Believing in vain- 1Co 15:2

[theophilus]

1Co 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
1Co 15:2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
1Co 15:3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
1Co 15:4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
1Co 15:5 And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve:


What does Paul mean in 1Co 15:2 "unless you have believed in vain"?

My little sister "believes" in Jesus.

Her life has not changed.
Her heart has not changed.

Her "belief" is an intellectual assent.

She has no faith.

She believes in vain...like she has some sort of divine fire insurance.

 

[theophilus]

I believe the key lies in ....

1 Corinthians 15:17 KJV
(17) And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.

The wages of sin is death.

Since Christ was the only one that ever died sinless, He was able to break the bondage of the grave.
Without the resurrection, we would all be forever in the grave.

In Hell.

Which we deserve.

 

[steko]

Even demons believe Christ has been resurrected?

True.

Wouldn't similar 'belief' be held by people who believe the account, but do not trust Him as their Savior?

Yeah, it could go that direction like believing that chairs exist and have been said to be able to support a man's full weight, but resisting the act of actually sitting in one.

I don't think that is the sense of Paul's 'believing in vain' statement, however.

I believe that the whole chapter of 1Co 15 centers on the 'resurrection of the dead'.

Again....what does 'resurrection' mean?

I encounter frequently those who claim to be Christians but they don't believe that Christ 'resurrected'.
They think they do, but......they don't.

 

[john w]

Her life has not changed.
Her heart has not changed.

Quite irrelevant.

We are not saved by "falling in love" with the Lord Jesus Christ.

A psychic hotline, health club, Jack LaLane Juicer, winning in "Texas Hold 'Em," winning the Lotto................................................can change lives. That does not make it "Christian." And a Muslim, Buddhist, JW, Mormon, some deluded Hare Krishna on the streets of San Francisco,...........................can have a heart change, life change. And?


Take your seat. Fold. Lay it down.

 

[theophilus]

Quite irrelevant.

We are not saved by "falling in love" with the Lord Jesus Christ.

A psychic hotline, health club, Jack LaLane Juicer, ................................................can change lives. That does not make it "Christian. And a Muslim, Buddhist, JW, Mormon, some deluded Hare Krishna on the streets of San Francisco,...........................can have a heart change, life change. And?


Take your seat.

Doesn't change the fact that she is on the fast track to Hell.

 

[john w]

Doesn't change the fact that she is on the fast track to Hell.

Translation: You changed the subject, jettisoned your own "argument."

Sit, as I told you.

 

[theophilus]

Translation: You changed the subject, jettisoned your own "argument."

Sit, as I told you.

No argument here.

Sit, yourself, sir.

 

[steko]

I think that Paul is using a first class conditional statement at verse two:

"The first class condition indicates the assumption of truth for the sake of argument. The normal idea, then, is if--and let us assume that this is true for the sake of argument--then...." (Daniel Wallace, Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics, p. 690).​

The "if" in this statement is an assumption of the idea that if a person could stop believing then he has believed in vain. However, that can never happen since for the true believer the truth will be with us forever:

​

I used to believe that and taught it that way, but in the last few years I've reconsidered the overall text and have come to the conclusion that Paul is addressing some in Corinth who claim faith in Paul's gospel but have fallen short in that they don't actually believe in the resurrection of the dead, thus if Christ did not resurrect, then they have believed in futility/vain. They have come part way but have not believed unto salvation.

"The elder unto the elect lady and her children, whom I love in the truth; and not I only, but also all they that have known the truth; For the truth's sake, which dwelleth in us, and shall be with us for ever" (2 Jn.1-2).

A true believer knows that they will always keep in memory the truth of the gospel, that "he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him" (2 Cor.5:21).

:thumb:

 

[john w]

No argument here.

Sit, yourself, sir.

Pay attention....Take your seat. I'm one of the leaders, sherrif's, on TOL. Power.....authority.....


Dig?

And quit perverting the gospel of Christ, wolfie, with your your satanic "good news," which is bad news, "Her life has not changed.Her heart has not changed."


Tell us how much of a "heart change," "changed life," qualifies one to be justified. Have you made the grade?

Save it-it's rhetorical, wolfie.

Get saved.

 

[Jerry Shugart]

I used to believe that and taught it that way, but in the last few years I've reconsidered the overall text and have come to the conclusion that Paul is addressing some in Corinth who claim faith in Paul's gospel but have fallen short in that they don't actually believe in the resurrection of the dead, thus if Christ did not resurrect, then they have believed in futility/vain. They have come part way but have not believed unto salvation.

You might be right!

 

[Tambora]

Again....what does 'resurrection' mean?

I encounter frequently those who claim to be Christians but they don't believe that Christ 'resurrected'.
They think they do, but......they don't.

Good question.

 

[steko]

Good question.

I thought it was.

 

[serpentdove]

My little sister "believes" in Jesus.

Her life has not changed.
Her heart has not changed.

Her "belief" is an intellectual assent.

She has no faith.

She believes in vain...like she has some sort of divine fire insurance.

Praying for her and for you (skin cancer). :sigh:

 

[musterion]

Can someone correctly understand and believe what Paul taught about His death, burial and resurrection and not be saved? If you believe what it says, you know it speaks of everyone, including you...isn't that what God asks be believed?

 

[steko]

Can someone correctly understand and believe what Paul taught about His death, burial and resurrection and not be saved?

I don't think so.

If you believe what it says, you know it speaks of everyone, including you...isn't that what God asks be believed?

Yep.

 

[musterion]

Key word there is "correctly."

 

[steko]

Key word there is "correctly."

Yep!

 

[Zeke]

:thumb: Like a Stinger missile!

A scofield dude missile, Christ death/sleep in this sense wasn't physical but the dormant Divine seed lying fallow in the field/heart, the resurrection being a event that transpires in man Colossians 1:27 Luke 15:35, 17:20-21, the literal pagan human sacrifice shows the double minded dogma mixing carnal with spiritual 2Cor 3:6 which is the only division in the message being told in allegorical tales Galatians 4:24 through out scripture, precept on precept.

 

[steko]

A scofield dude missile, Christ death/sleep in this sense wasn't physical but the dormant Divine seed lying fallow in the field/heart, the resurrection being a event that transpires in man Colossians 1:27 Luke 15:35, 17:20-21, the literal pagan human sacrifice shows the double minded dogma mixing carnal with spiritual 2Cor 3:6 which is the only division in the message being told in allegorical tales Galatians 4:24 through out scripture, precept on precept.

An excellent example of one who has believed something other than the gospel which saves.

Thank you for your input.

 

[turbosixx]

1Co 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
1Co 15:2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
1Co 15:3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
1Co 15:4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
1Co 15:5 And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve:


What does Paul mean in 1Co 15:2 "unless you have believed in vain"?

What conditions does he put on "by which also you are saved"?

The NKJV does a better job of the Greek word used there for memory.
katechó: to hold fast, hold back
Original Word: κατέχω
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: katechó
Phonetic Spelling: (kat-ekh'-o)
Short Definition: I hold fast, bind, restrain
Definition: (a) I hold fast, bind, arrest, (b) I take possession of, lay hold of, (c) I hold back, detain, restrain, (d) I hold a ship, keep its head.

1 Cor. 15:2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain

If they don't hold it fast it was for nothing.