1 00:00:01,480 --> 00:00:03,520 We're going to start a new series tonight that we're 2 00:00:03,520 --> 00:00:07,640 calling the Gospel Course. What is it? 3 00:00:07,640 --> 00:00:10,760 How do we understand it? If we thought about this and a 4 00:00:10,760 --> 00:00:14,560 classroom kind of setting and we build from one thing to another 5 00:00:14,560 --> 00:00:18,000 thing, we should have a full comprehension as a church and as 6 00:00:18,000 --> 00:00:21,480 individuals of what that word means and what God has done for 7 00:00:21,480 --> 00:00:23,760 us. And throughout this time, we're 8 00:00:23,760 --> 00:00:27,240 going to ask questions like, why do I need the gospel? 9 00:00:28,280 --> 00:00:32,720 I feel like I'm doing just fine. Like why would God want to save 10 00:00:32,720 --> 00:00:34,480 me? Maybe we feel like we're not 11 00:00:35,000 --> 00:00:38,200 worth it. Can I truly be forgiven? 12 00:00:39,160 --> 00:00:41,280 And how can I know that I'm saved? 13 00:00:41,760 --> 00:00:45,160 These are all important questions that we can wrestle 14 00:00:45,160 --> 00:00:47,520 with. But tonight an introduction. 15 00:00:47,520 --> 00:00:51,480 We begin with the question, what is the gospel? 16 00:00:51,600 --> 00:00:54,800 And I know you've heard it, but repetition is the price of 17 00:00:54,800 --> 00:00:56,160 learning. So we're going to go over it 18 00:00:56,160 --> 00:00:59,800 again together today because many times when you ask people 19 00:00:59,800 --> 00:01:02,880 on the street, what is the gospel, And we do a lot of 20 00:01:02,880 --> 00:01:05,720 evangelism. We bug people in Portland. 21 00:01:05,720 --> 00:01:08,800 I work in the Pearl District. Me and Ethan were just out this 22 00:01:08,800 --> 00:01:11,720 week trying to talk to people and see if we can share this 23 00:01:11,720 --> 00:01:14,320 good news with other people. And we ask, have you heard the 24 00:01:14,320 --> 00:01:16,000 gospel? Can I share that with you? 25 00:01:16,800 --> 00:01:18,520 And when people say, yes, I've heard it. 26 00:01:18,520 --> 00:01:22,360 And I ask, what have you heard? Many times, the answer to that 27 00:01:22,360 --> 00:01:26,440 question is really interesting. People think the gospel is a 28 00:01:26,440 --> 00:01:29,360 style of music and sure it can be. 29 00:01:30,160 --> 00:01:32,320 Many would say men, it's the life of Jesus. 30 00:01:32,320 --> 00:01:35,800 There's like 4 gospels, right? That's true also. 31 00:01:36,360 --> 00:01:41,000 Some would say that's how you're supposed to live your life or 32 00:01:41,280 --> 00:01:43,840 others would say well it's the good word. 33 00:01:44,360 --> 00:01:47,000 That's what Ethan and I talked to a guy this week. 34 00:01:47,000 --> 00:01:50,280 He said, what's the good word? Well, what is the good word? 35 00:01:51,240 --> 00:01:54,800 So today we're going to get a very clear definition of what 36 00:01:54,800 --> 00:01:56,480 this word is from the Word of God. 37 00:01:56,480 --> 00:02:00,000 It's not up to me to make things up for Christianity. 38 00:02:00,000 --> 00:02:03,480 We go to our source in the Scriptures and what where we get 39 00:02:03,480 --> 00:02:06,600 this definition is out of a book. 40 00:02:06,960 --> 00:02:10,840 The book of First Corinthians is written as a correction to a 41 00:02:10,840 --> 00:02:14,120 church. So we find ourselves in the 1st 42 00:02:14,120 --> 00:02:18,400 century and the Apostle Paul is the guy that writes this letter. 43 00:02:18,400 --> 00:02:20,280 We'll see more about him in our study. 44 00:02:20,920 --> 00:02:24,320 He traveled around Asia and planted churches. 45 00:02:24,320 --> 00:02:27,520 He preached that gospel people got saved and they gathered 46 00:02:27,760 --> 00:02:31,520 together. He left this church and he had 47 00:02:31,520 --> 00:02:34,600 to write these letters back to them to address all the 48 00:02:34,600 --> 00:02:36,680 scandalous things going on in their church. 49 00:02:37,440 --> 00:02:39,880 Listen, you think, I mean, there's some crazy, weird 50 00:02:39,880 --> 00:02:42,440 churches out there, but I'm going to put a list on the 51 00:02:42,440 --> 00:02:44,720 screen just for a second. These are the things that Paul 52 00:02:44,720 --> 00:02:49,520 corrects in this church. There was a sexual scandal and 53 00:02:49,520 --> 00:02:53,000 someone needed to be kicked out. They were taking each other to 54 00:02:53,000 --> 00:02:55,160 court when Paul said, hey, you ought to be dealing with that 55 00:02:55,160 --> 00:02:57,880 stuff in the church. He had to write and address 56 00:02:57,880 --> 00:03:02,000 marital problems and singleness. And there were people showing up 57 00:03:02,000 --> 00:03:04,240 to the Lord's Supper, getting drunk off the wine. 58 00:03:04,720 --> 00:03:06,600 There was abuse of spiritual gifts. 59 00:03:06,600 --> 00:03:09,160 And we'll find today that they were even denying the 60 00:03:09,160 --> 00:03:12,520 resurrection altogether. So what's interesting is that 61 00:03:12,520 --> 00:03:16,880 this letter is written as a correction, and through it we 62 00:03:16,880 --> 00:03:22,160 get the most clear definition possible of what the gospel is. 63 00:03:22,920 --> 00:03:26,320 So I want to take just a moment before we dive in and pray. 64 00:03:27,240 --> 00:03:30,360 I know we've probably prayed a couple times already, but here 65 00:03:30,360 --> 00:03:33,200 we frequently give about a moment of silence. 66 00:03:33,680 --> 00:03:35,960 I talk a lot. We have a lot of moving parts. 