1 Corinthians 15:1 – Stand and steadfast

Now I am making known to you, brethren, the evangel which I bring to you, which also you accepted, in which also you stand…

Paul addresses an entirely new subject here. He has saved the best subject for last. There were some among the Corinthians who claimed that there would be no resurrection from the dead (15:12). And Paul asserts that statement as a reason for a fundamental explanation of what the Evangel is. Based on the historical fact of Christ being raised from the dead. Strictly speaking, the Corinthians knew that Evangel naturally. After all, Paul had evangelized them before and they had received it. That was the beginning of the ecclesia at Corinth.

Paul notes that his readers also ‘stand’ in that Gospel. But … that standing appears to be rather shaky. They were not solid and solidly founded. Otherwise the denial of the resurrection of the dead would certainly not have resonated with them. It is for that reason that Paul will soon close his long argument (15:58) with the words “so then (…) become steadfast, immovable …”.

The shaky ‘standing’ of the Corinthians had to change into steadfast tenacity. That is why he determines them again at the ABC of the Good Message.

Delen: