The Gospel And Obedience

1 Corinthians 15: ISV

1Now I’m making known to you, brothers, the gospel that I proclaimed to you,

·         which you accepted,

·         on which you have taken your stand, 

·         2and by which you are also being saved

·         if you hold firmly to the message I proclaimed to you—

·         unless, of course, your faith was worthless.

3For I passed on to you the most important points that I received:

·         The Messiah died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 

·         4he was buried,

·         he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures—

·         and is still alive!— 

·         5and he was seen by Cephas, and then by the Twelve. 

·         6After that, he was seen by more than 500 brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. 

·         7Next he was seen by James, then by all the apostles, 

·         8and finally he was seen by me, as though I were born abnormally late.

9For I am the least of the apostles and not even fit to be called an apostle because I persecuted God’s church. 10But by God’s grace I am what I am, and his grace shown to me was not wasted. Instead, I worked harder than all the others—not I, of course, but God’s grace that was with me. 11So, whether it was I or the others, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.

Why does Paul warn us about holding on firmly to the message he proclaimed if we are not responsible to “hold on” and there is no danger of not holding on? He gives further warnings in verses 33 & 34, 58, and in chapter 16:13. See verses at bottom

These warnings are for those who have moved away from God and are sinning. Paul clearly states we can have an “evil end” and we are responsible to “fully know God” and “stand firm in our faith”. The wise heed the warnings and do not explain them away. We have not finished the race yet…..

15:33  33Stop being deceived:  “Wicked friends lead to evil ends.” 34Come back to your senses as you should, and stop sinning! For some of you—I say this to your shame—don’t fully know God.

15:58   58Therefore, my dear brothers, be steadfast, unmovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord, because you know that the work that you do for the Lord isn’t wasted.

Ch. 16:   13Remain alert. Keep standing firm in your faith. Keep on being courageous and strong.