1 Corinthians 15:12-19

1 Corinthians 15:12-19

And if Christ is being proclaimed because He has been raised out of the dead, how do some in you all say that there is no resurrection of the dead?  And if there is no resurrection out of the dead, neither has Christ been raised.  And if Christ has not been raised, consequently our preaching is completely without purpose and your faith is completely without purpose.  We are also being found as false witnesses of God because we testified according to God that He raised up Christ – whom He did not raise if indeed then the dead are not being raised up.  For if the dead are not being raised, neither has Christ been raised.  And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you all are still in your sins.  And consequently the ones who have become dead in Christ were destroyed.  If we are having placed our hope in Christ in this life only, we are the most miserable of all mankind.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought

I’m going to take this passage a bit backwards today.  We’ll start near the end and come forward in our thinking.  Paul ends this section by reminding us that we are the most pitiable of all people if there is no resurrection.  Think about it.  If when we die we stay dead and there is no life eternal, then what is the point of dealing with our sins in this world?  What is the point of trying to live a godly life?  If all people die and there is no eternal life into which we are resurrected, then who cares how we live?  If there is no life eternal, then let’s all be like animals: striving after the desires of our heart, gorging ourselves at any opportunity, and not caring who we have to take down in order to continue our own short existence!  If that’s how we should be living and we are forfeiting our ability to serve ourselves, then we are pitiable and miserable people!

Of course, I don’t believe this is true.  I do believe there is a resurrection into eternal life and thus there is a reason to be concerned about a godly life and being obedient to the Father who created us.  But it is the promise of eternal life, which makes humbleness before God make all sense.  That’s Paul’s point.

Have you ever lived a life unconcerned about eternal life and God’s ways?  How does that feel?  What about that lifestyle feels good?  Why is eternal life and obedience to God better than a life of self-service?

Second Thought:

So how do we know that there is a resurrection awaiting us?  We know because Jesus was raised.  Jesus appeared to hundreds of people after He died upon the cross and was buried in the tomb.  Jesus was raised as a demonstration of what God will do to each of us as well!  What is the point of raising Christ and revealing Christ to us except to demonstrate that a perfect world of eternal life with the Father awaits us?  What’s the point of sending Christ to die for our sins unless there is a resurrection into new life!  The fact that Christ came, taught, died, and was raised is so that we can see fully and completely what it is that God offers to us through our relationship with Him.  Jesus Christ is the full revelation of God.  He is the example that we are to follow.  We are to follow His example in life and we will certainly follow His example in death and resurrection.

Does it make it any easier to believe in God’s ability to raise us into new life because we have the example of Jesus Christ?  How does this demonstrate God’s love for us – not just in desiring us to be saved but in allowing us to see it at work, too?

Third Thought:

Why is the resurrection so important to faith?  The resurrection is our forward hope.  The resurrection is that which is always before us so long as we are alive in this world.  The resurrection is the goal.  It is the state of living where all things will be made right and all things will be perfected in the Lord.  The resurrection is that place where all tears will be wiped away and the sting of death will be done away.  See 1 Corinthians 15:54-55, which is a quote from Isaiah 25:8 and Hosea 13:14.  The cross dealt with our sinful nature in the past; the resurrection gives us a foretaste of life to come.  Eternal life in the presence of God the Father should be our goal and focus as we live each and every day in this world.

Is eternal life your focus?  Why do you give the answer here that you do?  When do you have an easy time focusing on the life to come?  When is it difficult to focus on eternal life?

Passage for Tomorrow: 1 Corinthians 15:20-28