If you were an unbeliever, an outsider to the Christian faith, doing a documentary on what Christians believe, I’d think the topic of Christ’s resurrection from the dead would leave you confused. On the one hand, you’d see that it’s obviously important to Christians. For one, the church started meeting together on Sundays after the resurrection of Christ from the dead simply because that’s the day he rose from the dead. Sunday has been called historically “the Lord’s Day.” Additionally, Easter Sunday is a day of celebration in the church perhaps unlike any other day in the church’s calendar. Consequently, as I’ve noted, an outsider would assume that the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is utterly important, even central to the Christian faith.
On the other hand, if that outside observer paid close attention, he might also notice that many in the church really don’t know what to make of Christ’s resurrection. We can oftentimes talk about the gospel in terms of the good news that Christ took our place and paid our penalty in his death on the cross so that by faith in him we might be saved from God’s wrath in hell, while often tacking the resurrection on with a brief note of “oh yeah, and he was raised from the dead” or forgetting it altogether. In my fifteen years of doing membership interviews, my most often asked question after listening to someone share the gospel with me is, “Now, did Jesus stay dead after he did on the cross?” And of course individual after individual answers, “No,” adding, “He was raised from the dead.” But why are we so prone to forget? It seems, we don’t exactly know what to make of the resurrection.
And this doesn’t just come up in membership interviews. A pastor friend of mine who spent years working at Union tells me that prior to students going on spring or summer mission trips, he first asked them to write down the gospel on a card and hand it in to the campus ministries office. Then, after so many of them left out mentioning Christ’s resurrection entirely he decided that he should get all of them together and go over the content of the gospel message. Even in one of my favorite books that I still highly recommend, the author writes, “The good news of the gospel is that Jesus paid for all our sins on the cross and we are thereby forgiven,”1 again, leaving out the resurrection entirely.
How in the world can we be a people who, on the one hand, obviously prize the resurrection of our Lord so much while, on the other hand, ignoring it so often? I think the answer lies in the fact that we simply need to give ourselves more time to thinking through the important role Christ’s death plays in our faith, our hope, and our lives.
But lest we think we’re the first who have struggled to believe Christian doctrine and live out the Christian faith consistently, we have the Corinthians. Sometimes I think the Lord graciously gave us the letter of First Corinthians just to let us know if we’re ever discouraged as a church that there was a church that was worse. And in this case, the Corinthians also had great inconsistency in their thought and practice regarding the resurrection. On the one hand, they clearly professed that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead. Paul makes that clear in 15:1-2. However, while believing Christ’s resurrection, there were also a number in the church who were denying the future bodily resurrection of believers from the dead. We see that in 15:12, as Paul writes, “Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?”
Now, why they were denying the bodily resurrection, we don’t know. It may well be that the thought of Greek culture around them had begun to creep into their own thinking. We know that some Greek thinkers of the day believed that the soul was immortal, but the body was simply something to be shed and decay. The body was simply something we get to escape from at death, and the soul was what really mattered. Perhaps the Corinthians had begun to think similarly as well and were missing the inconsistency of professing their hope in a gospel that claims that Jesus not only died for their sins but was bodily raised while denying at the same time the reality of the resurrection of the body. So, Paul writes to them in this chapter to show them their inconsistency and to bring them to repentance in their doctrine.
While doing this, however, he shows them the importance of Christ’s resurrection and ours. And, this, I think is what we need to hear today, since we struggle to understand the utter importance of resurrection (both Christ’s and ours) ourselves. Basically, Paul’s main point is that if you lose the doctrine of bodily resurrection, then you lose Christ’s bodily resurrection, and you end up losing the whole Christian faith and life itself. So, as we meet on this Lord’s Day and stand a week away from the day in which we remember afresh Christ’s resurrection from the dead, we need to be reminded of the importance of Christ’s resurrection and ours. This is what 1 Corinthians 15:12-34 does for us. The first way that Paul shows the utter importance of Christ’s resurrection is by noting in verses 12-19 that:
In this section, Paul wants them to see that if you deny the resurrection of the dead, then you have to deny that Christ was raised from the dead as well. He notes this in verses 12-13, writing, “Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised.”
