1 Corinthians | Chapter 15

1 Corinthians 15:1-4

“We Have Seen Him”

I. Intro

Paul now addresses yet another question of the Corinthian Church, which had to do with one of the great questions of all time, “What happens to us after we die?” Corinth was a Greek city, and as such, their philosophers did not believe in the resurrection of the dead. In fact, you will recall that Paul, in Acts 17, debated some of them on Mars Hill, but when he spoke to them concerning Jesus’ resurrection, “some mocked” him. There were many philosophies that dealt with this subject, but most saw the material body and all matter as being evil. Thus, though they welcomed death, they struggled with any bodily resurrection. Now it appears that some of this thought was still holding the believers back in their faith. Not that they disregarded Christ’s bodily resurrection, only their own! So to counter this, Paul speaks on the resurrection of Jesus and links their resurrection with His own. This chapter is the single greatest chapter in the entire Bible dealing with the subject of the resurrection; in fact, 23 times in 58 verses, Paul specifically mentions it.

Folks, the truth is our faith hinges on the resurrection of Jesus. It is the single greatest difference between Christianity and all other religions. Paul boldly declares to the Corinthian Church that “if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty” (verse 14). Apart from Jesus’ resurrection, we are following a dead man who, no matter how good a life he lived, wise words he spoke, and miracles he performed here on this earth, cannot save us! So in these 11 verses, Paul offers testimony to Jesus’ resurrection and, in so doing, proves the reality of our own!

II. Vs. 1-4 What the Gospel Does & Is

Vs. 1-2: It is always interesting to me to see how a person starts a topic in which they seek to prove something. I mean, would you go and get expert testimony on DNA and the possibility of it being altered instantaneously? Well, that is not how Paul approached the single most important topic in the Bible as it relates to our faith. No, instead, in the first four verses, he speaks of what the gospel does and then what it is. I personally like this approach, don’t you? I mean, why bother looking at it at all if it doesn’t do anything? So Paul starts out by telling the Corinthian believers that the gospel which he preached to them did two incredible things in their lives:

1. Security (Vs. 1 “in which you stand”): Their reception of the gospel caused instant “stability.” The first evidence Paul offers them is their own testimony as seen in their lives. They had lived in an educated, wealthy community with all of the advantages of their world, but yet they were unstable. The gospel brings to those who receive it “security” in an insecure world. It is the first thing we notice when we became Christians, is it not? I mean, we were filled with a sense of peace, which as Paul declares to the Philippians is the “peace of God, which surpasses all understanding” (Phil. 4:7). You have no real depth of understanding of truth at this point, but you know as sure as a two-day-old child in their mother’s arms that they are loved and cared for by one greater than themselves, whose whole love and joy is dedicated to their well-being. This stability, this security, can be found in no other place or situation. Oh, people may look for it everywhere—in education, financial wealth, friends, and family—but it will only be fleeting at best until we come to Jesus! So Paul’s first piece of evidence of the reality of the resurrection is the Corinthians’ own experience, “You have stability and security where you never had it before, don’t you?”
2. Significance (Vs. 2 “by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you; unless you believed in vain”): Look at these words here carefully as Paul says that their reception of the gospel caused them to be saved. The words “you are saved” are in the present tense. Yeh, so? Well, Paul does not say that their reception of the gospel is that which they “were saved” (past tense). Nor does he say that their reception of the gospel is that which they “will be saved” (future tense), although both would be true. The understanding of the tense of the verbs here makes all the difference in this passage. You see, there are three ways in which you and I are saved when we received the gospel:
   1. Past tense: We were saved in the sense that our spirits were dead, and when we received Jesus, His spirit came into our dead one and made us alive in Christ Jesus. It is past tense in the sense that it happened in time and that time has passed, though the truth of the event remains.
   2. Future tense: We will be saved in the sense that our earthly bodies, which were sown in corruption, will be, as Paul states in verse 42, raised in incorruption. Right now, you and I are dual citizens; our heart is new, but we still dwell in this body of flesh, and we await the time when, as verse 52 states, “in the twinkling of an eye,… the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.”
   3. Present tense: Finally, we come to that which Paul speaks of here, which is not our salvation as it relates to eternity, nor does it relate to our salvation as it relates to our glorified bodies. No, what Paul speaks of here is our salvation from an aimless existence to a life with significance and purpose. That is why Paul uses the words “if you hold fast that word which I preached to you; unless you believed in vain.” Our life will have meaning only to the degree that we continue to walk in the truth of the gospel. In the present, our salvation is seen in His giving our lives meaning and purpose. We have turned over to Him the use of our “time, talents, and treasures” to be used for His glory and the furtherance of His kingdom.

   Critics have denounced the resurrection as a hoax and a fabrication but have never been able to explain the power of such a “fabrication” to so change people who simply receive it, to give up everything, even their lives, to follow after Him whom they consider a “dead man”! Folks, that is what the gospel has done in our lives, is it not? It has given our lives “security and significance”! To the critic who would tell me that I’m simply following a fable, a hoax, all I can say to them is “blessed hoax” because receiving it has given me security and significance!

Vs. 3-4: Having just told the Corinthians what the gospel does, Paul now moves to what it is. But before he does, he tells them that just like them, he first received it. When did Paul receive it, and from whom? Well, in Galatians 1:12, he tells us that he “neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ.” The “when” is most likely recorded for us in Acts 9:4-5. In other words, Paul was just the messenger of what Jesus had given him concerning Himself. So what is that which Christ Himself gave Paul and others concerning the gospel? Well, Paul gives three elements that make up the gospel:

1. “That Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures”: Do you see that? The gospel is not about the 33 years that make up Jesus’ life, which includes His miraculous birth, sinless life, and powerful ministry (all of which are true). No, as far as the gospel is concerned, Paul says that the gospel centers around His death and not His earthly life. Gone from any discussion in the gospel is anything to do with Jesus being a prophet or teacher, a moral example—only that He died. Why is that so important? Well, it is the next words that bring out the importance of His death, “for our sins according to the Scriptures.” There on the cross, we are told that He dealt with our rebellion, failures, and sins. His death was for no other reason than to deal with mine and your sins. His death accomplished something—it has forever changed us who have received Him, washing away all the guilt and shame of our lives. Many people died upon Roman crosses; some were guilty, and some were just victims of their cruelty, but only One died for the sins of the whole world! Twice in these three elements that make up the gospel, Paul mentions that the events of the gospel were “according to the Scriptures.” This was not a new thing, a new plan of God. It was something that, according to 1 Peter 1:18-20, in dealing with our redemption, “with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot, was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.” In Luke 24:25-27, Jesus, after His resurrection, spoke to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus about all the things concerning Himself in the Scriptures, from Moses through the prophets.
2. “That He was buried”: The second part of the gospel Paul goes on to say deals with His burial. Why does Paul include this truth as part of the gospel? I mean, wouldn’t it be enough to say that He died and rose on the third day? Go back and read Jesus’ words about His death and their response to Him. In Luke 18:34, following Jesus telling them of His death, we are told that “they understood none of these things; this saying was hidden from them, and they did not know the things which were spoken.” Then take the words of the two disciples whom Jesus questioned after His resurrection concerning the events of the last three days as they said, “Our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death, and crucified Him. But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel.” Have you ever noticed how hard it is to accept the death of a loved one? I don’t think these disciples were any different than we are today. Prior to the event, even though Jesus spoke about His death, they refused to understand it, and even after the event, all that remained were dashed hopes. Yet somewhere in the midst of their grief, Joseph of Arimathea realized that they had to go get His body and bury Him. And it was His followers that prepared His lifeless body to be placed in Joseph’s tomb, and there He lay for three days and nights, and with Him all their hopes and dreams. What’s my point? Well, His disciples didn’t want Him dead; they did not want to believe it prior to His death, nor did they want to accept it after His death, and even upon seeing Him alive, they struggled with it. In other words, they understood the finality of Jesus’ death, even though He had told them that He would rise in three days. To these fellows, Jesus was truly dead and gone—not just fainted or in a coma. There was, and is, proof of His death, and as such, proof that nothing but His death can ever pay our debt! In each of these three elements of the gospel, the one thing that links them to each other is that Jesus died!
   • He died for our sins.
   • They buried Him in a tomb.
   • He was raised from the dead.

