Let us live the Gospel: Revd Dr. M. J. Joseph, Kottayam Page 13

foundation for Christianity. As eyewitnesses to the risen Christ (1 Corinthians 15: 3-8), the disciples were certain about the resurrection, ultimately laying down their own lives as martyrs all over the world, for proclaiming the gospel. Likewise, Apostle Paul made the resurrection the central aspect of his own Gospel preaching as he traveled around the Roman world. A powerful illustration of Paul’s approach is in his epistle to Corinthians, “And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.” (1 Corinthians 15: 14, 17) Christianity is anchored in the resurrection, with Jesus as the only risen, Living Savior. Christianity is also unique among religions in its depiction of God seeking out humanity to save them, in sharp contrast to humanity’s search for God in other religions. Christian historians have noted that if one were to take a chronological view of the NT books of the Bible, Paul’s epistles to the various early churches around the Mediterranean bases predate the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Paul’s epistles also provide compelling eyewitness testimonies to the resurrection from early Christian believers who had seen the risen Christ personally. Paul Barnett1, a pre-eminent scholar on Early Christianity, has shown from historical research that after the Romans crucified Jesus of Nazareth circa AD 33, His followers met weekly to worship Jesus as Lord, reaffirming Apostle Thomas’s proclamation of the risen Christ as his Lord and God (John 20:28). In his epistles to the Ephesians and Corinthians, Apostle Paul exhorts Christians to sing and make melody in their hearts “to the Lord” (Ephesians 5.19, 1 Corinthians 14.26). Apostle Paul also records the “Maranatha” prayer, which mean, ‘Lord, come back’ in the epistle to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 16.22), which is also found in the Book of Revelation (Revelation 22.20). Therefore, the evidence suggests that the early Christians worshipped Jesus as Lord and prayed to him, pleading with Him to return. Based on the research of Early Christianity scholars, Peter May2 has concluded that Apostle Paul’s credal statement in the epistle to Corinthians (1 Corinthians 15:3-5) regarding the death, burial, resurrection, and the appearing of Jesus was passed on to Paul by AD

1 https://www.bethinking.org/jesus/messiah-jesusthe-evidence-of-history. Also, Paul Barnett, “The Birth of Christianity: The First Twenty Years”, Eerdmans, 2005.

2 https://www.bethinking.org/did-jesus-rise-from-thedead/the-resurrection-of-jesus-and-the-witness-ofpaul)

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353, i.e., within five years of Christ’s death and possibly within only two or three years. Scholars have also concluded that the belief in Jesus as crucified Messiah and risen Lord was central to the united apostolic proclamation of the disciples. Following the credal formula, Paul also lists other resurrection appearances, including Peter, James, and himself (1 Corinthians 15:6-8). Scholars believe that Paul’s specific references to Peter, James, and himself as witnesses to the risen Christ stem from the fact they met in Jerusalem to discuss faith-related matters, staying together for fifteen days, three years after Paul’s Damascus road experience (Galatians 1:1819). The purpose of Paul’s visit to Jerusalem was to clarify the content of the Gospel they were preaching, since the Galatians had been embracing “a different gospel” because some had been “distorting the gospel” (Galatians 1:6-7). During his Jerusalem visit, Paul probably got to know the authoritative oral creed, with its list of witnesses from Peter and James, if he had not already learned it from Christians in Damascus. Therefore, Paul’s reference in 1 Corinthians 15 to the risen Christ appearing to both Peter and James must be based on Paul’s face-toface discussions with Peter and Paul. Blood of Christ: As Apostle Peter wrote in his epistle to the first century persecuted Christians in the Roman empire, we have been redeemed by the precious blood of Christ shed on the cross (1 Peter 1:18-19). When Adam and Eve sinned in the garden of Eden, the LORD made garments of skin to clothe them (Genesis 3:21). Through this, God demonstrated that the death of an animal and the shedding of its blood was the cost of atoning for sin. Further, the LORD taught the children of Israel that the life of the flesh is in the blood, and instructed them to offer blood on the altar as atonement for sins (Leviticus 17:11). The Old Testament sacrificial system pointed to the final sacrifice, the Lamb of God, Jesus the Christ, who shed his blood on the cross for the forgiveness of sins, past, present, and future, once for all. Jesus communicated this clearly to His disciples at the Last Supper, which forms the foundation for the celebration of the Lord’s Supper in the Church (Mark 14:22-25, Luke 22:18-20, 1 Corinthians 11:23-25). As elaborated by Charles Stanley4, there are four aspects related to the blood of Christ in God’s salvation plan: (i) Redemption, the act of purchasing back. We were redeemed with the precious blood of Jesus Christ, the unblemished, spotless Lamb of God