This is simple enough, isn’t it? Paul is showing them that their beliefs have consequences. The Christian faith is a package whole. The Christian faith is not like a bag of marbles where you might take one out and it really not affect others. It’s more like a thread in a tightly woven shirt. You try to take one out and you end up ruining the shirt. Bad doctrine in one area necessarily has negative consequences in other areas as well. And a denial of the resurrection (bad doctrine) meant that the Corinthians would have to ultimately deny Christ’s resurrection from the dead as well.
Then, Paul notes a number of consequences of what it would mean if Christ was never really bodily raised from the dead that I’ll list as we walk through the remaining verses of this section. If Christ is not raised, Paul says, then:
1. Our preaching and your faith is in vain.
Paul has already noted that the gospel he preached was that Christ died for our sins and was raised, and that’s what they had believed. But if Christ isn’t raised, then his preaching is powerless and their faith futile (v. 14).
2. Anyone who has testified to Christ’s resurrection is a liar.
Paul writes in verses 15-16, “We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then not even Christ has been raised.”
Paul told people God raised Jesus from the dead. So did all the other apostles. In fact, the reason the church exists today is because people testified to what the apostles said and wrote, telling others that Jesus, who died for our sins, was also bodily raised from the dead so that they might believe. These men even died because they would not let go of this declaration that Christ was raised and is therefore king over all.
But if Jesus really isn’t raised from the dead, then these men are some of the most wicked men who ever lived. They developed an elaborate hoax and for some strange reason were willing to die for it. Of course not. But Paul wants the Corinthians to see the implications of their faith. If they’re going to deny the resurrection of the dead, they have to claim that the apostles misrepresented the truth about God’s actions when they tell others that God raised Jesus from the dead when he (according to the Corinthians’ wrong doctrine) didn’t.
3. You and I and all who believe the gospel are still in our sins, under God’s wrath.
Now, this one might be a little harder for us to reason out, so let me first start with showing you that this is what Paul says. He writes in verse 17, “And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.” When he says “your faith is futile and you are still in your sins” he means that you and have not been forgiven of our sins, still have God’s wrath hanging over us, and will face God’s eternal judgment in hell – if Christ is not raised.
For some of us, that may feel a bit strong considering how we think of Christ’s resurrection. I mean, wouldn’t it make more sense to say, “If Christ is not raised, then we still have forgiveness of sins and will not face God’s judgment – after all, Christ died for our sins and bore God’s judgment for us – we simply will not be able to have our bodies raised from the dead.” I mean, something like that would seem more fitting, wouldn’t it? So, why does Paul connect our actual forgiveness of sins and salvation from hell with Christ’s resurrection?
The answer is that we are saved by being united with Christ so that what is true of Christ is true for us. He dies for our sins, for example, and we die with him, thus his payment counts for us, etc. But if Christ is not raised from the dead on that Easter Sunday morning then the last “word” on that Friday when Christ died, bearing the wrath of God, was judgment and death. Therefore, if Christ is not raised, then we’d find ourselves united by faith with one who bears God’s wrath, dead, in the tomb. Consequently, we’d have to say of ourselves, we still bear God’s wrath and will die in our sins. After all, what’s true of Christ is true of us by faith.
When Jesus is raised on that Easter Sunday morning, though, the Father was declaring him righteous, and consequently death had no claim on him. And because we’re united by one who has been declared righteous by his resurrection from the dead, showing death and hell have no claim on him, then we are declared righteous as well and free from death and hell’s tyranny. This is how crucial Christ’s resurrection is to our salvation. It’s also why Paul notes that if Christ is not raised, then:
4. Everyone who has died as a Christian would still face God’s wrathful judgment.
Taking everything we’ve already said, if Christ isn’t raised, then not only would we still bear our sins and be objects of God’s wrathful judgment, but everyone who died before us, trusting in Christ, would have died and perished, bearing God’s wrath for eternity.
