How important is the resurrection of Jesus?

1 Cor. 15:1-28 - How important is the resurrection of Jesus?

Introduction

Imagine with me that you are planning on going away for a ski trip in the winter. The most crucial part necessary for skiing has happened… snow. But you need something else…equipment. Can you ski without skis? No. It wouldn’t go very well, you would just tumble down a big mountain.

Now, if I were to ask you this question, “What is the most important thing in Christianity?” What would you say? “The death of Christ on the cross.” While the cross of Christ, his death, is crucial and central to the gospel message, there is something else just as crucial…the resurrection.

What we will see today is that just like the ski equipment, the death of Christ without the resurrection does not bring hope. The resurrection of Christ is a crucial doctrine of Christianity that brings us hope.

Context

By way of context, Paul writes this letter to the church at Corinth to deal with a bunch of problems in their church and to answer some of their questions. In a nutshell we could say that this letter is Paul’s correction and instruction to the church at Corinth.

Chapter 15, in particular, is dealing with some of these questions. At the time of this writing, many believed that death was just the end of life or you would live forever in a shadowy and insubstantial existence in the underworld. The idea of a physical, embodied existence after death was mocked by many. In this passage, Paul is dealing with their confusion about the future, bodily resurrection of Christians.

Content

In verses 1-2 Paul reminds the Corinthians and us of why we must hold fast to, or continue to believe, the gospel. He tells us that if we believe the gospel as it was correctly preached to us, and hold onto it for dear life, we will have salvation. This makes us think of two questions. First, what are we saved from? Second, what is the gospel?

What is Salvation? (v. 2)

What is salvation? It is being rescued (saved) from the eternal wrath and punishment of God. Every human born of ordinary generation stands under God’s wrath and curse because of sin. Sin is simply missing the mark of God’s required perfection. It is doing what he forbids and not doing what he commands perfectly with all our heart.

Sin was passed down to us by our fathers, this is called original sin, and we stand guilty in this at our conception, our nature is corrupt. We also sin every single day in our thoughts, words, and actions, this is called actual sin, and we stand condemned in this too. It is a double whammy.

What is the Gospel? (v. 1)

What is the gospel? It is the good news that instead of being eternally punished by God for the evil we have done and will do, God sent his Son, Jesus, to become our substitute. Instead of us bearing the eternal wrath and punishment for our sins, Jesus died on a cross, bore the eternal wrath of God for us, rose from the dead on the third day to prove that he accomplished this, and now rules in heaven until he saves all he has chosen to be his people.

How important is it? (vv. 3-8)

If this is true, which it is, then I hope you can see why this would be the most important thing that you could know and believe, and why you should hold onto it.

Can you see it? An eternity of God’s wrath or an eternity with God in his love. Everything else in life pales in comparison.

In verses 3-8 we see several things that are more important then anything else we could know or experience.

First, our sins must be paid for. They will either be paid for by us for eternity or by Christ. This is not abstract, we are guilty, each and every one of us.

Second, Jesus really died in time and history to pay for the sins of all who trust in him for salvation.

Third, God prophesied or predicted that Jesus would die for the sins of his people thousands of years before it happened. And it happened just as it was prophesied.

Listen to Isaiah 53:6, 9-10, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth. Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.”

Not only was his death to take our sins upon himself for us prophesied, but his resurrection was too. He made an offering for guilt and he would divide his portion with the many. What is this saying but that he will die and rise again?

Fourth, Jesus’ death was real and not faked. He truly died and was buried. His body was put in a tomb and was there for three days and three nights (Matthew 12:40).

Fifth, Jesus rose from the dead on the third day just like the Scriptures say (Ps. 16:10; Is. 53:10; Matthew 12:40; John 2:22).

Sixth, he made multiple appearances that prove that he was raised from the dead. First, he appeared to all the apostles. Then he appeared to over 500 people at one time. When this letter was written, you could have talked to most of them and received an eyewitness account. Next, he appeared to James, the half-brother of Jesus, and all the apostles. Finally, he appeared to Paul as well, the one who wrote this letter. Christ’s resurrection was not made up. It could be substantiated.

Who can get it? Freely offered to all (vv. 9-11)

One important thing to see is that this salvation is offered to anyone. If Paul could be saved after persecuting Jesus’ church, then no matter what you have done, you too can find forgiveness in Jesus.

Why? We are saved by God’s grace or favor. It has nothing to do with what we have or haven’t done. God’s mercy saves us and we can walk in freedom no matter what our past. 

The question of the resurrection (vv. 12-19)

Does the resurrection really matter that much? Paul seems to think so and so do I. You see, some people were teaching and still do today that the present life is all that there is. You live. You die. But this isn’t what the Bible teaches.

These Christians in Corinth did believe that Christ was raised from the dead, but they believed in a more general resurrection. In other words, that their soul would be resurrected, but not their body.

What Paul is arguing here is that there is an organic connection between the resurrection of Christ and his new body and our resurrection and our new body. We were not redeemed for a disembodied existence, but an eternally embodied existence with a perfect body, a spiritual body like Christ. Paul’s argument is that you can’t disconnect Christ’s resurrection from ours. We will have an eternally embodied existence, but if there isn’t an eternally embodied existence, then there is no such thing as eternal life, and what Christ did doesn’t matter.