67 00:03:36,680 --> 00:03:38,640 Maybe it's been a long day for you. 68 00:03:40,040 --> 00:03:43,280 I would just say clear yourself with the Lord and we're going to 69 00:03:43,280 --> 00:03:45,520 jump in and study. So take a moment, ask God to 70 00:03:45,520 --> 00:03:49,120 teach you, humble you. If you haven't prayed in a 71 00:03:49,120 --> 00:03:51,960 while, you could just say, God, if you're real, show me. 72 00:03:52,600 --> 00:03:54,920 So let's take one moment and we'll pray, and I'll come back 73 00:03:54,920 --> 00:04:34,160 up and lead us in a prayer. God, we come before your word 74 00:04:34,160 --> 00:04:38,560 today. We confess that none of this is 75 00:04:38,560 --> 00:04:41,840 our idea. We're just simply believing what 76 00:04:41,840 --> 00:04:45,680 you said. We know you said that your Holy 77 00:04:45,680 --> 00:04:49,520 Spirit is our teacher and that your word is alive. 78 00:04:50,760 --> 00:04:54,840 So today we give you permission to penetrate our hearts and our 79 00:04:54,840 --> 00:04:58,520 minds. Enlighten us to see the way that 80 00:04:58,520 --> 00:05:03,520 you see open our eyes to who we are and how good you are to us. 81 00:05:04,560 --> 00:05:06,440 I pray today would be the day of salvation. 82 00:05:07,680 --> 00:05:11,280 I pray that we'd all walk away clear and confident and what 83 00:05:11,280 --> 00:05:14,200 you've done for us in Jesus name, Amen. 84 00:05:16,160 --> 00:05:18,440 All right, well, our main text for today, we're going to read 85 00:05:18,440 --> 00:05:22,360 first Corinthians chapter 15 verses one through 4. 86 00:05:23,400 --> 00:05:27,040 The Bible says, Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the 87 00:05:27,040 --> 00:05:30,560 gospel which I preached unto you, which also you have 88 00:05:30,560 --> 00:05:35,400 received, and wherein you stand, by which also you are saved, if 89 00:05:35,400 --> 00:05:38,760 you keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless you 90 00:05:38,760 --> 00:05:43,000 have believed in vain, For I delivered unto you first of all 91 00:05:43,000 --> 00:05:44,720 that which I also received. How? 92 00:05:44,720 --> 00:05:48,440 That Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and 93 00:05:48,440 --> 00:05:50,960 that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day 94 00:05:51,640 --> 00:05:54,800 according to the Scriptures. So if you're taking notes, point 95 00:05:54,800 --> 00:06:00,880 #1 is what is the gospel? We see in verse one, Paul says, 96 00:06:00,880 --> 00:06:06,280 I declare unto you the gospel. He's letting us know the answer 97 00:06:06,280 --> 00:06:09,600 to that question. The word gospel here is the 98 00:06:09,600 --> 00:06:12,920 Greek word evangel evangelon. I don't speak Greek, but that's 99 00:06:12,920 --> 00:06:14,400 what it is. Something like that. 100 00:06:15,320 --> 00:06:20,200 And it literally means good tidings and that's why we call 101 00:06:20,200 --> 00:06:22,880 it good news. We don't use tidings a whole lot 102 00:06:23,160 --> 00:06:25,920 anymore. Perhaps at Christmas, great 103 00:06:25,920 --> 00:06:28,600 tidings of, you know, good tidings of great joy. 104 00:06:29,120 --> 00:06:33,040 But we see that also in the book of Romans in chapter 10. 105 00:06:33,680 --> 00:06:35,800 I think the reference is wrong, but the verse is right. 106 00:06:36,200 --> 00:06:38,160 And how? How shall they preach, except 107 00:06:38,160 --> 00:06:41,160 they be sent as it is written? How beautiful are the feet of 108 00:06:41,160 --> 00:06:47,640 them that preach the gospel of peace and bring glad tidings of 109 00:06:47,640 --> 00:06:50,360 good things. So what this word literally 110 00:06:50,360 --> 00:06:53,680 means is good news. I'm bringing you a message of 111 00:06:53,680 --> 00:06:57,680 joy and hope and goodness. And it's broken down into three 112 00:06:57,680 --> 00:07:01,000 parts here. First, that Jesus died for our 113 00:07:01,000 --> 00:07:06,400 sins in verse 3, how that Christ died for our sins. 114 00:07:07,200 --> 00:07:10,680 The absolute penultimate important doctrine of 115 00:07:10,680 --> 00:07:14,920 Christianity is the crucifixion in the resurrection. 116 00:07:14,920 --> 00:07:18,320 Without these, you simply aren't a Christian, you're just 117 00:07:18,320 --> 00:07:21,920 something else. The good news is not about 118 00:07:22,240 --> 00:07:27,000 racial reconciliation, social justice are making you feel 119 00:07:27,000 --> 00:07:30,800 better. The good news is about a death. 120 00:07:33,480 --> 00:07:38,040 It's about Jesus's death. It says in first Peter. 121 00:07:38,120 --> 00:07:44,000 Peter says who his own self bear our sins in his own body on the 122 00:07:44,000 --> 00:07:47,560 tree. Now that that wasn't good news 123 00:07:47,560 --> 00:07:52,280 for Jesus at that time but what happened on the cross is he took 124 00:07:52,760 --> 00:07:57,080 our sins upon himself. That means it's good news for 125 00:07:57,080 --> 00:07:59,080 us. And just like going to the 126 00:07:59,080 --> 00:08:02,720 doctor the good news is what you want but you need the bad news 127 00:08:02,720 --> 00:08:07,960 1st and the bad news is that we are sinners and we need to deal 128 00:08:08,520 --> 00:08:11,360 with our sin. You may be reading this and 129 00:08:11,360 --> 00:08:15,680 wonder how did Jesus fulfill the scriptures as it says according 130 00:08:16,280 --> 00:08:18,600 to the scriptures. So I've given you a brief list 131 00:08:18,600 --> 00:08:21,160 on the screen. There's many more ways that he 132 00:08:21,160 --> 00:08:23,920 fulfilled the scriptures, but some references from the Old 133 00:08:23,920 --> 00:08:28,280 Testament about his death specifically, He was betrayed, 134 00:08:28,840 --> 00:08:32,200 they parted, they gambled and parted his garment. 