What does the Gospel mean to those who are saved?
To those who are saved, the Gospel—the preaching of the Cross—is not merely a ticket to Heaven. It is the power of God, His wisdom, and a power beyond anything human. Salvation is not earned by works; it is received as God's free offer, and that message is a stumbling block to some and foolishness to others.
Les teaches that to the saved, the Gospel—the preaching of the Cross—is not just a ticket to Heaven, but the power of God. He emphasizes this flies in the face of Reformers and good-works people who say we must earn our way into Heaven, yet there is nothing we can do but take what God has offered. Les points to verse 23: we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. He explains this is a power man cannot even begin to touch, extraneous to anything human, and he plans to examine the power of God further in the next programs.
For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
More Questions
What does the message of the cross mean to the unsaved world?
To the unsaved world—people who are perishing—the preaching of the cross is foolishness and means nothing.