Consequently, Paul concludes in verse 19, “If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.” If Christ isn’t raised, then we are deceived, lying, hopeless sinners who are waiting to face God’s wrath in hell on the day of judgment. But praise God, Christ has been raised. And therefore, we have believed the truth, are rightly testifying what God wants us to say when we preach the resurrection, are forgiven of our sins, and will one day hear “Enter into my eternal rest” on the day of judgment. In fact, that pretty much where Paul points us in verses 20-29, where he shows us that:
Just as Paul showed the Corinthians that denying the resurrection has tragic consequences concerning the gospel itself, in verses 20-29 he shows us that the reality that Christ has been raised has amazing, good, and gracious positive consequences itself. In fact, Christ’s resurrection guarantees the resurrection of believers and their eternal salvation. Let me show you how Paul argues this. First, he notes what we’re already said, namely, that since we are united with Christ by faith, what is true of him is true of us as well. He shows that in verses 20-23.
He writes, “But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, so by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ” (vv. 20-23).
Paul notes that our union with Christ by faith has consequences for us, even as our union with Adam did. We were all united with Adam just by virtue of Adam being the head of humanity. Therefore, when Adam sinned, was condemned, and ushered a reign of death into the world, all of us are sinners, condemned, and under the reign of death. His actions brought consequences for all in him – which is every person born of man. However, Christ’s actions also have consequences for all in him, meaning every person who has been united with him by faith. Therefore, when we see what has happened to Christ, we are getting a picture of what must be true of us as well, since we are in him.
Therefore, when we see that he is raised from the dead, then we must draw the conclusion that he is the first to be raised and all of us united by faith with him will be raised as well. Paul says we should think of him like the firstfruits. That is, when you see the first of the harvest, the first apple on the tree if you will, then it signals that there is more fruit to come. That’s what Jesus’ resurrection from the dead signals. It means all of those in him, by necessity, since we are united with him, will be raised from the dead as well.
In fact, one reason Paul shows us why death cannot continue to reign in this world is because Christ’s resurrection from the dead was not simply a coming to life, but it fit the biblical promise that he must reign over all things.
You see, when God made Adam, he put him in the garden and made all things subject to him. He was king over all, under God of course, but over all of creation. But Adam failed in that task and made himself and all in him subject to another – death. Therefore, when we read Psalm 8 and hear of the glorious description of all things put in subjection to man, it’s a reminder of what was but now isn’t, right?
But when God the Son comes and takes on flesh, becoming the God-man, he comes to fulfill the role Adam failed in. Consequently, because he is perfectly righteous giving no reason to be subject to anything (like Adam did by his sin) but having all things in subjection to him, then death itself must be in subjection to him. If there is no resurrection, then it would signal that death gets to have some kind of reign. But that can’t be the case when the perfectly obedient God-man lived, died, was raised, and now reigns as the God man over all the earth. We must see everything one day made subject to him, under God of course, even death. This means that Christ’s resurrection guarantees that death cannot reign over those in him, since he must reign.
This is what Paul is declaring when he writes in verses 24-28, “Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For he must rein until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For ‘God has put all things under his feet.’ But when it says, ‘all things are put in subjection,’ it is plain that he is excepted who put all things under him. When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God may be all in all.”
That is to say, Christ’s resurrection from the dead guarantees our future resurrection and eternal salvation because we are united with the one who reigns and will eternal reign over all things, even death itself.
So, Paul has shown that to deny the resurrection is to deny Christ’s resurrection, which destroys the Christian faith. That is, Christ’s resurrection is necessary for our hope. Then, he shows that Christ’s resurrection is not only necessary for our hope, it guarantees our hope for we are united with one who must reign over all things, even death itself. Finally, in verses 29-34, Paul notes how the future resurrection affects how we live now. He actually brings out this truth by showing that:
That is to say, Paul shows in verses 29-34 that if you remove a future resurrection for believers, then many practices we do and choices we make don’t make any sense and are actually tragic. First, he mentions the practice of “baptism on behalf of [or better, I think, ‘on account of’] the dead.” He writes, “Otherwise, what do people mean by being baptized on behalf of the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized on their behalf?” (v. 29).
Now, this verse is confusing, and one article I read this week mentioned that there were 200 known interpretations of this verse. And I’ll tell you none of them may sound completely satisfying. So, let us first say what we know. Some Corinthians were doing something translated here as “being baptized on behalf of the dead” that Paul noted didn’t make any sense if there is no future resurrection for believers. That’s the main point of verse 29. It’s showing that their practice is simply inconsistent if there is no resurrection. But what did Paul mean?