Let me sum up verses 12-19 for us. If Christ didn’t rise from the dead then everyone should feel sorry for us as Christians. Why? We put our hope in God’s salvation through Jesus Christ. If he didn’t rise from the dead, then there is no reason to think we will ever rise from the dead. And if this is the case, we might as well live it up in this life and do whatever we please. But since the life of a Christian is service and sacrifice, then we are wasting our life.

Paul’s point here is that the message of Christianity isn’t simply that Christ died, what would be the point of that only, but that he was raised. The death and resurrection of Christ is like two sides of one coin. You can’t have one without the other. If he died without a resurrection that is only bad news, not good news. An innocent and perfect man died…the end. That is actually a terrible story.

But this isn’t what happened. In fact, the Bible teaches that there will be a resurrection from the dead. Every single person will be raised from the dead. Some to everlasting life and others to everlasting death.

And so, if the dead aren’t raised, then Christ wasn’t raised. And if Christ wasn’t raised from the dead then you have no reason to hope. And also, you have no reason to think that Christ dying on the cross did anything for you. You are still in your sins. So, you might as well just eat, drink, and be merry, for you will die soon.

And if all we have to hope in Christ for is this life, that doesn’t give us that much. A little joy and peace, but soon it will be over and what would have been the point of it anyway?

The resurrection (vv. 20-28)

But the reality is that Christ was resurrected. Over 500 people saw him and testified of this fact. He in fact is the first fruits of the resurrection of the dead. What does this mean? He was the first one who was given a new body that was incorruptible.

In other words, when Jesus was raised from the dead, he was the very first one. This was proof that all who trust in him would be raised from the dead just like him and given a new body just like his.

You see, just like Adam brought death upon all the world through his rebellion against God, so Jesus brought life upon all who trust in him through his resurrection.

Now, you should know that since Christ has risen from the dead, then if we are in him, one day, when he returns, we too will be raised from the dead. Paul argues that there is a seamless connection between Christ’s resurrection and our hope for resurrection.

At Jesus’ ascension, he sat at God’s right hand from where he is subduing all his and our enemies. He is putting all of them under his feet, every rule and every authority and power.

You see, the resurrection of the dead, when all people get new bodies, those in Christ perfected ones, to live eternally in, and those outside of Christ, corrupt bodies, to be eternally punished in, will happen when time and history are complete.

For believers there will be no more pain, sickness, death, and dying. Only life and life eternally. They will be finally resurrected in their spiritual bodies, death will be no more.

All Christians that die before this time, after Christ’s resurrection, at their death, go immediately to be with Jesus in heaven. They are disembodied spirits, waiting for their new bodies at the end of history. This is why Paul mentions the end when the kingdom is delivered to God the Father. Why? The Father has given Jesus all things for him to bring under his rule. You see, Jesus is destroying all his enemies, and the last enemy is death. Once this is done, Jesus will return and end all death. He will do this by ushering in the great and terrible day of judgment. Where all the wicked will be judged and will be cast into outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, and the righteous, those found in Christ, will be brought into the everlasting kingdom of God in the new heavens and earth.

At this time all things in heaven and on earth will be subjected to God and all will willingly obey and serve him who are in his heaven. What this means is that God’s supreme authority over all will be eternally established. No one or nothing will ever revolt or rebel against him.

What verses 27-28 teach us is quite simple. The Father has put all things in subjection to Jesus, but of course this excludes God the Father who put all things in subjection to Jesus. Jesus is one with God the Father and equal to the Father in deity, yet he willingly subjected himself to him. Christ’s subjection to the Father will continue for all eternity. And all of this will be to the praise and glory of God’s marvelous grace who will be all in all. We should note that this is not a subordination of being, but an economic or practical/functional subjection. Christ as the true God-man living under God.

This is what Jesus’ resurrection brought about. And without it our salvation would not be good news. But it is good news and it has very real benefits to us.

Application

So, what are the benefits of the resurrection?

First, without the resurrection, there is no power in our preaching (1 Cor. 15:14). In fact, our preaching is empty. We cannot preach the cross of Christ without preaching the resurrection of Christ. For the resurrection of Christ is the proof that Christ’s completed work satisfied the eternal wrath of God.

Second, without the resurrection, there is no guarantee of the forgiveness of sins (1 Cor. 15:17; 1 Pet. 3:18-22). If Christ is not raised, there is no way to know whether or not we have been forgiven. But, if he was raised by God, then that means that his sacrifice was accepted by God. And so, when he says, your sins are forgiven, they truly are.

Third, it is the guarantee of eternal life and a resurrected body (John 11:25-26; 1 Cor. 15:20, 23b, 1 Thess. 4:14). Jesus is the resurrection and the life. He promised that whoever believed in him, though he dies, he will live, and everyone who believes in Christ will never die. Christ is the guarantee, or the firstfruits of this. Like the first crop of the year in a field, it is the representation of what is to come. Jesus’ resurrection and new body proves that we will be resurrected and get a new body too.

Finally, it guarantees the defeat of evil (1 Cor. 15:24-28). After Christ rose from the dead, he was seated at God’s right hand and given all authority and power. This was given to him because of his faithfulness as the true Son of God and the true Son of Man. Every enemy of Christ will be put under Christ’s feet. He will destroy every enemy, and finally the last enemy, death. All things are put under the rule or subjection of Christ. Christ’s resurrection assures the final defeat of evil.

The resurrection provides all this and more. We are freed from the penalty of sin. We are freed from the power of sin. And Christ is completing his work so that one day we will be freed from the presence of sin.