135 00:08:32,919 --> 00:08:36,559 He was beaten, obviously, He was crucified, He was pierced. 136 00:08:37,000 --> 00:08:41,360 He was treated like a criminal. Isaiah 53 says that he was like 137 00:08:41,360 --> 00:08:43,640 a lamb. He did not speak, He was silent 138 00:08:44,159 --> 00:08:46,320 in his in all those accusations against him. 139 00:08:46,520 --> 00:08:50,600 All of his disciples scattered and then ultimately his death 140 00:08:51,280 --> 00:08:54,240 was an atonement. These are just some of the ways 141 00:08:54,240 --> 00:08:56,440 the Old Testament is fulfilled in his death. 142 00:08:57,440 --> 00:09:01,480 But it's not just the death. We move on to his, his burial. 143 00:09:02,720 --> 00:09:07,920 Verse 4 says that he was buried. And this is important because 144 00:09:08,560 --> 00:09:10,440 Jesus didn't have like a fake death. 145 00:09:10,440 --> 00:09:15,360 Like I'm dead, I'm alive. It was long enough to be sealed 146 00:09:15,360 --> 00:09:20,040 up in a tomb to be absolutely sure he was certainly dead. 147 00:09:20,920 --> 00:09:24,480 A Roman executioner was able to look at him and say he's dead 148 00:09:24,480 --> 00:09:27,320 and he was buried, as we know, for three days. 149 00:09:28,840 --> 00:09:31,360 We see in the book of John. It records this for us. 150 00:09:32,520 --> 00:09:35,160 Then took they the body of Jesus, and wounded in linen 151 00:09:35,160 --> 00:09:39,160 clothes with the spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury. 152 00:09:39,880 --> 00:09:42,560 Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, 153 00:09:42,560 --> 00:09:46,760 and in the garden a new sepulchre, wherein was never man 154 00:09:46,800 --> 00:09:50,480 yet laid. There laid they Jesus. 155 00:09:51,080 --> 00:09:53,360 Therefore, because of the Jews preparation day for the 156 00:09:53,360 --> 00:09:59,240 sepulchre was nigh at hand. And in this in His burial, even 157 00:09:59,240 --> 00:10:02,840 being dead, He was fulfilling the Scriptures, as it says in 158 00:10:02,840 --> 00:10:05,160 Isaiah. He made His grave with the 159 00:10:05,160 --> 00:10:10,040 wicked and with the rich in his death. 160 00:10:11,040 --> 00:10:14,000 But thank God, praise the Lord, we celebrate Easter, and we know 161 00:10:14,000 --> 00:10:19,400 that Jesus rose from the dead. This part is the exceptionally 162 00:10:19,400 --> 00:10:25,400 good news, for honestly, the news of a dead rabbi is not 163 00:10:25,760 --> 00:10:29,400 great news. If he did not raise from the 164 00:10:29,400 --> 00:10:32,800 dead, we would not have much to worship. 165 00:10:33,480 --> 00:10:37,880 His resurrection is really what proved his deity for only God 166 00:10:37,880 --> 00:10:42,840 can be raised from the dead. In fact, Acts chapter 2 it says 167 00:10:42,840 --> 00:10:47,120 it was not possible that he should be Holden of it meaning 168 00:10:47,120 --> 00:10:49,760 of death. He could not be kept in the 169 00:10:49,760 --> 00:10:51,600 grave because he is the King of glory. 170 00:10:51,600 --> 00:10:57,760 He is the God of life. And you may be asking how did he 171 00:10:57,760 --> 00:11:02,240 fulfill the scriptures in his resurrection as it says in verse 172 00:11:02,240 --> 00:11:04,960 four. Well, again, here's just a few 173 00:11:04,960 --> 00:11:09,800 ways that Psalm 16 says that he would not stay dead. 174 00:11:10,920 --> 00:11:13,640 Isaiah 53 says his days would be prolonged. 175 00:11:14,000 --> 00:11:16,040 You have to be alive for that to happen. 176 00:11:16,600 --> 00:11:19,800 Hosea in pictures says that he would raise on the third day. 177 00:11:19,800 --> 00:11:23,160 And then many times throughout the Gospels he gave his own word 178 00:11:23,160 --> 00:11:26,040 that he was going to die and raise again, and he fulfilled 179 00:11:26,040 --> 00:11:29,520 his own word. If you'll continue reading in 180 00:11:29,520 --> 00:11:33,160 Acts chapter 15 where we are, and you go to verse 5, I don't 181 00:11:33,160 --> 00:11:35,120 have this on the screen. You have to look in your Bible 182 00:11:36,000 --> 00:11:39,800 verses 5 through 8, you'll see several witnesses as well. 183 00:11:40,520 --> 00:11:44,000 He he was seen of Peter and verse 6, he was seen above 500 184 00:11:44,000 --> 00:11:47,800 brethren at once. So there are eyewitnesses of the 185 00:11:47,800 --> 00:11:49,760 resurrection. This isn't just a story. 186 00:11:50,280 --> 00:11:54,520 We have eyewitness accounts throughout history recorded for 187 00:11:54,520 --> 00:11:56,960 us. But as we look at this, it's 188 00:11:56,960 --> 00:12:00,600 probably one of the most basic things you could hear in 189 00:12:00,600 --> 00:12:03,520 Christianity, that Jesus died, was buried and rose again. 190 00:12:05,200 --> 00:12:08,800 But I have this question, How does the gospel of the Bible 191 00:12:09,840 --> 00:12:11,720 compared to the one you've heard before? 192 00:12:15,840 --> 00:12:18,440 Maybe that is new. Maybe you hadn't thought about 193 00:12:18,440 --> 00:12:22,960 it that way before. That word gets taken for 194 00:12:22,960 --> 00:12:25,520 granted. Honestly, Christians get 195 00:12:25,520 --> 00:12:28,360 manipulated in the media that they're just supposed to do some 196 00:12:28,360 --> 00:12:32,680 good and stuff and help people. And really, our message is much 197 00:12:32,680 --> 00:12:36,520 more sobering than that. Obviously, other religions also 198 00:12:36,520 --> 00:12:38,840 disagree with this. Islam does not believe that 199 00:12:38,880 --> 00:12:41,760 Jesus was crucified. That's a big problem. 