Hello, I’m Mack Lyon. The program’s called “In Search of the Lord’s Way.” Oh say, friend! We’re so glad you have chosen to be with us this half-hour. When life gets rough for you, you would really like some good news, wouldn’t you? Well, whether times are rough or smooth right now, Phil Sanders has prepared a “good news” message for us today, right out of the Bible. Oh! You’ll want to hear that!
Hello, I’m Phil Sanders, and welcome to “In Search of the Lord’s Way.” This program is brought to you by your friends in some churches of Christ in your viewing area. And I’m so glad to be here spending this time with you in a study of God’s Holy Word! Please think with me just for a moment.
My friend, you and I have three significant problems. Everyone faces these same problems. Nobody can ignore them or escape them. They affect your eternal future and your soul. The first problem you and I face is that we sin. Sin according to the Scriptures is transgression against God’s law (1 John 3 and verse 4). God’s prophet Isaiah said in chapter 59, verses 1 and 2, “Behold, the LORD’S hand is not so short that it cannot save; nor is His ear so dull that it cannot hear. But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear.” When we sin, we put a wall between God and us, and we lose God’s favor.
Everyone has a second problem: no one can live forever. We have to say goodbye to this world and leave it. The Bible says in Hebrews 9, verse 27 that, “it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment.” While you may not like to think about death and the afterlife, you and I can’t stop it. One day we will all face God in judgment.
Third, you and I as Christians face an ongoing problem with temptation. We wish we would never sin against the God we love, but we find ourselves weak to sin. We are all human and in need of help against sin. And how can we possibly deal with all the sin in our lives? Is there any hope for us?
Well, my friend, there is; and that’s good news, in fact it is great news! We can with the help of God overcome all three problems. God has a plan for us and we are going to explore that plan in our lesson today!
Now, if you would like a free printed copy, a CD or an audio cassette tape of it, simply mail your request to In Search of the Lord's Way; P.O. Box 371; Edmond, OK 73083 or e-mail us at searchtv@searchtv.org. Or, if you prefer, you can use our toll-free telephone number; and we will pay for the call. That number is 1-800-321-8633. We also stream this program on our website at www.searchtv.org.
Now Ken Helterbrand is going to lead us in a song, and then I’ll be back to read from 1 Corinthians 15, verses 1 to 5.
God’s Word says in 1 Corinthians 15, verses 1 through 5: “Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: 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, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve.” May God give a blessing to the reading of His Word. Let’s pray together. O Lord, we are grateful that You were willing to send your Son to die for our sins, and to give us hope by raising Him from the dead. This is our prayer of great thanksgiving! In Jesus’ name, Amen!
It is such a joy for us to study together. The word “gospel” means “good news”; the gospel of the New Testament is in fact the most important “good news” message ever delivered to mankind! It’s God’s good news about the salvation provided through the grace of Jesus Christ. It’s good news about the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. And it is good news about the kingdom of Heaven. Now, if you are willing, you can go to heaven and you can live with God forever. My friend, that’s good news!
First, it was “preached” good news. Now, some people associate the word “preach” with negative things, but the Bible uses this word to speak about “good” things. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 1, verse 21, “For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.” God wanted everyone to hear this good news and to be persuaded by it. You see, preaching is a form of persuasion, because people need reasons to trust and obey. Be thankful for people who are willing to preach the gospel.
The Bible says in Romans 10, verses 14 to 15, “But how are they to call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!’” God intended for the gospel to be preached in order to announce salvation through the blood of Jesus Christ and to ask those who hear it to respond to it. God’s Word says in 2 Corinthians 5, verses 10 and 11, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade men.”
Second, it was “received” good news. Now, to receive this message is to accept it, to welcome it, to believe that it is true and right and needed. You received it as an authoritative message from God. The apostle Paul said that he was passing on to the Corinthians what he received from Jesus Christ. In Galatians 1, verses 11 to 12, Paul said, “For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.” Now, whether you or I accept this message delivered to us in the Bible does matter. We have a choice, a decision to make as to whether we will believe it or not, whether we will follow Christ or not. The Bible says in John 1, verses 11 to 13, that Jesus “came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.” If you wish to find the blessing of God, you must be willing to believe in him and accept His teaching. On the day of Pentecost, when the church was established, Peter and the apostles preached the gospel for the first time; and Acts 2, verse 41 says, “So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.”
Third, the Corinthians took their “stand” on the gospel. In Luke 9, verses 23 and 4 the Lord Jesus said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.” The Corinthian Christians faced ridicule and persecution. They found themselves misunderstood and despised, but they took their stand with Christ in a pagan world. The early Christians had to make up their minds whether they would follow Jesus; and they took their stand with the Lord, because they were convinced by the evidence that Jesus truly was the Son of God, had risen from the dead, and was Lord of all. They had a hope and a promise worth giving their lives. They stood against the paganism of the day, living godly lives unlike the idolatrous and immoral Corinthians. They could see the difference between the real God of heaven and the false gods that were all around them.
Fourth, the Corinthians were “saved” by this good news. God is in the saving business. He doesn’t want anyone to be lost. He sent Jesus to die for our sins and He gave us the gospel that we might come to Him in salvation. Now, the gospel is an essential part of that! The inspired apostle Paul said in Romans 1, verse 16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” Now, if you wish to be saved by the gospel, you must believe and obey it.
Fifth, the Corinthians were saved “if,” he says, “you hold fast the word I preached.” Once a person comes to Christ, there is no turning back; it is a commitment for life, if one wants to be saved. Many people quit on the Lord; they end up losing God’s gift of salvation by turning away from God. A man who would be a disciple came to Jesus and said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9, verses 62 and 3). You can lose your salvation if your turn back to the world and leave the Lord.
