JULY 24 READING…1 CORINTHIANS 15
The word gospel means good news. From a biblical perspective, Gospel means the good news about who Jesus is and what He did that brings salvation to all who believe and trust in Him. The Gospel matters…Paul tells us that there is only one Gospel that saves, and all other so-called gospels are not Gospels at all. In a nutshell the Gospel is that Jesus the Son of God came to this earth to be the sacrifice and ransom for we sinners…Jesus died on the cross as the substitutionary atonement…they buried Him, proving that He was dead…and on the third day He rose from the dead overcoming death and hell for all who believe. This is the Gospel of salvation…and there is no other gospel that can bring salvation. Paul spends the rest of the 15th chapter focusing on the importance and necessity of the Resurrection of Jesus. First, it is important that we understand what the Bible means with the term “Resurrection” …this word means that Jesus full bodily rose from the dead. This is important because there are progressive theologians that teach that Jesus’ resurrection was merely a “spiritual resurrection” …that is, His spirit rose, but His body remains in the tomb. This is not a resurrection at all…and there is no salvation found in such theology. Paul tells us that if Jesus did not literally rise from the dead our faith is futile and powerless. He says that our sharing the Gospel is in vain if Jesus did not rise from the dead. No one else could rise from the dead if Jesus did not rise from the dead. If Jesus is still dead, He is incapable of promising or giving us eternal life. His Resurrection is a demonstration of His power over death. Because of His Resurrection we not only have a wonderful message…we have hope of eternal life. His Resurrection guarantees us that there is life after death…life eternal in the presence of God.
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TOMORROW’S READING…1 CORINTHIANS 16
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