“I Will Build My Church” Part 4

1. “I Will Build My Church” Part 4

3. Good News! News is good when viewed from the backdrop of the bad or evil. EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

4. Key 3:Understanding The Good News 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

5. Big Idea “since the church of Jesus Christ is commanded to preach the Good News, we must therefore, understand what that Good News is!” EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

6. 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 “Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,” (1 Cor 15:1–4 NIV) EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

7. The Effort Of The Gospel (15:1) “How then will they 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!” But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” (Rom 10:14–17 ESV) “And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.” (1 Th 2:13 ESV) Paul’s effort was to preach (euangelizo = “good newsing”) the gospel (euangelion = “good news”) The Corinthians’ effort was to receive (paralambano) the gospel. “Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,” (1 Cor 15:1–4 NIV) EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

8. The Effect Of The Gospel (15:2a) Saved (sozo) = rescued from something bad, to something good. “Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,” (1 Cor 15:1–4 NIV) EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

9. The Exclusiveness Of The Gospel (15:2b-3a) The Corinthians must hold firmly to this gospel, or else their belief is empty. “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.” (Gal 1:8–9 ESV) The gospel is not one of many. Paul uses the Greek word protos, which means that it is chief in importance. “Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,” (1 Cor 15:1–4 NIV) EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

10. The Essentials Of The Gospel (15:3b-4) “The LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”” (Gen 3:14–15 ESV) “To the woman he said, “I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children. Your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you.”” (Gen 3:16 ESV) “And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”” (Gen 3:17–19 ESV) “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—” (Rom 5:12 ESV) “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” (Rom 3:23 ESV) “as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” “Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.” “The venom of asps is under their lips.” “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.” “Their feet are swift to shed blood; in their paths are ruin and misery, and the way of peace they have not known.” “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”” (Rom 3:10–18 ESV) Man is totallydepraved; Christ was condemned in man’s place. “For I am the LORD your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy.” (Lev 11:44 ESV) “For the wages of sin is death,” (Rom 6:23 ESV) “Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,” (1 Cor 15:1–4 NIV) EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

11. What About Human Righteousness? “We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.” (Is 64:6 ESV) EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

12. What About A Loving God? “... I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you.” (Jer 31:3 ESV) “So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” (1 John 4:16 ESV) EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

13. What About A Loving God? “Behold, all souls are mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is mine: the soul who sins shall die.” (Ezek 18:4 ESV) “…but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.”” (Ex 34:7 ESV) EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

14. Segmenting God Righteous Love Holy Mercy Grace Just EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

15. Who Is Jesus? “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:1, 14 ESV) EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

16. Who Is Jesus? Infinite God-Man “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” (Phil 2:5–8 ESV) EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

17. What Did Jesus Do? “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. 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 healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (Is 53:4–6 ESV) EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

18. The Essentials Of The Gospel (15:3b-4) Showed Christ actually died not just bled. “Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,” (1 Cor 15:1–4 NIV) EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

19. The Essentials Of The Gospel (15:3b-4) “Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,” (Romans 1:1–4, ESV) “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,” (1 Pet 1:3 ESV) The resurrection was God’s stamp of approval on the document of redemption! “Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,” (1 Cor 15:1–4 NIV) EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

20. How Do I Get Plugged In? “And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved,” (Acts 16:31 ESV) “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Eph 2:8–9 ESV) EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

21. How Do I Get Plugged In? EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

22. So What? • Heaven is a free gift (Rom. 6:23); it can’t be earned or deserved (Eph. 2:8-9). • Man is a sinner (Rom. 3:23) and can’t save himself (Matt. 5:48). • God is merciful and loves the sinner (1Jn. 4:8; Jer. 31:3), but is also just and must condemn the sinner (Ex. 34:7; Ez. 18:4). EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”

23. So What? • Christ, the infinite God-Man (Jn. 1:1,14) died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins and rose from the grave to purchase a place in heaven for us (Is. 53:6). • This gift is received by faith. It is trusting in Jesus Christ alone for eternal life, and resting upon what He has done rather than what we have attempted to do to merit eternal life (Acts 16:31; Rom. 10:10,13). EBFC Sermon Series: “I Will Build My Church”