[Winman]

In your post you use quite a few verses that contain the word "believe", and at the end of your post you have the phrase "JUST believe on the Lord Jesus Christ" Can you explain the meaning of 1 Cor 15:2,"By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have BELIEVED IN VAIN"?

The answer to your question is found in the rest of the chapter.

And what is the subject of the chapter? Not just that Christ died for our sins and was buried, but also that he rose again the third day.

1 Cor 15:12 Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead?

Then...

1 Cor 15:13 But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen: 14 And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain. 15 Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not. 16 For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised: 17 And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.

So, what they were to hold firmly to was that not only did Jesus die for our sins and was buried, but that He also rose from dead.

1 Cor 15:19 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.


1 Cor 15:32 If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantageth it me, if the dead rise not? let us eat and drink; for to morrow we die.