Well, some have taken it to mean that some Corinthians were being baptized for some who’d died without Christ, hoping that being baptized might help our their dead loved ones. But there are multiple problems with this view. One is that there is no recordings of any Christian church doing that at this time. And second, don’t you think if they were doing that, Paul might write something about it condemning that practice? I mean, he’s already written a good bit destroying them because they were suing each other. It’s hard to imagine he’d note they were engaging in a practice that was utterly unchristian and simply glossed over it. After all, the Bible is clear that man dies and then comes judgment (Heb. 9:27). We must believe in this life.
Therefore, interpretations have ranged from reading the word “baptism” as meaning something other than baptism (like suffering) to thinking that “the dead” meant their bodies that would one day die, to a number of other options. But the option that seems best to me is that Paul is referring to some who were baptized on account of (which is a fair translation instead of “on behalf of”) baptized believers who had already died. That is, some in the Corinthian church had become believers and been baptized on account of the lives and testimonies of some believers who’d already died. And these believers died, as all believers do, with the hope of a coming resurrection. So, Paul’s point is, if you’ve been baptized on account of people who died with the hope of resurrection, and your very baptism signifies that you’ll one day be raised with Christ, that makes no sense if you then deny the resurrection. Whatever exactly it is, Paul’s point is clear. Your practice makes no sense if there’s no resurrection to come.
Paul makes that clear in verses 30-32 as well. He notes that if there is no resurrection, why does he preach a gospel that puts him in danger every hour? Paul had people always persecuting him and even wanting him dead because he preached the gospel. Why do that if we just all die in the end and that’s it? Paul mentions in verse 31 that he dies daily, probably meaning that he gives up his life and serving himself daily for the good of the church, even as he had for the Corinthians. Why do that if death is the last word? Even at Ephesus he had been beaten and persecuted (which is what he’s figuratively referring to when he says he fought with beasts at Ephesus), and what did he gain if there’s no resurrection? Simply put, if there is no resurrection, then none of us should make sacrificial, cross-bearing choices, but just seek the easy, peaceful, happy life. That’s what Paul says in verse 32b, “If the dead are not raised, ‘Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.’”
These Corinthians need to repent, and those who are happily allowing these individuals denying the resurrection to be part of their fellowship, without realizing the disastrous effects denying the resurrection has on Christian belief and practice need to wake up. They need to realize that if some deny the resurrection and won’t repent, they don’t know the Lord and need to be removed from the church before the whole church is affected. That’s what Paul concludes with in verses 33-34.
But let me take what Paul has said in a negative fashion and state it to you positively. Some of you have made incredibly difficult choices, driven by nothing else than the fact that you think this choice is what obeying Christ demands. Some are staying in marriages that are just hard. Some have chosen to adopt and raise children as your own, and it’s challenging. Some have chosen to leave family, friends, and conveniences to take the gospel to the ends of the earth, and it is hard. And I could add to this list choice after choice after choice.
But what I want to acknowledge is that if we’re being honest, there are moments when the enemy says to us, “What have you done? Remember how nice, and peaceful, and easy your life was before you made this difficult decision, driven by the desire to obey Christ? Well, look what it costs you.” And you know what our answer is? Our answer is to say, “I don’t hope in this life only. If I did, sure, I should be pitied. But I can obey and make sacrificial choices to obey the Lord that might cost me everything because my hope is not ultimately in the here and now. My hope is in a coming resurrection that I know is certain. In fact, one day the sufferings of this world, I’ll see, weren’t even worth comparing to eternal glory, and every sacrifice will appear as no sacrifice at all.” That’s the power of the resurrection for Christian living. It frees us to lay down our lives in this age because we know what’s coming in the next. It frees us to say, “If it cost me my life to obey Christ, it’s worth it because he’ll just raise me to eternal life in the end.” Therefore, as those who believe and confess and live our lives in light of the death and resurrection of our Lord, let us visibly confess our faith in the crucified and risen Lord as we now come to the table. Amen.