spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.
The Psalmist spoke prophetically of Christ. Jesus said that Jonah was a prophetic sign of his own resurrection.
Most of the prophecy concerning his resurrection was from his own mouth. - A pretty daring claim to make if you can't back it up.
Proofs
5 And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve:
6 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.
7 After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles.
8 And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.
The result and proof of grace
9 For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.
10 But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.
Paul recognized his true position - a recognition we all must make if we are to continue to stand. Once you think you are something, you are on your way to a fall.
Pr 16:18 Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.
Paul wisely recognizes that it is strictly by grace that he stands and accomplishes anything. It is by grace and grace alone that we have any place before God.
By God's grace I am what I am and you are what you are. Apart from grace we are hopeless - condemned. We are nothing but dust apart from God's grace and mercy.
Grace that works
Notice what Paul says about the grace he received.
: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.
God's grace was not in vain. It was not without effect. It was not wasted on him. He worked that grace out in his life.
Grace that doesn't work is not grace. It is a cheap substitute. There is a lot of cheap grace today. Grace that claims to know God but has no proof to back it up.
Paul says, "God didn't save me for nothing. He has a purpose and I am going to fulfill that purpose." He says, "I worked hard in the gospel." But then he quickly adds, "It wasn't me but God's grace working in and through me."
Does your grace work?