to you,” he was thinking of the moment they came to faith in Christ, the moment they took a firm grip on his message. When he added, “Unless you believed in vain,” he was not doubting the genuineness of their faith. Instead, his idea is “unless true believing led you nowhere.” That does not happen, since faith in a Christ who is risen always produces salvation. God performs what He promises. Paul now defines the Gospel: “For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