The Gospel Paul “Gospeled”

When Christians talk about the gospel, opinions often multiply quickly. Is it the kingdom? Salvation? Justification? Discipleship? All of those themes matter, of course, but when we ask where the New Testament itself comes closest to defining the gospel, one passage towers above the rest: 1 Corinthians 15:1–5.

New Testament scholar Scot McKnight puts it bluntly: “The best place to begin is the one place in the entire New Testament where someone actually comes close to defining the word gospel. First Corinthians 15 is that place.” Paul is reminding the Corinthians of the very message that brought them to faith, the message in which they now stand, and the message by which they are being saved.

There is a fascinating detail in the Greek text that gets lost in translation. Paul writes to euangelion ho euangelisamēn humin—literally, “the gospel that I gospeled to you.” English versions smooth this out as “the gospel I preached to you,” but Paul intentionally piles up gospel language. His passion practically spills off the page. He is not discussing an abstract theological concept; he is reminding them of the very announcement that changed their lives.

And what is that announcement? Paul immediately defines it: Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, was buried, was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and appeared to witnesses. The death, burial, resurrection, and appearances of Christ form the irreducible core of the gospel. Everything else in Christian theology flows from these events, but these events themselves are the beating heart.

That is why Paul could say he was sent “to preach the gospel,” why he called it the power of God for salvation, and why his ministry rose or fell on its content. If we want to know what Paul meant by “the gospel,” 1 Corinthians 15 is not merely a helpful starting point. It is ground zero.