The Corinthian Christians had lived a life of immorality; but they were washed, they were sanctified, they were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus (1 Corinthians 6 and verse 11). They didn’t need to go back to that old sinful life they used to live. They had a faith worth holding onto, and they weren’t going to let anything rob them of the promises of God.
Now at this point someone asks, “Well, what is the gospel; what is this good news? What does it have to do with the three problems that you mentioned?” Well, inspired, Paul explains in 1 Corinthians 15, verses 3 to 5, “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the twelve.” The whole story of Jesus is important, but there are four things that are most important.
First, “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures.” All of the Old Testament looked forward to the coming of the Messiah. Isaiah 53:5 and 6 tells of Jesus’ death, “But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are all healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” John 1, verse 29 identifies Jesus as “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” The Bible says in 1 Peter 2 and verse 24 that, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.” You see, it was personal with Jesus. He didn’t get a lethal injection as some criminals do today. He bore our sins personally and painfully on a cross. The punishment that God was going to give to you and to me for our sins, He gave to the Lord Jesus to bear. Jesus died bearing your sins and mine. He bore it so that you might die to sin and live to righteousness. You see, He thought more of you than of his own body. He loves you that much. That’s good news. Because the Lord loves you, you can have the forgiveness of sin.
Second, the gospel tells us “that He was buried.” Now, people bury the dead. Some folks say that Jesus only swooned on the cross, but there is no evidence of that. The experienced Roman soldiers crucified Jesus; and you know what, they checked to see if he was dead. They also drove a spear into his side just to be sure. Now, his disciples Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea prepared his body for burial; and if Jesus were still alive, they would have known it. This burial is significant to the gospel, because we are buried with Christ into death when we are united with Him. Well, how does that happen? Well, Romans 6, verses 3 to 7 says, “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized (that is immersed in water) into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin.”
Now, when we die with Christ, we die to sin and we are freed from it. The death, burial, and resurrection of Christ became a form for us to follow in baptism or immersion in water. In baptism we are crucified with Christ, and the old man of sin dies. In baptism we are buried with Christ to proclaim our death to that old way of life. And in Christ, we are raised up from the water as Christ was raised up from the dead and then is when we walk in newness of life! Baptism is the time that the blood of Christ washes away our sin and gives us new life in Christ!
Now, the third factor that is most important about the gospel is “that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.” The Bible predicted that Jesus as the Son of David would not undergo decay in Psalm 16:8 to 11. God proclaims with power to the whole world that Jesus is His Son by raising Him from the dead. Now, that fact ought to take hold of our attention. The resurrection of Jesus matters to us. 1 Corinthians 15, verses 17 and 18 says, “but if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. And then those also that have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. And if we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.”
But Christ was raised! Romans 8, verse 11 says, “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.” Christ’s resurrection assures us that one day we too can be resurrected. That’s the answer to our problem with death! And that’s good news!
Fourth, an important part of the gospel is “that He appeared.” 1 Corinthians 15:5 to 8 says “that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. And last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.” Jesus gave proof to his disciples that He is Lord!
The inspired writer Luke explains in Acts 1, “In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. And to them he presented himself alive after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.” Oh, they could say as they heard him speak, as they touched him, as they closely looked at him, as Thomas did; say “My Lord and my God!” Oh, I hope that you will have that kind of faith to say “My Lord and my God!” Would you pray with me please? O Father, we are grateful that we can place our faith and trust in your Son, Jesus, and can believe in Him with all our heart and soul. And now, bless us, Father, as we continue our study in a few moments. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
Thanks so much for being with us today and studying the Word of God. The gospel is the best news you’ll ever hear. Jesus died for our sins, so that we can be forgiven. Jesus was raised from the dead; so that we can be assured that we have eternal life. You might be asking, “What about our ongoing problem of temptation and sin?” When Jesus ascended to heaven to the right hand of God, He went for a purpose. Hebrews 7:25 says Jesus “is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.” Jesus knows that we are all imperfect humans, so He is before the Father interceding for us, pleading our case.
The Lord knew that we humans are imperfect and we are going to sin in spite of our desire to keep from it. The Bible says in 1 John 1, verses 8 and 9, that “if we say we have no sin, then we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, then he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” When Christians, who have been baptized, sin, they can find forgiveness by confessing their sins, repenting of them, and asking for God’s forgiveness. God is faithful to forgive; and my friend, that’s good news.
1 John 2, verses 1 and 2 says, “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.” Now, Jesus was not only an atoning sacrifice for our sins; He’s also our defender before the Father, pleading our case so that we may remain in God’s grace.
The Lord is worthy of your faith; hold fast to Him. The gospel is good news “if” you are saved by it and hold fast to it. But if you have never accepted the Lord and His Word, there are no promises for you. And if you have abandoned the Lord and His church, you are also abandoning the promises of God. My friend, grasp hold of the gospel, and don’t ever, ever, ever let it go.
Now, if you would like a free printed copy, a CD of this message, “The Gospel,” you may have it by mailing your request to In Search of the Lord's Way; P.O. Box 371; Edmond, OK 73083 or you can email us: searchtv@searchtv.org. You can call our Search office free of charge at 1-800-321-8633. Now, all of our programs also appear on our website at www.searchtv.org. Now, if you would like to access it there in a printed, audio, or video format, it’s available. And you can also download our study sheets for your personal study or a Bible class. Now all of these things come just for the asking because we are here to help you learn God’s will not to exploit you in any way. So everything that we offer is free.
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