   It is throughout the whole message of the gospel, but it is not the final word!

3. “That He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures”: The central point in the gospel is the resurrection. Not a resuscitation—He did not come back to life as He was before; no, He came back to life as they had never seen Him before. Once again, we are told that this was in fulfillment of the Word of God. But what proof of this do we have, you ask?
   • Vs. 1-2: Paul has already offered the personal evidence of a changed life, where the reception of these three truths concerning Jesus causes us to be changed from insecurity to security and from insignificance to significance!
   • Vs. 3-4: We are given the fact that these events all took place in accordance with the written word of God prior to them taking place.
   • Vs. 5-8: Next week, Paul will offer six eyewitness accounts, making up over 527 people, most of whom were alive and could testify to the fact that Jesus had risen from the dead because they saw Him alive.
   • Vs. 9-11: Finally, Paul will put himself on the stand and testify not only to what he saw but also to what Jesus had done in and through his life.

   That is the most convincing proof to me—that the risen, ascended Lord has found a way by which He can come and live in human hearts no matter what their background, and then reproduce His character and life through their ordinary lives. That’s the miracle of the resurrection!

1 Corinthians 15:5-11

“We Have Seen Him (Part B)”

I. Intro

I’m fascinated with court cases, especially with how they bring in the evidence. Facts are interesting, but how you lead people to them is very important. I can’t help but wonder how many cases have been lost, not because of the facts, but rather because they weren’t presented in a manner that led the jurors to the truth. We are most familiar with “eye witness” testimony, but there are many other types of evidence, such as “circumstantial.” But just how can we determine if the evidence being presented is the truth? Well, you have to investigate. In dealing with the resurrection, Paul started out by having the jury itself testify to the effects of the resurrection in their own lives. Paul told them that the resurrection had two immediate impacts upon their own lives:

• It brought them stability, “security,” where as prior to receiving Jesus, they were insecure.
• It brought them “significance,” where prior they had no real purpose.

Then, in presenting the gospel, Paul not only gave them the evidence, he stated that the evidence had been foretold in scripture. Peter, writing in his second letter, says the same thing in chapter 1 when he wrote, “we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty” (verse 16). Then, in the 19th verse, Peter calls his experience on the mount of transfiguration “the prophetic word confirmed.” In other words, all the “eyewitness” testimony did was confirm the word of God. Even Jesus Himself, after raising from the dead, confirmed the physical proofs (His hands and feet) with the word of God as He “opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures” (Luke 24:33-49). Now we move on to the visible evidence of the resurrection.

II. Vs. 5-11 Visible Evidence of the Resurrection

In any courtroom across America, the most powerful testimony is “eyewitness” testimony. A person who has witnessed for themselves the events on trial can be the most effective type of evidence offered at a trial. There are ten appearances of the resurrected Lord given besides the one to Paul (eleven including his); nine are in the Gospels, but of those, Paul only mentions five of the ten and adds James, not given elsewhere. For his eyewitness testimony, Paul calls only six to the stand, but the sum total is still over 527 people. As important as these six accounts are, perhaps what carries even more weight is that they not only saw and heard Jesus prior to His death and resurrection, they heard and saw Him after. Yeh, so? Well, what they witnessed of Jesus after His resurrection completely changed how they lived their lives. As inspiring as it was to be around Jesus during His earthly ministry, let’s be honest, none of His followers remained consistent upon seeing His arrest and subsequent death. So what they witnessed after His resurrection apparently convinced them to trust Him in a new radical way, which made heroes of the faith out of cowards!

A. Vs. 5-8 What People Have Seen

1. Vs. 5a “He was seen by Cephas”: The word “seen” in the Greek means to “make manifest or appear.” Paul’s point by using this word is to say two things:
   1. That what each of these witnesses saw was not a vision or a dream but an actual appearance.
   2. The word also suggests what the gospel accounts say—that until Jesus revealed His identity to them, none of them recognized Him.

   Cephas is the Hebrew word for Peter, but what is a bit fuzzy is when this “appearance” took place. Here is what we know: it was sometime after Jesus’ appearance to Mary Magdalene recorded for us in Matthew 27 and before His appearance to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus as they told Jesus in Luke 24:23-24 that He had already revealed Himself to the two women and that John and Peter had run to the tomb to check it out. In Mark 16:17, Mary was given a message to tell the disciples and especially Peter of the truth of the resurrection. In fact, by the time the two had turned back from Emmaus and went back to Jerusalem, the disciples exclaimed that “The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” The truth was that even though Peter had forsaken the Lord, the Lord had never forsaken him! So why had the Lord chosen to reveal Himself to Peter before the other disciples? Well, it is my opinion that Jesus did so based not upon worthiness but rather upon need as clearly Peter needed a fresh glimpse of His glory! Is that not great to know this morning? I mean, who here does not need a close encounter with the risen Lord?