200 00:12:42,160 --> 00:12:44,360 Judaism obviously crucified Jesus. 201 00:12:44,360 --> 00:12:47,400 They didn't like that very much. Liberalism doesn't have a 202 00:12:47,400 --> 00:12:49,880 resurrected savior. It's all an analogy and a 203 00:12:49,880 --> 00:12:53,880 picture of some other thing. But the Bible clearly says that 204 00:12:53,880 --> 00:12:56,400 Jesus rose from the dead. In fact, if you don't believe 205 00:12:56,400 --> 00:13:01,080 this, you cannot be saved. But let's move on. 206 00:13:01,160 --> 00:13:07,440 How do we receive the gospel? So you heard the message. 207 00:13:08,320 --> 00:13:13,880 How do I accept that for myself? Because simply hearing it is not 208 00:13:13,880 --> 00:13:16,360 enough to save you. I wish it was. 209 00:13:16,800 --> 00:13:19,000 Right now, we would just send a room full of people to heaven, 210 00:13:19,000 --> 00:13:21,160 man, It'd be great. You guys would all be believing. 211 00:13:21,440 --> 00:13:23,960 It'd be wonderful. I wish I had that kind of power. 212 00:13:24,240 --> 00:13:25,880 Heaven. I'd choose heaven for everyone 213 00:13:25,880 --> 00:13:30,880 every time. But God gives us a will and we 214 00:13:30,880 --> 00:13:34,680 all get to choose. Interestingly enough, the Bible 215 00:13:34,680 --> 00:13:39,240 records for us in Acts chapter 18, the apostle Paul's visit to 216 00:13:39,240 --> 00:13:43,200 this church in Corinth when he first came there, and as he says 217 00:13:43,200 --> 00:13:46,080 in verse one, which also ye have received. 218 00:13:46,840 --> 00:13:50,960 Now we can see how the Corinthians responded to the 219 00:13:50,960 --> 00:13:53,640 gospel. He says in Acts 18 and verse 8. 220 00:13:53,920 --> 00:13:59,200 And many of the Corinthians hearing believed and were 221 00:13:59,200 --> 00:14:02,440 baptized. Now we didn't necessarily plan 222 00:14:02,440 --> 00:14:05,880 this message today with the baptism stuff, but this is the 223 00:14:05,880 --> 00:14:10,160 pattern in the Bible. You hear this good news of a 224 00:14:10,160 --> 00:14:16,440 sacrificial death, you choose to believe it and say I'm in and 225 00:14:16,440 --> 00:14:19,360 then you're baptized. That is the pattern in the 226 00:14:19,360 --> 00:14:24,120 Scriptures. Jesus says in John chapter 6, he 227 00:14:24,120 --> 00:14:29,320 that believeth on me hath everlasting life. 228 00:14:31,280 --> 00:14:34,000 You see, it is faith in the Gospel message. 229 00:14:35,720 --> 00:14:39,080 That is what activates it in our life. 230 00:14:40,200 --> 00:14:44,000 It is not just hearing it. It's not just being raised 231 00:14:44,000 --> 00:14:47,800 around it or in sitting in cathedrals or rooms or Bible 232 00:14:47,800 --> 00:14:51,280 studies. It is faith in the message. 233 00:14:51,280 --> 00:14:55,040 And the message again is that Jesus died, was buried, and rose 234 00:14:55,040 --> 00:14:58,520 again. And all you have to do to 235 00:14:58,520 --> 00:15:03,320 receive this for yourself, as it says in Romans 10, is to confess 236 00:15:03,320 --> 00:15:06,320 with your mouth the Lord Jesus. That's not to me or to any other 237 00:15:06,320 --> 00:15:08,800 person. You begin a relationship with 238 00:15:08,800 --> 00:15:13,440 God and you believe in your heart that God raised him from 239 00:15:13,440 --> 00:15:18,280 the dead and you'll be saved. That's it. 240 00:15:19,560 --> 00:15:22,840 We don't need your money, man. We, we don't need water. 241 00:15:22,880 --> 00:15:26,720 Those things come later if you want to, but what you need to do 242 00:15:26,720 --> 00:15:31,960 is consider, do I believe this in my heart and am I willing to 243 00:15:31,960 --> 00:15:36,040 say it out loud and confess that I believe in Jesus, I believe in 244 00:15:36,040 --> 00:15:37,880 the resurrection, I want to be saved. 245 00:15:37,880 --> 00:15:41,760 That's all you have to do. So let's look next at what 246 00:15:41,760 --> 00:15:49,000 happens when we believe. OK then I just got my little get 247 00:15:49,000 --> 00:15:51,680 out of hell card and put it in my back pocket. 248 00:15:51,680 --> 00:15:56,840 Keep it in my wallet. I've said before, I'm a bit of a 249 00:15:56,840 --> 00:15:59,440 hillbilly raised in Northeast Ohio. 250 00:16:00,000 --> 00:16:04,800 My dad has an NRA Four Life card in his wallet that he's long 251 00:16:04,800 --> 00:16:08,640 time member until he's dead. And sometimes we think about 252 00:16:08,640 --> 00:16:11,440 Christianity like it's some kind of social club that I got the 253 00:16:11,440 --> 00:16:16,200 card in my wallet and I'm in. But really believing that 254 00:16:16,200 --> 00:16:21,080 message that Christ died for you rose again and he becomes your 255 00:16:21,080 --> 00:16:23,040 Lord and he's forgives you of your sin. 256 00:16:24,560 --> 00:16:28,080 It it produces a massive change in your life, whether you 257 00:16:28,080 --> 00:16:31,680 realize it or not. And what we see here in our in 258 00:16:31,680 --> 00:16:35,360 our text is that there are two changes made by the person that 259 00:16:35,360 --> 00:16:38,600 believes the gospel. First, we're given a new 260 00:16:38,600 --> 00:16:43,800 foundation. Paul tells the Corinthians in 261 00:16:43,800 --> 00:16:51,040 verse 1, he says where wherein ye stand this gospel. 