Last night at work I was contemplating a subject I have been meaning to write about for some time. This led me to consider the pillars of the faith, of the gospel. I believe the three foundational pillars of the faith are:
CHRIST HAS COME
God, through the prophets and with great detail, promised the coming of Christ. The gospel is this: Christ has come. Jesus of Nazareth is the Christ. The gospels tell of his fulfilling the prophecies in his birth and ministry. But the gospels have a shocking end - the Christ was crucified!
CHRIST HAS BEEN RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Yes. Jesus, who said he was the Christ, was crucified, dead and buried. But the gospel declares he was raised from the dead! This is what the Apostles proclaimed when they preached the gospel. This is actually more important than the crucifixion. What?? Yes, the resurrection is the demonstration the Jesus is Christ, the Son of the living God. The resurrection declares his death was not in vain. The resurrection secures forgiveness of sins and eternal life.
Jesus of Nazareth is the Christ. He who was crucified, dead and buried, was raised from the dead and ascended into heaven where he sits at the right hand of God. Jesus is alive and he is Lord!
CHRIST IS COMING AGAIN
He whom the heavens have received will return in power and glory. He will raise the dead and establish the kingdom of God here on this earth. "Behold, I come quickly." This is our hope.
This the message the apostles preached: “And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus the Christ.” Remove any pillar and the faith topples. Deny any of this and you are no longer holding the faith once delivered.
This is nothing new and every Christian would confess the same. Yet I am persuaded that this is not what is emphasized in much of contemporary preaching. This is what I hope to address further in another post.
