Just the Facts

By Pastor Tim Hitchcock

 

“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:”  (I Corinthians 15:1-4)

 

            In these few verses of Scripture, the Apostle Paul made a declaration that he would set out the facts of the gospel.  What is the gospel?  What does it mean to be saved?  Why do we need to be saved?  How do we get saved?  These are all worthy questions that deserve a simple answer.

           

The word gospel means “good news.”  He was writing to saved people; i.e., people who had already received the “good news” and had taken their stand with it.  Paul said that salvation is based upon this gospel and our reception of it.  If we truly believe it, we will not hesitate to take our stand with it.  We will become obedient to Christ and will seek to live for Him.  If we have reservations and are not sure whether we want to commit or not, then the reality is: we do not really believe it.  We may kid ourselves, but, truthfully, we do not believe.  Our profession is merely a vain exercise in nothingness.

Genuine saving faith has both substance and evidence (Hebrews ll: 1).

 

            When Paul spoke of receiving the gospel, he meant believing it with authentic faith.  With that in mind, he set out five simple facts that even a young child can understand.  These are the facts of the gospel:

1.)    Christ died

--By implication, Christ was born and was a real historical figure.  He was not merely a myth or legend like Robinhood.  He was born, lived, and died.

2.)    Christ was buried

--This real person, Christ, who was born and died, was buried.  He was tightly wrapped in a grave cloth that would have suffocated anyone still alive.  He was then placed into a sealed tomb with a Roman guard consisting of hardened soldiers who knew their lives would be forfeit if anything happened to the body.

3.)    Christ arose

--In spite of this Roman guard, after three days, He arose from the grave.  Afterwards he walked among men for some forty days and was seen of more than five hundred eyewitnesses at one time.

4.)    According to the Scriptures

--All of this was done in fulfillment of literally hundreds of Old Testament passages predicting every aspect of His life from birth to death, burial, and resurrection.  These verses were translated from Hebrew and Aramaic to Greek (The Septuagint) more than two hundred years before He was born.  There is no historical doubt of their existence at the time of His birth.  He fulfilled all.

5.)    For our sins

--This is the best fact of all.  He did all of this to pay the penalty for our sins.  We are sinners (Romans 3:23) who are justly condemned by our sin (Romans 6:23).  “But God commendeth His love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8).”   He died in our place.

 

            These facts are indisputable.  Not one of the eyewitnesses ever changed their story, even though, most experienced terrible persecution and many were martyred for their faith.  They continued faithfully until their demise.  This resulted in a miraculous spread of the gospel that by the end of the first century had reached far beyond the confines of the Roman Empire.  Indeed the whole world had been evangelized.

 

            The facts are true today as well.  The big question is: what will we do about them?  Will we believe them and live them?  Will we sacrifice ourselves for them?  Will we remain true to them as the eyewitnesses did?

 

            If you have never understood or appreciated these facts before, and if you have come to realize that they are true and that you need Christ as your savior, I invite you to simply tell God that you are a sinner and want Christ to save you.  Romans 10:13 says, “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

 

            If you have done that, please write or email me so that I can pray for you and provide you with some literature that can help you to live the new life you have in Christ.

God will surely bless those who receive this good news with gladness.  I look forward to hearing from you.