the good news
May 22, 2009
I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins. He was buried, and He was raised from the dead on the third day (vv.3-4).
READ: 1 Corinthians 15:1-4
I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins. . . . He was buried, and He was raised from the dead on the third day (vv.3-4).
A close friend of yours is seriously ill. One day you receive a call from her doctor—an urgent message to come to the hospital. When you arrive, the doctor tells you that your friend has another 10 minutes to live.
In a soft, weak voice, your dying friend says to you, “All these years you haven’t told me about Jesus. Can you tell me about His Good News?” Your friend wants to hear the gospel before she leaves this life. What would you tell her in those 10 short minutes? Here are some starters:
Christ died for our sins (1 Corinthians 15:3). Often, we tell others about the love of God. Rightly so. But we leave out the whole wrath of God reality. While God loves every sinner, He is also angry at sin. Jesus didn’t die for a political cause or to make us healthy and wealthy. He suffered a criminal’s death to appease God’s anger at our sin. He died for us.
He was buried (v.4). This was Paul’s way of saying that Jesus was truly lifeless. You don’t bury someone until you’re sure that he’s dead. Because Jesus was buried, it paved the way for His resurrection. And the tomb is empty because Jesus rose from the dead.
Jesus was raised from the dead on the third day (v.4). Christianity is the religion of the resurrection. Without the resurrection, it’s much like any other human philosophy or religion. A dead savior can’t save anybody, for he couldn’t even save himself. The Romans crucified more than 30,000 people, but only one died for the sins of the world.
He alone conquered sin and death and rose again to life. Spend a few minutes telling someone about Jesus today. —K.T. Sim
When was the last time you shared the Good News with a friend? How does your personal experience in receiving salvation inspire you to reach others?
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