We get right with God by believing the gospel Paul preached — that Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again the third day (1 Corinthians 15:1–4).
God imputes His righteousness to everyone who believes that gospel; no works, law, or rituals can add to it. Scripture calls this gospel the power of God unto salvation for every believer. Les Feldick stresses that faith must be genuine and well-informed — not a vague mental assent.
1 Corinthians 15:1–4 — This is the passage Paul gives to define the gospel by which believers are saved: Christ died, was buried, and rose again.
Romans 1:16 — This verse shows that the gospel itself is God's power unto salvation for everyone who believes.
Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15:1–4 that the gospel he preached is the message by which believers are saved: Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, was buried, and rose again the third day according to the Scriptures. Romans 1:16 says this gospel is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. Paul also tells the Thessalonians that saving belief is specifically faith that Jesus died and rose again (1 Thessalonians 4:14). And in Ephesians 1:13, those who heard the word of truth — the gospel of their salvation — and believed were sealed in Christ.
Les Feldick teaches that people get right with God only through the finished work of the cross, which is the gospel defined in 1 Corinthians 15:1–4. Christ died (with His shed blood implied), was buried, and rose again. God imputes His righteousness to us as a result of believing that gospel — nothing else. We do not work for it, we do not deserve it; it is all of God's grace, and we appropriate it by faith. Les is emphatic that the saving response is not the Law, works, repentance, or baptism — it is believing the gospel. Faith must be genuine and Holy Spirit-driven, not a mental assent or empty belief. You have to know what you believe. Les also points out that while he has nothing against John 3:16, that verse by itself is not the gospel; the gospel is 1 Corinthians 15:1–4.
The gospel Paul delivered is that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, was buried, and rose again the third day according to the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:3–4). Les emphasizes that Christ's death includes His shed blood, and he summarizes this body of truth as 'the finished work of the cross.' This is the gospel by which we are saved — not something else.
Les teaches that salvation is not in the Law, not in works, and not in repentance and baptism; it is in believing the gospel. Paul does not make repentance, baptism, or church membership a requirement. There is nothing we can do to get ourselves out of the hopeless estate of being lost in sin — the gospel does the work.
Believing the gospel is not empty, vague belief. Les says you must know what you believe. He distinguishes between believing in God and believing God — believing God means doing what God has said and resting on it. It is a genuine, Holy Spirit-driven belief that your eternal destiny is based on what Christ did for you on the cross, not a mere mental assent.
Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:1–4 that by this gospel you are saved, and then he immediately defines it: Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again. Les points out that this is the portion he returns to over and over, and he notes that even John 3:16 by itself is not the Gospel — the Gospel is 1 Corinthians 15:1–4.
Returning to 1 Corinthians 15:1–4
Les introduces the need to go back to 1 Corinthians 15:1–4, the passage that opens the eyes of many to the gospel of salvation.
Righteousness Imputed by Believing
God imputes His righteousness to us because we believe the gospel, not because we work or deserve it; we must know what we believe.
The Gospel Is the Finished Work of the Cross
There is nothing we can do to save ourselves; the gospel is that Christ was crucified, buried, and rose again — the finished work of the cross.
Believing God vs. Believing in God
Salvation requires believing, not repentance, baptism, or church membership; believing God means resting on what He said about the gospel.
Salvation Is by Believing the Gospel
Paul's gospel came by revelation, and salvation is not in law, works, repentance, or baptism — it is in believing the gospel.
Paul's Gospel Defined
The gospel revealed to Paul is that the Son of God died on the cross, shed His blood, was buried, and rose again — by this gospel we are saved.
Genuine, Holy Spirit-Driven Belief
Faith is not mental assent; it is a genuine, Holy Spirit-driven belief that your eternal destiny rests on what Christ did for you.
The Gospel Is 1 Corinthians 15:1–4
God does everything needed for salvation; we know it by faith because the book says so. The Gospel is 1 Corinthians 15:1–4, and John 3:16 alone is not that Gospel.
1 Corinthians 15:1–4: Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
Paul defines the gospel by which people are saved — Christ's death, burial, and resurrection.
Romans 1:16: For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
The gospel itself is God's power to save everyone who believes.
1 Thessalonians 4:14: For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
Paul states the saving belief plainly as faith that Jesus died and rose again.
Ephesians 1:13: In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
The gospel of salvation is the word of truth that believers heard and trusted in Christ.
According to Les Feldick, Paul does not make repentance and baptism a requirement. The requirement is believing the gospel — that Christ died, was buried, and rose again. Les is explicit that salvation is not in law, works, repentance, or baptism, but in believing the gospel.
Yes — that is the gospel itself. Paul says, 'For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again' (1 Thessalonians 4:14). Les adds that this belief must be genuine, Holy Spirit-driven conviction about your eternal destiny, not empty mental assent.
Les Feldick says he has nothing against John 3:16, but by itself it is not the Gospel. The Gospel is 1 Corinthians 15:1–4: Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.
Les says you have to know what you believe; you don't just believe some empty gobbledygook. To believe in vain is to trust a vague or inaccurate message rather than the defined gospel of Christ's death, burial, and resurrection.
Watch the Teaching: Paul's Gospel vs. Peter's: What You Must Believe to Be Saved