262 00:16:51,040 --> 00:16:56,880 He says you stand in the Gospel, people that believe it have 263 00:16:56,880 --> 00:17:02,440 literally been placed into it. And when we look at baptism, the 264 00:17:02,440 --> 00:17:06,200 picture in baptism out of Romans chapter 6, it says we're buried 265 00:17:06,200 --> 00:17:09,800 with Christ and we're risen again just as he is risen. 266 00:17:09,800 --> 00:17:13,400 We have identified with him so much that I'm literally buried 267 00:17:14,359 --> 00:17:19,480 with him. We stand upon it, as it says in 268 00:17:19,480 --> 00:17:24,599 Romans, by whom also we have access by faith into this grace 269 00:17:25,040 --> 00:17:30,920 wherein we stand. It's kind of like the Psalmist 270 00:17:30,920 --> 00:17:34,040 says in Psalm chapter 41 of my favorite Psalms. 271 00:17:34,040 --> 00:17:37,360 He says that God set his feet upon a rock. 272 00:17:38,800 --> 00:17:42,880 We're literally standing upon something that is the most true 273 00:17:42,880 --> 00:17:46,720 thing possible, that Christ rose from the dead. 274 00:17:48,480 --> 00:17:53,840 The gospel changes the very foundation of your life as the 275 00:17:53,840 --> 00:17:58,480 Bible says in First Corinthians three other foundation can no 276 00:17:58,480 --> 00:18:03,560 man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 277 00:18:03,560 --> 00:18:08,840 He is the foundation. So believing the gospel shifts 278 00:18:09,120 --> 00:18:14,240 everything in your life into a new place and you now trust God 279 00:18:14,640 --> 00:18:19,600 by faith. Secondly, and perhaps what gets 280 00:18:19,600 --> 00:18:24,720 us really in is that when we believe the gospel we are saved 281 00:18:25,920 --> 00:18:30,600 from our sin. Again there is that ugly 3 282 00:18:30,600 --> 00:18:32,360 letter word that we really don't like. 283 00:18:33,960 --> 00:18:36,880 But when when we look again at verse 3, it says that Christ 284 00:18:36,880 --> 00:18:41,360 died for our sins. This is important. 285 00:18:41,360 --> 00:18:46,680 Verse 2 says by which also ye are saved in sin. 286 00:18:46,680 --> 00:18:50,680 Often times we think less about it than what God does. 287 00:18:51,560 --> 00:18:55,360 The Bible says in Romans 6 the wages are what we get. 288 00:18:55,360 --> 00:18:58,080 We've earned because of our sin. All of us. 289 00:18:58,080 --> 00:19:03,000 Our immorality is death and all of us will die a physical death. 290 00:19:03,360 --> 00:19:06,480 There is no infinite life on this planet. 291 00:19:07,560 --> 00:19:09,160 We've tried, we went looking for it. 292 00:19:10,240 --> 00:19:13,600 We can just inject Botox and stuff and try to look less old. 293 00:19:14,520 --> 00:19:18,640 We're all going to die a physical death, but the Bible 294 00:19:18,640 --> 00:19:20,880 says later that there's something worse than your first 295 00:19:20,880 --> 00:19:22,280 death. It's called the second death. 296 00:19:23,360 --> 00:19:28,800 Eternal separation from God. But to believe the gospel means 297 00:19:28,800 --> 00:19:33,280 that this is not your future. You are saved and the opposite 298 00:19:33,280 --> 00:19:36,160 is your future. Eternal life through Jesus 299 00:19:36,160 --> 00:19:38,920 Christ our our Lord. Praise God. 300 00:19:38,920 --> 00:19:41,560 Hallelujah. This is why we Christian sing 301 00:19:41,560 --> 00:19:46,640 songs and we we ought to be able to be excited about how good God 302 00:19:46,640 --> 00:19:51,400 is how much he's forgiven us, how I'm no longer guilty man, 303 00:19:51,680 --> 00:19:54,960 praise the Lord. And once we receive that 304 00:19:54,960 --> 00:19:57,520 message, that change is true of our life. 305 00:19:58,280 --> 00:20:04,800 As you heard Austin say, we now have a responsibility to share 306 00:20:04,800 --> 00:20:11,720 it with other people. Maybe you're in so far. 307 00:20:12,880 --> 00:20:16,480 And you think, yeah, I believe that I'm saved. 308 00:20:17,880 --> 00:20:22,640 How are you doing with sharing the saving message with other 309 00:20:22,640 --> 00:20:26,960 people? I don't mean to make anyone feel 310 00:20:26,960 --> 00:20:28,600 bad. You're going to find out today. 311 00:20:28,600 --> 00:20:30,240 It's not going to be as hard as you think it is. 312 00:20:31,160 --> 00:20:34,480 But let's look at how we can share it with other people. 313 00:20:34,480 --> 00:20:36,720 And 1st, we have to receive it for ourself. 314 00:20:37,800 --> 00:20:40,600 I know that I already said this. I am somewhat repeating myself, 315 00:20:40,600 --> 00:20:42,240 but this is on purpose, so hang with me. 316 00:20:43,880 --> 00:20:47,800 In verse 3, Paul says, I delivered unto you, first of 317 00:20:47,800 --> 00:20:53,120 all, that which I also received. So remember the apostle Paul 318 00:20:53,120 --> 00:20:56,880 comes to Corinth, he preaches Christ and he says, I've already 319 00:20:56,880 --> 00:20:59,320 received this. Now you need to hear this, You 320 00:20:59,320 --> 00:21:03,000 need to receive this. So we can't preach a message we 321 00:21:03,000 --> 00:21:06,920 don't believe. You can't lead somebody else in 322 00:21:06,920 --> 00:21:08,400 something you haven't experienced. 323 00:21:09,440 --> 00:21:11,920 We're not talking about just being religious or having some 324 00:21:11,920 --> 00:21:16,000 external dogma. We're talking about having a 325 00:21:16,000 --> 00:21:20,280 true saving experience with Jesus. 326 00:21:21,400 --> 00:21:25,640 And for Paul, his conversion was radical. 