3 C.H. Dodd, “The Founder of Christianity”, Fontana, 1971. 4 https://www.intouch.org/watch/the-message-of-theblood-of-jesus

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(John 1: 29b, 1 Peter 1:18-19). We were sold into bondage to sin because of the fall of Adam and Eve, but bought back by Christ with His blood; (ii) Reconciliation, the act of bringing back together alienated people. God the Father has reconciled us through Christ’s death on the cross, presenting us before Him holy, blameless, beyond reproach (Colossians 1:22). While Sin separates us from God, when we trust in Jesus Christ as our Savior, we are reconciled with God the Father; (iii) Justification, the act of declaring one no longer guilty. Justification is accomplished by God through the blood of Christ, applied to those who trust in Him. As Apostle Paul wrote in the epistle to Romans, Christ died for us while we were still sinners, and therefore justified us by His blood (Romans 5:8-9).; and (iv) Sanctification, the act of setting one apart for God. While we are sanctified when we trust in Christ for salvation, the sanctification process is lifelong, as we are transformed into the likeness of Jesus. As the writer of Hebrews says, Jesus suffered for us and made us holy through His own blood (Hebrews 13:12). Likewise, John notes in his epistle that the blood of Jesus purifies us from all sin (1 John 1:7b). John also emphasizes the continuing process of cleansing that accompanies sanctification, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

Proclaiming the Good News: Proclaiming the Good News was at the heart of Jesus’s public ministry. In John’s Gospel for instance, the turning of water-intowine miracle at the wedding in Cana of Galilee is immediately followed by Jesus’s extensive discussion with Nicodemus—a ruler of the Jews (John 3:1) and the teacher of Israel (John 3:10)—on being born-again (John 3:3-21). The next chapter (John 4: 4-43) describes Jesus traveling through Samaria, meeting the woman at the well at Sychar who became a believer, leading to many Samaritans—a group of people despised by Jews—placing their trust in Jesus as the Christ (John 4: 39-42). It is also noteworthy that it was to the Samaritan woman that Jesus proclaimed himself as the Christ for the very first time, according to John’s Gospel (John 4: 25-26). Based on Jesus’ discussion with Nicodemus (John 3) and His outreach to the Samaritans (John 4), the Gospel according to John enunciates well the inclusive, encompassing nature of the “good news”, with Jesus as the savior for All humanity. At the end of His earthly ministry, Jesus gave the Great Commission mandate to His disciples and future Christian believers, to make disciples and share the Good News (Matthew 28: 16-20, Mark 16:14–18, Luke 24:44–49, Acts 1:4–8, John 20:19–23). As discussed earlier, Jesus Himself demonstrated the universal nature of the Gospel message with his outreach to the Samaritans early in His ministry. In response to the Great Commission clarion call, Jesus disciples travelled to all parts of the world to proclaim the Gospel and make disciples. Apostle Thomas, for instance, came to the Malabar Coast of India in AD 52, according to Church tradition, and established a Christian community— called Syrian Christians/St. Thomas Christians—that has flourished in the Indian state of Kerala for nearly 2000 years. Jesus also linked the preaching of the Gospel to His Second coming during the Olivet discourse, “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” (Matthew 24:14). It was Apostle Paul, more than the twelve disciples, that God used to proclaim the Gospel and establish churches that laid the foundation for Christianity in the Roman Empire during the post-Jesus period. Apostle Paul also authored thirteen epistles in the New Testament—with some epistles preceding the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John—that establish important linkages between the OT and NT books of the Bible. The transformation from Saul of Tarsus—a zealous persecutor of Christians—to Apostle Paul—a passionate follower of Christ—has been foundational and compelling (Acts 9: 1-22). Having experienced first-hand the power of the Gospel to transform his own life, Apostle Paul wanted others as well to be rescued from slavery to sin and experience God’s grace. Living Gospel: The Living Gospel is the Gospel that is living and real, with the power to transform lives, applicable and true, more broadly to the entire Word of God, the Bible. As the writer of Hebrews states, “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12). Further, the Word of God endures forever, as recorded by Prophet Isaiah, the Word of God endures forever (Isaiah 40:7-8). Prophet Isaiah also paints a beautiful picture of the Word of God, in terms of its power to accomplish God’s purposes in the lives of His people, “As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so