Simplicity of the Gospel

This month we will be starting a series on the gospel. The simplicity of the gospel is seen in 1 Corinthians 15:3-5 where Paul states;

“For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, …” Of all the things that Paul would share with those that he met on his journeys this message was the one that was the most important and foundational to everything else that he shared.

Christ died for our sins – tells us why he had to die not for his sin because he was perfect but for our sin which had alienated us from God. It reveals God's love for us in sending Jesus and reveals our total inability to save ourselves.

According to the scriptures – this was an action that was not thought up on the spur of the moment or as a last resort but was prophesized long before and recorded. God knew the future and had already planned His response. He shares that with us in the bible so that we can be confident in Him.

That he was buried – you only bury people that are dead, this counters the many different theories, one being that Jesus merely was unconscious and was revived in the coolness of the tomb. No, Jesus actually laid his life down for you and me.

That he was raised on the third day – death, the price Jesus paid for the sin of the world could not hold Him down. After three days the Father regarded the debt of our sin to have been fully paid. He demonstrated this to us by raising Jesus from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. The empty tomb is our guarantee that as we repent and believe in Jesus we will be accepted by the Father.

We are looking closely at these truths so that we may be fully equipped to be like Paul and share this with those we meet.