"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."
In this passage, we understand that Jesus died for us so that we can be forgiven of our sins. Shortly after His Resurrection, Jesus had a conversation with two of His disciples who, because Jesus had been crucified, had begun doubting that Jesus was Israel's Messiah. In Luke 24:25-27, we read:
"Then He said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into His glory? And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself."
For the most part, the Church has made an effort to achieve its mission. Since Christ's Ascension up into heaven (Acts 1:9), missionaries have traveled to the far corners of the globe carrying the Lord's message. Those places where missionaries are unwelcome, still have an opportunity to hear the Gospel, as it is available through broadcasts by satellite which literally reach every nation on our planet. Radio and television stations proclaim the Lord's message twenty-four hours a day.
But there is a "slight problem." Few of those broadcasts tell the whole story. Yes, they do proclaim Christ's death, burial, and resurrection. Yes they do proclaim the fact that God loves all of humanity. But many, perhaps even most, fail to teach what man's response to the message should be. Christ died for sins - that was God doing His part. But man has a part in forgiveness. Before you burn me at the stake for heresy, hear me out. In Luke 24:47, Jesus told His disciples that there were two parts to salvation: "And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem." Remission is what Jesus did on the cross; repentance is our agreeing that because of our sin, we not only needed Him as our Savior, but that we should allow Him to be Lord of our lives! The Gospel presents Jesus as both Savior and Creator (Jn. 1:1-3, Col. 1:16; Heb. 1:1-2; etc.)!
Look at Ephesians 2:8-9: "For by grace (we didn't earn it) are ye saved through faith (we believe in the resurrected Lord); and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast."
Faith is not earning salvation; faith is accepting it as a gift!
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