Before Paul’s teachings, people were to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.
The confession recorded throughout the Gospels and early Acts is that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. Peter, Martha, and the Ethiopian eunuch all made this confession without mentioning His death for sins, His burial, or His resurrection. Les Feldick stresses that this was all they were expected to believe because that is what Jesus had revealed to them.
Matthew 16:16 — Peter’s confession defines the pre-Paul confession of who Jesus is.
Acts 8:37 — The Ethiopian eunuch’s confession before baptism states only that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
Acts 9:20 — Saul’s first preaching after conversion was the same confession that Jesus is the Son of God.
In the Gospel record, when people were asked about Jesus, the confession placed before them was that He is the Christ, the Son of God. Peter answered, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16:16). Martha, at the tomb of Lazarus, answered Jesus’ question with the same kind of confession: "Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world" (John 11:27). Later, in Acts, when Philip asked the Ethiopian eunuch if he believed, the eunuch replied, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God" (Acts 8:37). These recorded confessions do not include statements about Jesus’ death for sins, His shed blood, His burial, or His resurrection. After Saul’s conversion, he "straightway preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God" (Acts 9:20) — the same confession that had been made by earlier believers.
Les Feldick repeatedly points out that before Paul’s teaching, the required belief was not a statement about Christ’s death, burial, or resurrection. He highlights that the confessions of Peter, Martha, and the Ethiopian eunuch all end after declaring Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the living God — “Period.” Les says that was all they were expected to believe and confess, because that is what Jesus had revealed up to that point. He also notes that even Saul of Tarsus, immediately after his conversion, preached in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. However, Les teaches that this confession was not enough for the new Gentile gospel, so God moved Saul out and later revealed through him a gospel centered on Christ’s death for sins, His burial, and His resurrection.
Peter said, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16:16). Martha, at Lazarus’ death, said, "Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world" (John 11:27). The Ethiopian eunuch said, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God" (Acts 8:37). In each case, Les notes that no mention is made of death, burial, and resurrection.
Les puts emphasis on the fact that the miracles Jesus performed were the proof of who He was — the Messiah, the Son of God. When John the Baptist was in prison, Jesus sent back word of miracles such as the blind receiving sight and the dead being raised, as proof of His identity. Les concludes that these believers were expected to believe and confess who Jesus was, because that is what He had revealed. The later facts of His death and resurrection were not part of the confession at that time.
Saul of Tarsus, right after his conversion, preached in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God (Acts 9:20) — the same confession as earlier believers. But Les teaches that God could not let Saul preach that message as the gospel for the Gentile. The emphasis in the early chapters of Acts was faith in the Name of Jesus Christ, which meant who He was. The gospel that Paul would later proclaim was a different message, one centered on Christ’s death and resurrection.
Miracles Proved Jesus’ Identity
Les explains that Jesus’ miracles, like the blind seeing and the dead raised, were proof that He was the Christ, the Son of God — the fact people were to recognize.
Pre-Paul Confessions Lacked the Cross and Resurrection
Les contrasts the pre-Paul confessions of Peter, Martha, the eunuch, and Saul — all identifying Jesus as the Son of God — with no mention of His death, burial, or resurrection.
The Eunuch’s Statement of Faith
Les emphasizes that the Ethiopian eunuch’s confession was simply that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the living God — and that it ended there.
All They Were Expected to Believe
Les states directly that "that’s all they were expected to believe" — that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of God — because that was what He had revealed to them.
Saul’s Initial Preaching and the Coming Change
Les shows that even Saul preached the same confession after conversion, but that message was not to be the gospel for the Gentile.
Belief in the Name Meant Belief in Who He Was
Les emphasizes that the early faith was placed in Jesus’ name, which implied who He was; Peter’s confession said nothing about dying for him or rising from the dead.
The Crucial Confession in Acts 8
Les stresses the crucial wording of the eunuch’s confession: "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Period." — no death, burial, or resurrection.
Same Confession, Then Paul
Les reiterates that all early believers made the same confession — Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God — but that this was not enough for the later Gentile gospel.
Matthew 16:16: And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
This is the confession Peter made when Jesus asked who the disciples believed Him to be.
John 11:27: She saith unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world.
Martha’s response to Jesus’ question after Lazarus died shows the same pre-Paul confession.
Acts 8:37: And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
The eunuch’s baptismal confession includes only that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
Acts 9:20: And straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God.
Saul’s first public preaching after conversion used the same confession.
They were to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. Les shows their confessions in Matthew 16, John 11, and Acts 8 all stop there.
In the clips, Les emphasizes that the confessions of Peter, Martha, and the Ethiopian eunuch did not mention death, burial, or resurrection. Saul's early preaching in Acts 9 also only said that Jesus is the Son of God.
Les teaches that the message "Jesus is the Son of God" was not enough for the Gentile gospel. God moved Saul out so that a different gospel, centered on Christ's death for sins, burial, and resurrection, could be revealed.
Watch the Teaching: Why the Gospel Changes After the Cross — Romans 3 Explained