327 00:21:29,000 --> 00:21:31,720 He says later in this chapter. If you look at First Corinthians 328 00:21:31,720 --> 00:21:37,840 chapter 15 and look at verse #9 he says, for I am the least of 329 00:21:37,840 --> 00:21:41,240 the apostles, that I'm not meet to be called an apostle because 330 00:21:41,240 --> 00:21:47,440 I persecuted the Church of God. See, the apostle Paul was 331 00:21:47,440 --> 00:21:49,640 actually an adversary of Christianity. 332 00:21:51,680 --> 00:21:55,960 He was tracking people down and jailing them for believing in 333 00:21:55,960 --> 00:21:59,240 this new doctrine that departs from Judaism. 334 00:22:01,280 --> 00:22:05,480 He was perhaps the least likely person to be propagating this 335 00:22:05,480 --> 00:22:08,880 message. We see his conversion in Acts 336 00:22:08,880 --> 00:22:14,000 Chapter 9, the Bible says. And as he journeyed, he came 337 00:22:14,000 --> 00:22:17,440 near Damascus, and suddenly there shined, rowed about him a 338 00:22:17,440 --> 00:22:20,600 light from heaven. And he fell to the earth, and 339 00:22:20,600 --> 00:22:24,280 heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou 340 00:22:24,280 --> 00:22:27,360 me? And he said, Who art thou, Lord? 341 00:22:28,280 --> 00:22:31,040 And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest. 342 00:22:31,040 --> 00:22:33,480 It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. 343 00:22:34,320 --> 00:22:37,680 And he, trembling and astonished, said, Lord, what 344 00:22:37,680 --> 00:22:41,040 wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, 345 00:22:41,040 --> 00:22:45,200 Arise and go into this city, and it shall be told thee what thou 346 00:22:45,200 --> 00:22:49,520 must do. This was the moment that the 347 00:22:49,520 --> 00:22:53,280 apostle Paul did. What every Christian has to do 348 00:22:54,280 --> 00:22:57,080 is they have to hear Jesus's voice. 349 00:22:58,600 --> 00:23:03,320 They have to choose to believe. He called Jesus, Lord, Lord, 350 00:23:03,360 --> 00:23:08,840 Lord, what should I do? And obviously he believed in the 351 00:23:08,840 --> 00:23:12,400 resurrection. He heard from Jesus himself. 352 00:23:13,720 --> 00:23:16,320 We all have to have this time in our life. 353 00:23:16,320 --> 00:23:20,160 And if you're an unlikely candidate for that, well, 354 00:23:21,120 --> 00:23:24,920 congratulations, The gospel is for the most unlikely candidate. 355 00:23:28,280 --> 00:23:31,520 I hope that encourages you. If you haven't been religious, 356 00:23:32,360 --> 00:23:35,920 if you haven't been a good boy or girl, if you've blown it big 357 00:23:35,920 --> 00:23:40,440 time, if you've been an enemy of Christianity or conservatism in 358 00:23:40,440 --> 00:23:43,880 some way, you can still believe the gospel and be saved. 359 00:23:45,400 --> 00:23:49,440 Maybe for you, you have family members that you would say, man, 360 00:23:49,440 --> 00:23:52,280 there's just no way that person will ever believe. 361 00:23:53,640 --> 00:23:58,840 Well, Paul is our example that anything is possible and we're 362 00:23:58,840 --> 00:24:01,920 all in the same boat. All we like sheep have gone 363 00:24:01,920 --> 00:24:04,160 astray. Even me, I'm AI, was not always 364 00:24:04,160 --> 00:24:07,560 a pastor. I had to have my own time where 365 00:24:07,560 --> 00:24:10,520 I came to saving faith, where I was baptized. 366 00:24:10,760 --> 00:24:14,120 I had to figure out what this book said and I just gave my 367 00:24:14,120 --> 00:24:16,280 life to get in, getting it to other people. 368 00:24:17,080 --> 00:24:19,880 So first, you have the response yourself. 369 00:24:19,880 --> 00:24:21,640 Paul shared what he had received. 370 00:24:21,640 --> 00:24:24,360 Secondly, you just got to share it with other people. 371 00:24:27,600 --> 00:24:29,960 It's just, it's just not that complicated. 372 00:24:31,520 --> 00:24:33,800 He says, which I preached unto you. 373 00:24:33,800 --> 00:24:37,640 To preach is to persuade, to get it out of your mouth and into 374 00:24:37,640 --> 00:24:41,120 the ears of other people. You need to hear this message. 375 00:24:41,120 --> 00:24:44,680 It doesn't have to come from a pulpit, as we'll see. 376 00:24:44,680 --> 00:24:48,600 We have some examples of how Paul preached to the the 377 00:24:48,600 --> 00:24:53,080 Corinthians in Acts chapter 18. It says he reasoned in the 378 00:24:53,080 --> 00:24:56,400 synagogue every Sabbath and persuaded the Jews and the 379 00:24:56,400 --> 00:25:00,680 Greeks. So evangelism, we can reason 380 00:25:00,680 --> 00:25:02,960 with people. We can persuade. 381 00:25:02,960 --> 00:25:06,480 Persuade does not manipulate. It is it is to say, man, you 382 00:25:06,480 --> 00:25:08,680 need to hear this. You need to believe this. 383 00:25:08,680 --> 00:25:10,720 I want you to understand what this says. 384 00:25:11,360 --> 00:25:14,160 You don't have to let all of your logic and intelligence go 385 00:25:14,160 --> 00:25:15,920 out the window just to be a Christian. 