goat that had been slain ^. Both the one and the other had also been subjects of prophecy ; his death being foretold in all
its minutest circumstances and his resurrection being
fixed to a precise time after it, even the third day, before any change towards corruption should have taken place upon his body".
What the Scriptures had thus plainly foretold, was in due time accomplished. The death of Christ was known to the whole Jewish nation, thousands of whom were spectators of it : nor was his resurrection less clearly ascertained ; as even the falsehood invented to conceal it fully attests. The variety of occasions on which our Lord appeared to his Disciples after his resurrection, once to above five hundred brethren at once, left no possibility of doubt respecting if^: and to testify of this was the great work committed, in the first instance to the the twelve Apostles, and afterwards to the Apostle Paul, to whom Jesus appeared in a vision, on purpose that he might be, in that respect, on a par with all the other Apostles.]
This he calls the Gospel — [This, in truth, is the Gospel: and it comprehends all that is necessary for us to know. That " Christ died for our sins, and rose again for our justification," is the sum and sub- stance of that mystery, which God from all eternity devised for the redemption of fallen man, and which is unfolded to us in the writings of the New Testament. We may expatiate upon the various parts of this mystery, so as to exhibit them more clearly and fully to your view ; but we can never add to it : to attempt to add any thing to it, were to destroy it utterly. There is no redemption but through the death of Christ ; no salvation, but through his renovated life^ ]
St. Paul having stated what the Gospel is, proceeds to shew —
II. In what manner it should be regarded by us — The Corinthians '' had received it into their hearts,"
and were at that time "standing in it;" and this
shews us what we also must do —
1. We must " receive it" into our hearts by faith —
[We must " receive it " as true. There must be no doubt in our minds respecting it. We must have no more doubt of Christ expiating our guilt by his death, or of his rising to carry on in heaven the work he began on earth, than
b Lev. xvi. 8 — 10. " Jonah i. 17. Ps. xvi. 9, 10.
d ver. 5 — 8. *= Rom. v. 10.