2. Vs. 5b “Then by the twelve”: Actually, Jesus appeared to only ten of the disciples, as Judas was dead and Thomas was absent, but they are still referred to as the “twelve” as recorded for us both in John 20:19 and Luke 24:36. The first of these was on the evening when He had appeared to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. A week later, with Thomas now present, Jesus again appeared to them, inviting Thomas to touch His wounds to satisfy his unbelief. And aren’t we glad that Thomas was a skeptic? So important was Jesus’ appearance before these fellows that we are told in Acts 1:22 that to be considered a candidate to become an apostle, one had to be “a witness with us of His resurrection.”
3. Vs. 6 “After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep”: This is most likely the prearranged meeting spoken of in Matthew 28:16 where we are told that they “went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them.” If the quality of the eyewitnesses is bolstered by the fact that those who saw Him after the resurrection were the ones who knew Him best, it is here supported based upon the sheer quantity of those who could testify of His appearance after the resurrection. Paul makes an even more amazing statement to the Corinthian believers by saying, “of whom the greater part remain to the present.” It is believed that Paul wrote this letter in the spring of A.D. 54 or 55, thus not over 25 years after the resurrection, and he says that most of those who were present of the over 500 believers who saw Jesus were still alive, and they could simply ask them themselves concerning His resurrection. Think of the truth of this—over 500 all at once saw Jesus after the resurrection. Although one or two may become persuaded based upon wishful thinking, clearly over 500 at once would not be so persuaded. Ever notice how difficult it is to get five people who witness the same event to agree to what they saw? Yet Paul says that there are over 500 who could come forward and say the same thing!
4. Vs. 7a “After that He was seen by James”: This is the only place that this is recorded. But James, the half-brother of Jesus, eyewitness testimony to His appearance after the resurrection is supported by Acts 1:14 where we are told that “Mary the mother of Jesus, with His brothers” were in the upper room with the disciples on Pentecost. James was the oldest of Jesus’ brothers and sisters from Mary and Joseph’s union, yet we are told in John 7:5 that “even His brothers did not believe in Him.” Think of growing up with Jesus as your older brother. Yeh, you knew He was better than everybody, but still, He’s your brother. I mean, what could possibly change your opinion except for an appearance after the resurrection? Twice in the letter that James wrote, he refers to Jesus as “Lord Jesus Christ” and the “Lord of glory.” Come on now, you who have siblings, could you ever imagine calling your brother the “Lord of Glory” if you weren’t convinced that He was?
5. Vs. 7b “Then by all the apostles”: Paul lumps together what Luke spoke of in Acts 1:3, saying that “He (Jesus) also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.” Some of which no doubt John has in mind in 21:1-14. This, of course, culminated in the final occasion recorded in Acts 1:11 where we are told at His ascension on the Mount of Olives that “He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.” Can you imagine this? I mean, for forty days, Jesus just revealed Himself and taught from the Scriptures about His death, burial, and resurrection. What else could explain Peter’s transformation on Pentecost as he, so empowered by the Holy Spirit, preached the gospel with such sounding conviction that over 3,000 were added to the Kingdom of God? Why indeed, if you knew that it was a hoax or you had any doubt that what you had seen and heard concerning the resurrected Lord was true, would you preach, risking your life?
6. Vs. 8 “Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time”: Paul finally calls himself to the stand as one whom he calls “born out of due time,” that is, literally “miscarried” in the Greek. Paul’s own encounter with the resurrected Lord came long after the ascension. This is no doubt the reference to Paul’s conversion in Acts 9:4-5 where he is on his way to persecute Christians and ends up meeting Christ instead. What makes this testimony so powerful is his own admittance of his hatred for anything to do with Jesus. This is called a witness from a hostile source and one who has not only nothing to gain from their testimony but everything to lose.

B. Vs. 9-11 What He Has Done to Be Seen in Us

Here Paul places not only what he witnessed concerning the resurrected Jesus but also what Jesus had done that could not be explained any other way. There are four things Paul lists here that Jesus changed upon revealing Himself to Paul that could not be explained any other way than that Jesus had risen from the dead:

1. Vs. 9 “For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God”: A deep recognition of personal sin. Paul left Jerusalem with a deep conviction and personal hatred of anything Christian, and outside Damascus, ended up with a personal hatred of his own sin. What else could explain such a radical change than Paul having an encounter with the very One whom he hated and believed was dead but was instead alive and in love with him? Notice that Paul does not seek to minimize his actions, instead choosing to call himself unworthy to be called one that is to be sent out. There was never a day that he did not regret his actions that had caused so much pain and suffering in others.
2. Vs. 10a “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain”: A complete change of character. From persecutor of the church to defender of the faith, from hatred to love. Paul did not just have a meltdown; he was recreated completely. Three times in this section, Paul attributes this change to the “grace of God.” It was Christ’s unmerited favor that so changed his life.
3. Vs. 10b “But I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me”: A complete redirection of focus. All of his life had been geared towards the zeal that was found in the law. In fact, to the Philippians, Paul would write, saying concerning his former life, “If anyone else thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I more so: circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; concerning the law, a Pharisee; concerning zeal, persecuting the church; concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.” Then he continues, “But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness.”
4. Vs. 11 “Therefore, whether it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed”: Finally, a practical humility. From pride and arrogance to that of just wanting Jesus to be seen and known by all whom he came into contact with. Paul understood that the power was in the Person of the message and not in the personality of the messenger.

Oh to God that we will live this evidence of the resurrection by allowing Jesus to be seen alive in us in these four ways!

1 Corinthians 15:12-20a

“Doubting the Doubts”

I. Intro

The story is familiar although the circumstances vary. It starts with a little question—perhaps someone has brought to you about your faith that you can’t answer. Or maybe they have raised a contrary point about what you believe that you have always wondered about yourself. It could be as simple as facing a season of difficult circumstances that has brought you to question what you believe. Then somewhere inside yourself, you start to think, “What if Christianity is not true?” “What if all that I hold onto is nothing more than a delusion based on someone’s deception?” “What if, at the end of the day, all I have is a handful of wishful thinking?”

That is the topic that Paul takes up in this section as he deals with the “what if’s” of Christianity. Seven times in eight verses, the word “if” appears. In fact, every sentence but one of the eight contains this two-letter word. I have found in my 45 years of life very few topics, be it history or science, that really like the “what if” questions. Yet without this question, we would not have enjoyed most of our discoveries. Worse yet, in the area of religion, those who are supposed to be authorities can’t stand the “what ifs.” Here is where I’m going with this: Isn’t it great that Christianity not only seeks to answer the “what if’s” but asks them to begin with?

Lee Strobel has written two very important books that deal with the “what ifs,” specifically as they relate to the evidence of the person and work of Jesus:

• The first one, “A Case for Christ,” deals with the historical evidence for the person and work of Christ. That is what Paul has done in the first 11 verses of chapter 15, as he brought forth both circumstantial evidence as well as eyewitness testimony.
• The second book, “A Case for Faith,” deals with more of the heart issues that are barriers to trusting in Jesus, and that is what he takes up in this section.

II. Vs. 12-13 I’ve Fallen and I Can’t Get Up

First, before we get into why Paul brings up the “what ifs” as it relates to the resurrection, you need to know what led him to ask them in the first place. That’s what’s behind the words, “Now if Christ is preached that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?” Remember that Corinth was a Greek city right next to Athens (a university town) and as such, was very familiar with the views of what happens to people after they die. There were three such views represented by three well-known philosophers:

1. Epicurean: This was the materialist position, which maintained that death was complete extinction, and nothing remained of human life or personality after death. You can see this position today among atheists.
2. Stoic: This was the absorption position, and it taught that the spirit or soul returned back to its divine source like a drop of water in the hydrological cycle. This thought is prevalent today among “new agers.”
3. Plato: This was the soul-sleep position, which taught that when the body dies and disintegrates, the soul or spirit rests in one of two positions:
   1. It remains at rest in an everlasting state of hibernation.
   2. It remains at rest until it can be reborn or “reincarnated.” You can see this position among the eastern religions of Hinduism and Buddhism, as well as Mormonism with their teaching of “spirit babies.”