386 00:25:16,200 --> 00:25:20,080 You have the truth. You can do the math with the 387 00:25:20,080 --> 00:25:22,920 truth. You just keep doing the math. 388 00:25:22,920 --> 00:25:24,280 It's always going to come out the same. 389 00:25:25,200 --> 00:25:29,640 You can reason, and really the end of Paul's reasoning in the 390 00:25:29,640 --> 00:25:33,600 next verse, it says that he testified that Jesus was the 391 00:25:33,600 --> 00:25:36,560 Christ. So if you can do that, if you 392 00:25:36,560 --> 00:25:40,960 can persuade people to just believe in Jesus, that is the 393 00:25:40,960 --> 00:25:42,600 greatest thing you can do with your life. 394 00:25:44,800 --> 00:25:48,880 And as Paul came into Corinth, he learned some lessons from the 395 00:25:48,880 --> 00:25:52,680 last place that he was at. Too much reasoning with people 396 00:25:52,680 --> 00:25:53,960 that don't want to hear doesn't work. 397 00:25:55,360 --> 00:25:58,000 You can't control anybody. It's a choice that everyone must 398 00:25:58,000 --> 00:26:01,520 make. And as he approached Corinth to 399 00:26:01,520 --> 00:26:05,040 preach, he says in First Corinthians chapter 2, I 400 00:26:05,040 --> 00:26:09,840 determined not to know anything among you save Jesus Christ and 401 00:26:09,840 --> 00:26:13,440 him crucified. So you don't have to have an 402 00:26:13,440 --> 00:26:18,400 answer for every possible thing in the Bible just to share the 403 00:26:18,400 --> 00:26:20,720 death, burial, and resurrection with other people. 404 00:26:22,200 --> 00:26:24,360 You don't have to know all of the details. 405 00:26:25,520 --> 00:26:28,600 You simply preach Christ crucified. 406 00:26:28,600 --> 00:26:30,040 So I put it to you this way in your notes. 407 00:26:30,040 --> 00:26:34,440 Sharing the gospel is a lot simpler than we think. 408 00:26:38,920 --> 00:26:43,720 In my Christian Church experience, there's a lot of 409 00:26:43,720 --> 00:26:47,080 words, buzzwords. Gospel is a buzzword. 410 00:26:47,640 --> 00:26:52,200 Evangelism is a buzzword. And when people say we're doing 411 00:26:52,200 --> 00:26:55,160 evangelism and then you ask what does that mean? 412 00:26:55,160 --> 00:26:59,920 And it isn't sharing a saving message with somebody else. 413 00:27:00,720 --> 00:27:02,640 That's just not evangelism. It's something different. 414 00:27:03,400 --> 00:27:05,360 So let's not complicate evangelism. 415 00:27:05,880 --> 00:27:08,360 And honestly, if you're not good at it, that's OK. 416 00:27:08,360 --> 00:27:12,280 You don't have to be good at it. Jesus trained fisherman, all 417 00:27:12,280 --> 00:27:15,960 kinds of different people, and we want to help you in the most 418 00:27:15,960 --> 00:27:19,560 simple way also be able to share the gospel. 419 00:27:19,560 --> 00:27:24,360 So April 1st at 6:30, that's a Wednesday night in this room. 420 00:27:25,240 --> 00:27:29,240 We will have a gospel training. It's going to look like a short 421 00:27:29,240 --> 00:27:32,520 workshop. We have a tract that says you're 422 00:27:32,520 --> 00:27:35,360 a Sinner, Jesus died for you. Here's how to accept that. 423 00:27:35,360 --> 00:27:38,080 It's very basic. The verses are on the tract and 424 00:27:38,080 --> 00:27:42,120 we will walk you through how to approach somebody, how to use 425 00:27:42,120 --> 00:27:46,160 the tract, and how to lead them to Christ if they so choose. 426 00:27:46,160 --> 00:27:47,920 You can't. Again, you can't force convert 427 00:27:47,920 --> 00:27:50,080 anybody, but we want to help you with that. 428 00:27:50,520 --> 00:27:53,840 Remember in the beginning I said our church exists to help you 429 00:27:53,840 --> 00:27:57,520 believe, live, and share the gospel. 430 00:27:57,520 --> 00:28:00,480 So if we want you to do that, we want to equip you. 431 00:28:00,480 --> 00:28:02,440 I don't want you to be set up for failure. 432 00:28:03,680 --> 00:28:05,040 Have you ever felt that way before? 433 00:28:05,960 --> 00:28:09,200 Maybe at work or in some situation, somebody gives you a 434 00:28:09,200 --> 00:28:14,000 task with no instruction. Especially as men, if we know 435 00:28:14,000 --> 00:28:16,720 we're going to fail, we're just like, Nah, I don't feel like 436 00:28:16,720 --> 00:28:19,920 being an idiot. Well, we want you to be 437 00:28:19,920 --> 00:28:22,400 successful. We want you to be able to share 438 00:28:22,400 --> 00:28:25,560 the gospel. So come and join us on April 1st 439 00:28:25,560 --> 00:28:28,760 that evening. And lastly, let's end with point 440 00:28:28,760 --> 00:28:35,000 #5 let's ask the question, what does it mean to believe in vain? 441 00:28:38,880 --> 00:28:43,040 Now you may not be asking this question, but it's in verse 2. 442 00:28:44,640 --> 00:28:48,280 Paul says, if if you keep in memory what I preached unto you, 443 00:28:48,280 --> 00:28:51,480 unless you have believed in vain. 444 00:28:52,920 --> 00:28:55,720 Honestly, many commentaries skip over this verse. 445 00:28:56,120 --> 00:28:58,680 I haven't found a whole lot of information on it. 446 00:28:59,520 --> 00:29:03,520 And the word vain means to be empty, meaningless, or 447 00:29:03,520 --> 00:29:06,680 purposeless. And we have to ask what was 448 00:29:06,680 --> 00:29:08,760 going on in the Corinthian church that people were 449 00:29:08,760 --> 00:29:12,680 believing something contrary to the gospel that we had already 450 00:29:12,680 --> 00:29:16,880 laid out, and it ended up being empty. 451 00:29:18,080 --> 00:29:20,880 And if you look in this chapter, First Corinthians chapter 15, 452 00:29:20,880 --> 00:29:24,560 and go to verse #12 the answer is there for us. 453 00:29:26,720 --> 00:29:29,840 The Bible says now if Christ be preached that he rose from the 454 00:29:29,840 --> 00:29:35,840 dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of 455 00:29:35,840 --> 00:29:39,680 the dead? As I told you in introduction, 456 00:29:39,680 --> 00:29:42,880 this book is lit written to address a whole bunch of issues, 457 00:29:42,880 --> 00:29:47,120 and this was a critical issue. The whole chapter in chapter 15 458 00:29:47,600 --> 00:29:50,000 is all about the resurrection from the dead. 459 00:29:50,000 --> 00:29:52,800 Jesus's ours. You know, the rest of the world 460 00:29:52,960 --> 00:29:54,240 what's going to happen when we die. 461 00:29:56,480 --> 00:30:01,680 And the one way that you can believe in vain is to believe in 462 00:30:01,680 --> 00:30:03,640 a gospel that doesn't have a resurrection. 