“Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:1-2).
False teachers about the bodily resurrection have evidently had their destructive effect among some Christians in Corinth, thus necessitating Paul’s writing to correct the false information and to warn against departing from the gospel.
Paul is emphatic in reminding these Christians about the message of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus that he has taught them. It is the same message they obeyed so that they could be in a saved condition.
His reminder here makes their salvation conditional: if they are to remain in a saved condition, they must “hold fast,” that is, “not let go of” nor “turn away from,” the message of the bodily resurrection that Paul has taught them. If they fail to “hold fast,” they will have made of none effect their obedient faith.
What a powerful message Paul communicates here, one that rings true for all people in every generation: to be saved, we must “receive” the gospel by obeying it and we must continue to “stand” in it to show that our faith is not in vain.
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