In all of those views, the distinct human personality that made up the individual that lived and walked upon the earth is forever lost after death. Paul’s arguments counter those popular opinions by saying that our individual personalities are not lost upon death; rather, they are enhanced.

So, the first thing Paul does is combine Jesus’ resurrection, which they had received as being true, with that of the future of their own. You see, though these Corinthian believers had accepted the resurrection of Jesus as being true, they had succumbed to the popular Greek teaching about what happens to those after they die.

The word “if” here in the Greek implies that the condition written after it is true. In other words, you could translate this as, “Since Christ is preached that He has been raised from the dead…” You see, the issue Paul is speaking to them about is not Christ’s raising, but rather the fact that some of them held onto the position that “there is no resurrection from the dead” in spite of the preaching.

Based on this, there are two facts Paul brings out in these first two verses, both of which they had already been taught:

1. Vs. 12: If human bodies cannot survive death, then Jesus’ body cannot survive death. By stating this, Paul rebukes any notion that Jesus was an apparition or a ghost, as neither of these die. Clearly, Jesus had a physical body, one that was beaten beyond recognition, placed upon a cross until He died. As far as testimony is concerned (both circumstantial and eyewitness), you are stuck with the fact that Jesus was fully human and that He died. The issue that thwarted the Corinthians’ belief was not that He died, but what happened after He died!
2. Vs. 13: The second fact Paul deals with is the resurrection, which goes like this: “If human beings can’t rise from the dead, then Jesus couldn’t have risen!” You cannot argue that Jesus rose from the dead, but we can’t, and that was what they were trying to do.

These Greek views of what happens to them after they die had a practical side in everyday life. Since our individual personalities would not remain (no matter what position they had), then we had better experience every physical thing here and now! So the Greeks indulged in every form of pleasure they could, as they believed that they would be deprived of the experience once they died. Those five senses we have—taste, touch, sight, smell, and hearing—all have the capacity to bring us pleasure. So the Corinthians thought, “If I’m going to lose those things at any moment, I had better go after them now because when I’m gone, it’s over!” All the delights of this life—having a cup of freshly ground coffee, that piece of pie, the sweet smell of a rose, the sound of your favorite piece of music, or a good back rub—are all things that God has given us to enjoy in this body. But the cool thing is these won’t be lost to us after death; instead, they will be even better as we will be given “glorified bodies” that will not have the limitations, as Paul will tell them in verses 42-43. In fact, to get a picture of this, look with me at the words of Paul in verse 49 as he tells us that, “as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man.” Doesn’t that just bless your socks off? We will enjoy our new bodies so much more as we will no longer be bound by the effects of the flesh and this fallen world! Though not all of the body’s physical acts will be brought into the heavenly realm, what they represent will, and they will be better than anything we can experience now! Think of this and you will realize that in heaven there will no longer be any “mere mortals.” There are three anchors that weigh down every human life:

• Sin
• Death
• Hell

And at the resurrection of Jesus, all three were defeated, and we will experience the freedom of all of them! So instead of living, as some of the Corinthian believers were, trying to indulge every physical sensation before we are gone, we can await a far better joy that will never end!

III. Vs. 14-20a No More Mere Mortals

In verses 14-19, Paul, for the sake of argument, lists six suppositions of what life would be like without the resurrection. All we need to do to realize what life would be like without the resurrection is to remember what life was like before you gave your life to Jesus! Life was “hopeless” and we were “helpless”! The reality is that most people we run into every day are living in a state apart from the real presence of the resurrection in their lives. Oh, they may be able to go to work or school, have relationships with other people, and even party hard. But looking out this door at those family and friends who visit their graves will tell you that there is a finality that awaits them that believers in Jesus will overcome in Christ!

1. Vs. 14a Preaching is purposeless: “Our preaching is empty.” There is no “good news” for man apart from the resurrection of Jesus. There is nothing to say to people who are looking for hope and answers to their dilemmas. There is no need for Church, nor is any radio or TV broadcast that deals with Jesus of any importance. It all would be just a big waste of time. “Wait a minute there buddy!” you say. “There is a lot of good moral and ethical teaching in the Bible!” What kind of moral and ethical teaching can we believe if the Person who proclaimed them was a liar? No, I’m afraid if what Jesus said about Himself as it relates to the resurrection is not true, then nothing He has to say about anything ought to be believed or followed! The power is in the resurrection, and no matter how great the moral teaching is, without the power to obey it, all we have is a cruel hoax. Christianity apart from the resurrection is like asking a man to carry a two-hundred-pound air conditioner in 107-degree heat without any power to run it.
2. Vs. 14b Faith is fruitless: “and your faith is also empty.” God can’t help us if there is no resurrection. Those three anchors upon our lives of sin, death, and hell are still around our necks apart from the resurrection. A dead teacher, no matter how wise and worthy his earthly existence, has no power to change one hair upon our head. A few years back, there was a so-called wise guru from India that claimed that he could bring his followers to heaven by teaching them to fly. So he taught them (for a great sum of money) and they practiced with their legs in a lotus position, hopping around. None of them ever took to flight apart from mechanical devices though. The believers’ “Hall of Fame,” in Hebrews 11, becomes nothing more than a hall of shame for trusting in a sham apart from the resurrection. Upon every believer’s grave ought to be a marker that says, “Believed for nothing, lived for nothing, and died for nothing!” if the resurrection of Jesus is not true. All our spiritual life would amount to nothing more than a religious workout, the end result of which was nothing more than a fanciful illusion!
3. Vs. 15 Leaders are liars: “And we are found false witnesses of God.” Paul and the rest of those disciples must have conspired together to deliberately deceive innocent people if the resurrection is not true. Not only should what they wrote be discarded, but they need to be placed in the same historical category as Hitler and Stalin as the greatest deceivers the world has ever seen. Think of their deception if they knowingly proclaimed the resurrection as being true when it was not. They led millions to suffer needlessly for a lie! May I go further? Since Jesus Himself proclaimed the resurrection prior to His own death, that makes Him a part of this hoax, making Him not only not a “victor” but not a mere “victim” either. Instead, it would make Him a “villain” as He led others to suffer needlessly for a faith He proclaimed to be true!

Having given the first three consequences of what life would be like apart from the resurrection, Paul now gives us three personal consequences of life without the resurrection:

1. Vs. 16-17 Saints are still sinners: “If Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!” Generally speaking, we would be no better off spiritually speaking than unbelievers. Apart from the resurrection, it means that sin won at the cross and not Jesus, which leaves only two possibilities:
   1. There is no God, and we are forever bound to our failures.
   2. There is a God, and our failures are continuing to mount up against us without hope of redemption or mercy.

   Either way, apart from the resurrection, Jesus’ death meant nothing and accomplished nothing!