463 00:30:06,640 --> 00:30:11,200 If there's no one on the cross and no one raised from the dead, 464 00:30:12,640 --> 00:30:19,440 then you have no salvation. One author said it this way. 465 00:30:19,440 --> 00:30:23,760 Matthew Henry says in vain it is to profess faith in Christ if we 466 00:30:23,760 --> 00:30:28,320 deny the resurrection. Take away this, you make nothing 467 00:30:29,120 --> 00:30:33,360 of Christianity. So your last point in your notes 468 00:30:33,360 --> 00:30:36,160 is that not all faith is saving faith. 469 00:30:42,320 --> 00:30:48,120 There are many well intending people that have faith in the 470 00:30:48,120 --> 00:30:53,080 wrong thing. If your faith is not in .1 what 471 00:30:53,160 --> 00:30:57,040 Jesus did on the cross and raising from the dead, you have 472 00:30:57,080 --> 00:31:01,680 a vain faith. It's kind of like this. 473 00:31:01,680 --> 00:31:04,480 These signs are comical to me. Maybe we'll lighten it up a 474 00:31:04,480 --> 00:31:06,880 little bit. Especially at Christmas sign 475 00:31:07,280 --> 00:31:08,720 time. We see these signs. 476 00:31:09,760 --> 00:31:13,480 They just say believe. Believe in what? 477 00:31:14,840 --> 00:31:16,360 I don't understand some of this stuff. 478 00:31:16,360 --> 00:31:23,960 Or just have faith in what see what you believe in what what 479 00:31:23,960 --> 00:31:29,480 you believe to be true is what determines your eternal destiny, 480 00:31:30,840 --> 00:31:33,880 what you believe to be true about the gospel. 481 00:31:34,800 --> 00:31:37,800 So today you have heard the message. 482 00:31:38,920 --> 00:31:42,080 Now, if you haven't accepted it, it is up to you to choose what 483 00:31:42,080 --> 00:31:44,280 to do with it. Will you believe it to be true? 484 00:31:45,240 --> 00:31:47,040 Will you call on Christ to save you? 485 00:31:47,040 --> 00:31:50,160 Call him Lord? And if you have already done 486 00:31:50,160 --> 00:31:54,240 that, will you choose today to get serious about sharing that 487 00:31:54,240 --> 00:32:01,440 message with other people? Salvation is as simple as 488 00:32:01,440 --> 00:32:06,560 believing in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead and 489 00:32:06,560 --> 00:32:09,240 simply crying out to him in faith and asking him to save 490 00:32:09,240 --> 00:32:12,800 you. But I do want to remind you that 491 00:32:12,800 --> 00:32:19,480 what Jesus did on the cross is totally separated from what your 492 00:32:19,480 --> 00:32:23,840 religious activity looks like. The book of Ephesians tells us 493 00:32:23,840 --> 00:32:29,520 that salvation is not of works. It's not doing more good things 494 00:32:29,520 --> 00:32:32,400 to get right with God. It is realizing that Jesus did 495 00:32:32,400 --> 00:32:36,320 all the things and I'm putting all of my faith and hope and 496 00:32:36,320 --> 00:32:44,400 what he did on the cross. So today, if you died today, 497 00:32:47,480 --> 00:32:50,000 what would your afterlife be like? 498 00:32:51,440 --> 00:32:56,040 Have you believed the gospel? We're going to take a moment and 499 00:32:56,040 --> 00:32:57,680 pray. We'll have a final song and this 500 00:32:57,680 --> 00:33:01,880 will be a chance for you to respond personally. 501 00:33:03,800 --> 00:33:06,280 The Bible says that Jesus was asked a question. 502 00:33:06,280 --> 00:33:09,120 What's the greatest commandment in all of the Bible? 503 00:33:10,600 --> 00:33:13,440 He said to love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, 504 00:33:13,440 --> 00:33:16,800 soul and strength. And that is something that no 505 00:33:16,800 --> 00:33:21,880 other person can do for you. You have to choose to believe 506 00:33:21,880 --> 00:33:23,800 that for yourself. And it starts in here. 507 00:33:24,720 --> 00:33:28,560 And when it's real in here, it will come out of here and you'll 508 00:33:28,560 --> 00:33:31,120 be saved and born again and you'll have a story. 509 00:33:31,120 --> 00:33:33,280 Your story might be different than the ones we heard tonight, 510 00:33:34,080 --> 00:33:36,000 but we'll rejoice with you over your story. 511 00:33:36,000 --> 00:33:37,440 Man, we get excited in this church. 512 00:33:37,440 --> 00:33:39,000 Anyway. We're stoked for baptisms. 513 00:33:39,000 --> 00:33:41,640 We love that. We love hearing people and how 514 00:33:41,640 --> 00:33:45,880 they come to know the Lord, but also us as a church. 515 00:33:45,880 --> 00:33:50,120 If you've accepted that for yourself, we're going to go the 516 00:33:50,120 --> 00:33:53,120 next 5 weeks through similar subjects. 517 00:33:54,120 --> 00:33:59,640 Would you pray that God uses this time to see people saved? 518 00:34:00,400 --> 00:34:03,160 Who needs to be in this room to hear this message? 519 00:34:04,320 --> 00:34:06,960 We put our stuff online. Who needs to hear have this 520 00:34:06,960 --> 00:34:08,920 shared with them so that they can believe it. 521 00:34:10,400 --> 00:34:14,199 So as we take a moment and pray, you can pray for yourself. 522 00:34:15,400 --> 00:34:19,080 You can pray for the lost in your life and pray for us as a 523 00:34:19,080 --> 00:34:21,600 church that God uses us as we share this message. 524 00:34:21,600 --> 00:34:23,480 So I'm going to give us one moment to pray. 525 00:34:24,120 --> 00:34:26,800 I'll lead us in a prayer, and then we'll have a final song. 526 00:34:26,800 --> 00:34:27,199 Let's pray.