2. Vs. 18 Loved ones remain lost: “Those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.” Apart from the resurrection of Jesus, we will never be reunited with those who loved Jesus and have died. Friends, parents, loved ones all remain in a cold silent grave as death remains a great gulf that can never be bridged. If the resurrection is not true, then we shall never see the departed believer again, as death is indeed final and absolute. The tears shed at funerals ought to last the remainder of our lives at the finality of the loss of life.
3. Vs. 19 Life is listless: “If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable.” If Jesus can’t be counted upon in the life to come, then He cannot be counted upon in this life. Gone would be all sorts of peace and joy, which are ours in Christ, as life would be nothing more than a joke and we are the brunt of it. The present is changed because, apart from the truth of the resurrection, the future is untrue. Our hope here and now is based upon the hope of the future, so we all would have nothing to look forward to. We all would cry out, “Is this all there is?” as we await non-existence. I mean, what is the point to life? There is no purpose, and we would soon become as the Greeks, seeking to gorge our fleshly appetites with every sensation imaginable while we can. But even this pursuit is vanity, as we cannot carry any of our experience with us anyway!

Vs. 20: Take Paul’s six suppositions of life apart from the truth of the resurrection:

• Preaching is purposeless
• Faith is fruitless
• Leaders are liars
• Saints are still sinners
• Loved ones remain lost
• Life is listless

Now read back into the equation verse 20a: “But now Christ is risen from the dead.” All of those horrible suppositions fall to the ground in defeat because the simple truth is that Jesus has risen from the dead and we are living proof of this truth. Furthermore, as we believers are, according to C.S. Lewis, “No mere mortals,” we are far from ordinary people as we await what Paul spoke of in chapter 2:9: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”

1 Corinthians 15:20-28

“Gateway to Paradise”

I. Intro

So far in this chapter, Paul has been acting as the attorney defending the “resurrection.” In his opening statement before the jury, he called their own personal experience of the resurrection as proof of its existence as he reminded them that the gospel (with its centerpiece being the resurrection) upon acceptance brought them security and significance where prior they had none. Next, Paul made sure that they understood that what he was speaking of was a resurrection, not a resuscitation, as Jesus was fully dead. As those disciples prepared Jesus’ lifeless body, they knew He was dead, and yet three days later the person whom they met was the same Jesus, and He was in a body that still bore the wounds inflicted upon Him, but He was on a different level of life than they had witnessed before.

In Acts 1:3, Luke records these words: “He showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive.” Those many convincing proofs for over forty days are boiled down to six eyewitness accounts in verses 5-11 (there are actually 11 recorded for us in Scripture). Last week we looked at verses 12-20 as Paul goes on to explain what life would be like apart from the truth of the resurrection.

• Preaching is purposeless
• Faith is fruitless
• Leaders are liars
• Saints are still sinners
• Loved ones remain lost
• Life is listless

Having given us what life would be like without the resurrection, Paul in verses 20-34 gives us three things the resurrection of Jesus guaranteed to change for those who have trusted in Him. These three things, I suppose, are things that often we don’t much think about, but in the end, we will think very much about. A fellow was walking through a cemetery one day and came upon a tombstone with some very interesting words:

“Remember, friend, as you pass by, As you are now, so once was I. As I am now, soon you will be, prepare for death, & follow me.”

Written underneath those solemn words in stone were some in pencil by a passerby that replied to the dead fellow’s exhortation, “To follow you I’m not content, until I know which way you went!” Here are three things that are guaranteed to give us hope to know which way He went!

II. Vs. 20-23 Firstfruits of the Resurrection

Our bodily resurrection: Our destination is secured!

Vs. 20: Paul quickly dispels what life apart from the resurrection would be like by saying that, “Christ has risen from the dead.” In the next words, we see just what that means beyond just the above six things not being true, as Paul says, “and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.” The phrase hinges upon our understanding of the word “firstfruits,” doesn’t it? There are two interesting points to the use of this word, one to those who are Jewish, the other to those who are Greek:

1. To the Greeks who would read this word, they would understand that Paul was saying that Jesus “paid the entrance fee” for all those who died as believers. You can look throughout the Bible and see that others came back to life after they died, but that is not what Paul is proclaiming here. Paul is saying that these fellow believers who died did not come back to life only to die again. No, their ticket was bought and their admission into heaven guaranteed because Jesus paid it in full!
2. To the Jews, they understood this word “firstfruits” from the Old Testament feast recorded in Leviticus 23:9-14. Here is what is cool as it relates to Jesus: you see, we are told by John the Baptist that Jesus was “the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world” (John 1:29). Every Jewish person hearing those words knew that John was saying that Jesus was the Passover Lamb, and in fact, Jesus died on the Passover. But every Jewish person reading these words that Jesus was the “firstfruits” of those who had died believers would instantly realize something else. If you follow the feats chronologically, you will realize that immediately following the Passover was the feast of unleavened bread, so on the very next morning after the Sabbath (Saturday), the firstfruits of the barley harvest would be brought in as a representative sample to the priest as an offering. In fact, the entire harvest could not be made until the firstfruits were first offered to the Lord. The day that this happened was “Sunday,” the very morning of Jesus’ resurrection. Not only did the “firstfruits” precede the harvest, but it also served as the first installment guaranteeing that the full harvest was to come, so Jesus’ resurrection is forever linked with our own as you cannot have His without having our own in the future. Here then is how the Jews would hear Paul’s words: “Jesus’ resurrection was the first installment guaranteeing the harvest of all who believe in Him afterward.”

Vs. 21-23: Now just in case you missed it, Paul is going to share the absolute certainty that “our destination has been secured” by his words in these verses. Here in a nutshell is Paul’s argument proving the certainty of our destination: “Adam (the first man) passed on to all who followed him (you and I) the outcome of his rebellion (death).” This “genetic trait” has been 100% unavoidable with the exception of two people: Enoch and Elijah, who God just took to be with Him. Every time you and I go to a funeral or visit a grave, we attest to the truth of this. You see, we are forever tied to the failure of the first man (Adam). Our birth into this world guarantees that we will one day die; in fact, the moment we came into the world, we were one day closer to leaving it.

“Man that’s a bummer, pastor!” Well, yes, it is as combining these two verses we can read, “For since by man came death, … For as in Adam all die.” But you must also read, “by Man also came the resurrection of the dead … even so in Christ all shall be made alive.” The “all’s” of verse 22 refer to all the descendants; the first “all” is every person born after Adam, and the 2nd “all” refers to everyone born again by trusting In Jesus. You get it? As sure as death is to us because we all were born into a sin nature, all who are “born again” because of Christ’s nature will be “made alive”! You may say, “It’s not fair that we have been born into Adam’s failure.” That may be true, but neither is it fair that we can be born again into Jesus’ nature. This is the crux of Jesus’ words to Israel’s teacher Nicodemus in John 3, where Jesus tells him that “unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

Vs. 23: Paul anticipates the Corinthians’ question here by answering a question that deals with time. You see, we all want to know “when” this is going to take place, don’t we? So Paul says, “Hey, we can’t know for sure the time of our resurrection; all we can know is the order.” You see, the Bible declares regarding this two things:

1. Matthew 25:13: “for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.”
2. For the most part, none of us know how many days in this life we will have.

Now implied in this verse is all the resurrections, the order of which is:

1. “Christ the firstfruits”: We have already discussed this, as Jesus is the firstfruits of the resurrection.
2. “Afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming”: Though the order is not given here, it is elsewhere. The Bible speaks of four resurrections, three of which relate to believers and one that relates to unbelievers:
   1. 1 Thessalonians 4:16: Those who have received Jesus from Pentecost to the present at the rapture, as the dead will rise first, followed by us who are alive, together meeting Jesus in the air.
   2. Revelation 20:4: Here we are told of those who “who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God” during the tribulation period “living and reigning with Christ and us for a thousand years.”
   3. Daniel 12:2 & Isaiah 26:19: Along with those, we are told that “those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake (Daniel 12:2) & Your dead shall live; Together with my dead body they shall arise. (Isaiah 26:19)” So apparently at Jesus’ 2nd coming, those who have died as tribulation believers, as well as those Old Testament believers who were looking forward to the coming of the Messiah, will be united with us who were raptured. (There is one other group of folks that apparently will instantaneously receive glorified bodies, and that is those who are alive during the 1,000-year reign of Jesus, and even though they are quite old—100 years old will be thought of as just a young person—when they die, they will just be given glorified bodies.)
   4. John 5:29 & Revelation 20:5: Speak of “those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation,” which is further described as the 2nd death which will take place as “the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished” and being made up of “the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”

III. Vs. 24-28 The End of Death & the Beginning of Life

The end of death: Our greatest obstacle destroyed

So the first of three things that the resurrection has done is: Secured our destination! Paul now moves to the second thing that the resurrection has done. Staying on the theme of order, he reveals the plan of restoration of all things and in so doing tells us that the resurrection has forever destroyed our greatest obstacle, “death.”

Vs. 24: The word “then” implies that there will be a time between the resurrection and the complete restoration of all things. As well, the word “end” here not only speaks of that which is final but that which is completed or mature. But just “What will the completed restoration look like?” you ask. Well, we are told right here as Paul says, “He (Jesus) delivers the kingdom to God the Father.” Simply put, in the end, everything will look like it was in the beginning and thus as it was supposed to be. The world is broken, and what we are now living is not as God originally planned it, but one day it will be.

So how is that going to happen? Well, Paul tells us that “He (Jesus) puts an end to all rule and all authority and power.” Do you see that? Jesus’ final act will be to permanently conquer and destroy every enemy to God and His plan. Every contending rule, authority, and power will forever be destroyed, never again to mislead, threaten, or hurt any of His people (you and I) again! There is a finality to this mess that we live in, as we are told in Revelation 21:4 that “God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

Vs. 25: But don’t be in despair because this is a ways off, as Paul says, “He (Jesus) must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet.” Dear Christian, though not all enemies have yet to be under His feet, He is still in charge! Oh, to God the comfort this truth brings me when I’m facing the pressures of discouragement and defeat. He is using these very things to accomplish His purposes for now, even though I can’t always understand why! Yet I know that He is on the throne, and I will have peace to the degree that I keep Him there in my heart!

Vs. 26: The last enemy that will be destroyed is our greatest obstacle, and it has a two-prong effect, as Paul explains in Romans 5:12: “one man sin entered the world, and death through sin.” Sin and death are inseparable plagues upon our human condition, aren’t they?

1. We are told in Romans 6:23 that “the wages of sin is death.” Paul is telling us that the obstacle of sin will be forever destroyed. Never again will the enemy of our flesh wreak havoc upon our lives to where Paul describes it as he does in Romans 7:19-20: “For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.” Accordingly, right now, the only answer we have to this “deliverance from this body of death” is to be found in a moment by moment dependence upon “Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:24-25)
2. The other great obstacle is “death.” Even though right now death will not hold us, there still will come an end to death. It is why Paul later on in this verse will shout, “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” Though you and I may die, we are told that in Philippians 1:21: “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Furthermore, we are told that to die in Christ is to be immediately in His presence.

Vs. 27-28: Finally, Paul says that once everything is put under Jesus’ feet, He will turn the kingdom, which will be a redeemed environment of only redeemed people, over to the Father. All things will be in subjection to Jesus except the Father, as Jesus will assume His full glory as the 2nd person of the Trinity in perfect harmony with the Godhead so that “God may be all in all.”

Next week we will look at three effects the resurrection has upon us presently as it changes:

• What we have to say
• How we handle struggles
• How we live life

1 Corinthians 15:29-34

Present and Future Effects of the Resurrection

Intro

As I’ve been studying this chapter, I have personally experienced what I believe Paul was trying to get across to the Corinthian believers—a greater appreciation for the resurrection. I’ve never realized how much Jesus’ resurrection has affected my everyday life, as Paul spoke in the first few verses about the change in their security and significance. Then, last week, we saw that Jesus’ resurrection “secured our destination” as believers and also “destroyed our greatest obstacle” in death.

This week, we move from what the resurrection did for us in the past to what it is doing for us now and in the future. My prayer is that you and I will find what the old Maranatha song proclaimed: “Turn your eyes upon Jesus, Look full in His wonderful face, And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.” I think all of us could use a resurrection this morning, don’t you?

Vs. 29-34 Three Present Effects of Our Future Resurrection

We are going to look at one of the most controversial verses in all the Bible in a moment, but before we do, allow me to give an overview of these verses. In this section (verses 29-34), Paul becomes very practical as he points out to the Corinthian believers three effects that the resurrection has had upon believers. Now, in doing so, he approaches it from a negative position, as indicated by the phrases “What will they do” and “why do we stand.” If you want to see the power of the resurrection in your present life, all you need to do is see how it has conquered your greatest enemy. No, I’m not talking about the battle of the bulge or that neighbor or workmate; I’m talking about the person you face in the mirror every day! The greatest “natural instinct” or human tendency is “self-preservation.” It is what causes us to duck when something is thrown at our faces. It is God-given, but like everything else in this flesh, it has become sin-tainted. It is the reason why we get upset when we don’t get the parking place closest to the store or get stuck in traffic. It is why we avoid, at all costs, personal rejection and embarrassment. In a nutshell, our self-preservation affects three areas:

• Vs. 29 What we say
• Vs. 30-32 What we do
• Vs. 33-34 How we live

Now, there are times when this natural instinct is a very great thing, as we can avoid needless situations where “self ought to be preserved.” But the problem comes when we start trying to preserve self at the cost of everybody else, especially as it relates to reflecting Jesus!

What We Say

Vs. 29: Here in this verse, Paul is using an illustration of a practice that was going on in Corinth at the time and asking why they are doing it if there is no resurrection. The problem lies in the act they were doing, as there are some 30 differing interpretations of this verse to explain it. Allow me to give you a little lesson on how to interpret a difficult passage such as the one before us: “Start out with what you know and use that to help you through what you don’t know.”

a. We know what Paul taught concerning the salvation of an individual. In Ephesians 2:8, Paul wrote, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.” Salvation is by individual trust in the person and work of Jesus upon the cross. Here, the simple Greek interpretation seems to be indicating “proxy baptism,” something Paul would not be for, as it would contradict all of Scripture.

b. We know by the use of the word “they” and not “we,” as in verse 30, that this was not something Paul was advocating or practicing himself. So, whatever was going on was neither a New Testament practice nor something that we ought to be doing today, as the Mormons are practicing. Baptism does not save us; faith in Christ does. And if our own baptism can’t save us, it sure can’t save someone else—at least with us, we will get wet! Hebrews 9:27 is very clear, as we are told that “it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment.” Notice that it doesn’t add the words “unless someone is baptized on your behalf.”

c. We also know that by the lack of rebuke, as well as the use of this to illustrate the power of the resurrection, whatever lay behind the practice was something directed out of love for others—namely, this practice was being used for evangelistic purposes or, if you will, the sharing of one’s faith.

So just what was this practice? Well, we can’t be certain because it was not seen elsewhere in the Church in the New Testament, and in fact, it was not seen for several hundred years until it was brought into the church by Gnostic heretics through their misinterpretation of this passage. No matter what view one holds on this passage, it is clear that what was going on was for evangelistic purposes! We must not let the act cloud our view of Paul’s point, which is very clear: “If there is no resurrection of the dead, why bother sharing your faith at all?”

Now, here is where the application comes in. One of the areas of self-preservation that causes us the most trouble is the “desire to be liked at all costs.” No one likes to be rejected or made fun of, but here these Corinthian believers were willing to suffer rejection and embarrassment by others for the hope that what they did or said would lead them into faith in Christ. Paul’s point is, “Why would you do that if, in the end, all that would happen to the person afterward was that they became worm food?” We share our faith because we believe that what we have to share is so valuable and full of hope that it is well worth personal rejection and embarrassment!

What We Do

So, the power of the resurrection has overcome our natural tendency of self-preservation as it relates to our “sharing.” Now Paul moves to its effect over self-preservation as it relates to our “suffering.”

Vs. 30-32: The specific instance of what Paul was “standing in jeopardy every hour” over is not told to us. The only specifics are given in the words “I die daily” and “I have fought with beasts at Ephesus.” The “dying daily” is best understood by the context, which speaks of being in physical danger, not dying to self as in Romans 6. The reference to having fought with wild beasts in Ephesus could mean that he was actually placed in a Roman arena where he was compelled to fight against wild animals (although this is highly unlikely, as Paul was a Roman citizen), or that he just meant it figuratively, as those in Ephesus sought to kill him. The only clue we have as to what Paul has in mind here as it relates to his suffering comes in his second letter to the Corinthians, in 1:8-9: “For we do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, of our trouble which came to us in Asia: that we were burdened beyond measure, above strength, so that we despaired even of life. Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead.”

What Paul is speaking of here is best understood by what he spoke of to them in his second letter, 4:17-18, where he wrote, “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” In other words, our suffering is made easier when we realize that all it is doing is preparing us for an “eternal weight of glory.” That is why in the 8th verse of that same chapter, Paul wrote, “We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.” So, Paul’s point is, “Why go through suffering, especially for the gospel, if we are all just going to die without any hope of eternity?” The resurrection has changed our natural self-preservation to avoid suffering at all costs, as seen in the Epicurean philosophy of “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!” Instead, it has been replaced with an attitude that understands that even in our suffering, God has a greater purpose and plan, and we will one day receive our full reward for it!

How We Live

Having shown us how the resurrection has changed our natural tendency of self-preservation as it relates to our “sharing” and “suffering,” Paul now moves to the last area of self-preservation, which deals with our everyday behavior, or “sinning.”

Vs. 33-34: Paul quotes from a common saying of the Greek poet Menander to illustrate the impact belief can have on morals and states that their false concept of no bodily resurrection had crept into how they were practically living their lives. Since they failed to believe that they themselves were going to bodily rise from the dead, they started to live that out in ungodly living. “Why live a separate life to the Lord if once we are dead we are dead anyway?” What they needed was an awakening to the resurrection, which would lead them to right behavior. This is not “all there is,” folks. There awaits us a far greater life that we will much more enjoy as we live this one separately unto the Lord. To neglect the truth of their own resurrection was a sin that led to many more sins, as they could use it to justify their own behavior.

Vs. 35-42a Natural Transition into Life

Vs. 35: Here we see that Paul states two questions some of the Corinthian believers had concerning the resurrection:

• a. How are the dead raised? The answer to which he will give in verses 36-38
• b. With what body do they come? The answer to which he will give in verses 39-49.

Now, in both cases, Paul answers the question based upon illustrations from the natural universe.

How Are the Dead Raised?

Vs. 36: Notice the words “foolish one” as Paul says, “You guys struggle with the reality of the bodily resurrection, but you see it countless times a day!” What, when have any of us witnessed a resurrection? Well, Paul gives three things that are similar to our resurrection by looking at the way plants are grown.

• Vs. 36b Disintegration: “What you sow is not made alive unless it dies.” In the germination process of most seeds to become plants, the seed must dissolve or die in order for it to be made alive in its plant form. So, in the Greek way of thinking, as it relates to the body, death was the final frontier—the end of existence for the body. Not so, Paul says. This earthly body is like a seed in the sense that “life will emerge from its disintegration.” Death is just part of the process, not an obstacle to be avoided, but rather an essential part of it. Jesus said as much in John 12:24-25 when He said, “I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” This is a universal truth as it deals with our spiritual growth, as we must “reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:11) Is it any wonder that God chose springtime for the time of year when Jesus would demonstrate the death and resurrection? The truth is, folks (and listen to me as what I’m about to say deals far beyond our own resurrection one day), “Nothing that has not died will ever experience new life!” Take your attitude, your relationships with other people, and put them into that truth. If you want to experience resurrection life, die to self!
• Vs. 37 Difference: “And what you sow, you do not sow that body that shall be, but mere grain.” The second similarity, Paul says, is that there is a difference between what is sown and what comes up as a plant. In other words, some of the Corinthians were struggling with the resurrection because they failed to realize that what was resurrected bodily will be different than what we now have. The seed is no longer what is visible, but instead, this glorious plant—“that body that shall be.” Doesn’t that put a grin on your face? I mean, think of the superiority of what our resurrected bodies will be just in the area of self-transportation. Jesus, before the resurrection, had to walk everywhere, entering and exiting through openings. Ah, but after the resurrection, He would just appear in a closed room and then just disappear. How cool is that? Jesus’ resurrected body was no longer limited by time, space, and matter, and neither will ours be!
• Vs. 38 Duration: “But God gives it a body as He pleases, and to each seed its own body.” The third point Paul makes deals specifically with the transformation, as he says that “each seed its own body.” Yes, so? Well, don’t you get it? Part of God’s design is that even though the seed is gloriously transformed, it still is forever related to the seed! We will be receiving a vastly improved body than what we now have, but we won’t be losing any of who He has created us to be! The tulip stem and flower are just the glorious part of the bulb! Our identity and sanctified personality will remain forever distinct and unique, as we will still be the same life form. We will just be the new and very much improved people without having to deal with our flesh or this fallen world! It is interesting to study this in Jesus after the resurrection, as clearly the disciples didn’t fully recognize Him based upon His appearance, but very much did as His personality was revealed to them! What biologists and geneticists have discovered is that all biological codes are unique and binding—that is what’s behind DNA as a form of identification. It is also what makes evolution impossible, for one form cannot evolve or mutate into another form. Instead, we will resurrect into a new creation; in fact, we have already begun the process, as Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:17: “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” Furthermore, we can experience this daily, as Paul reminded the Romans in 12:2 to “be transformed by the renewing of your mind,” and to these Corinthians in his second letter, he told them that as they beheld “as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.”

With What Body Do They Come?

Vs. 39-42a: Paul again delves into the world of God’s creation to answer the second question, “With what body do they come?”

• Vs. 39: First, Paul shows that there are differing types of flesh in the animal kingdom—“men, animals, fish, and birds”—all vastly different from each other, not only from species to species but even within the same species, as no two are ever the same. There is a never-ending amount of variety within the created universe, and so too will there be in the resurrection. We will not all look alike, but we will all be like Jesus in our nature. So the first answer is that each one of us will still be an original one-of-a-kind work of art created by the Master and even given a new name!
• Vs. 40-42: Paul now draws from the celestial kingdom for his next illustration, as he tells us that God has designed bodies to dwell in the “terrestrial” level, and he already listed them above—“men, animals, fish, and birds.” But God also has designed that which is to dwell in the celestial realm, and Paul listed them as “sun, moon, and stars.” The earthly bodies are designed to function within this earthly realm, but outside this realm, you have to artificially alter the environment, or they will cease to function. But the heavenly body is designed to shine—some reflect light (planets and moons), and other stars and suns radiate their own light. But even within the suns and stars, the color of light is different based upon the amount of energy they create. Heavenly bodies move in space and seemingly are outside of time as it relates to us. The heavenly realm controls the earthly realm, and the earthly realm must respond to it as well. “So also is the resurrection,” Paul says!

Next week, we will further look into the resurrected bodies we will have!

1 Corinthians 15:42b-50

In His Image

Intro

The 15th chapter of 1 Corinthians is the longest of the book, as Paul defends the resurrection both of Christ and, because of His resurrection, our own. Paul has brought forth circumstantial evidence as well as eyewitness testimony. Last week, in verses 35-42a, we saw how our future resurrection affects us now, and then we saw how superior our glorified bodies shall be as he responded to the twofold question of verse 35:

• a. How are the dead raised? The answer to which he will give in verses 36-38
• b. With what body do they come? The answer to which he will give in verses 39-50.

Paul declared that the body to come would be:

• Vs. 39: An original one-of-a-kind work of art created by the Master and even given a new name!
• Vs. 40-42: Heavenly bodies move in space and seemingly outside of time as it relates to us, and the heavenly realm controls the earthly realm, and the earthly realm must respond to it as well.

This week, we look at four ways the glorified body is superior to the old body (vs. 42b-44), then we will look at a comparison of two bodies representing two Adams (vs. 45-50). I’m reminded of what Ben Franklin wrote to be placed upon his tombstone at the cemetery of Christ’s Church in Philadelphia: “The body of Franklin, printer, like the cover of an old book, its contents torn out and stripped of its lettering and gilding, lies here food for worms. But the work will not be lost, for it will appear once more in a new and more elegant edition, revised and corrected by the Author.” I don’t know about you, but this old book of mine is feeling more and more torn out, stripped, and worm food. Oh, how I long for the “more elegant edition, revised and corrected by the Author!”

Vs. 42b-44 Four Ways the New Body is Superior

Vs. 42a-44: Here Paul, staying on the theme of “What kind of body will we have,” gives us a set of four contrasts where we look at the bodies we are now in compared with the bodies that we will one day soon have. Now notice the word “sown” in each of these four contrasts, as it tells us two important things about the contrasts:

• a. First, it reveals to us that Paul is staying on with the analogy from nature, specifically as it deals with seeds and the plants that spring forth once they die. You will recall that Paul gave us three things that are similar about the resurrection and the way plants are grown in verses 36b-38:
  • Vs. 36b Disintegration: “What you sow is not made alive unless it dies.” Paul says this earthly body is like a seed in the sense that “life will emerge from its disintegration.” Death is just part of the process, not an obstacle to be avoided, but rather an essential part of it.
  • Vs. 37 Difference: “And what you sow, you do not sow that body that shall be, but mere grain.” The second similarity, Paul says, is that there is a difference between what is sown and what comes up as a plant. Time, space, and matter no longer limit the resurrected body.
  • Vs. 38 Duration: “But God gives it a body as He pleases, and to each seed its own body.” The third point Paul makes deals specifically with the transformation, as he says that “each seed its own body.” We will be receiving a vastly improved body than what we now have, but we won’t be losing any of who He has created us to be! Our identity and sanctified personality will remain forever distinct and unique, as we will still be the same life form. We will just be the new and very much improved people without having to deal with our flesh or this fallen world!
• b. Second, this word “sown” shows us that Paul has a specific time in mind as it relates to this comparison. A time when this body we now have reveals that it is in “corruption, dishonor, weakness, and in every way shows that it is a natural body.” And when does he say it shows that it is those four things? Well, when it is sown, or at its death! Death reveals the limitations of this body we now have. It is said that, “There is a preacher of the old school, but he speaks as boldly as ever. He is not popular, though the world is his parish and he travels every part of the globe and speaks in every language. He visits the poor, calls upon the rich, preaches to people of every religion and no religion, and the subject of his sermon is always the same. He is an eloquent preacher, often stirring feelings which no other preacher could, and bringing tears to eyes that never weep. His arguments none are able to refute, nor is there any heart that has remained unmoved by the force of this appeal. He shatters life with his message. Most people hate him; everyone fears him. His name? Death. Every tombstone is his pulpit, every newspaper prints his text, and someday every one of you will be his sermon.” As true as those words are to most, they are not the final words for us followers of Jesus!

Four Ways the New Body is Superior to the Old Body

1. Vs. 42b Durability: “The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption.” Again, the word “sown” relates to the body in death as being like the seed that is sown. The word “corruption” appears 9 times in the New Testament, where it is most often translated as it is here. The word means to “decay or perish,” hence corrupt, and the truth is you and I are right now in a steady state of decay! Our bodies, once they have reached a state of maturity, start losing their ability to function and begin a gradual slow state of decay, which, apart from the rapture, will continue at our death. It is as Solomon explained in Ecclesiastes 3:20: “all are from the dust, and all return to dust.” Every person since Adam is sown in a perishable body, and it is interesting to watch some folks try to get around this problem of durability. Take, for instance, the explorer Ponce De Leon, who went searching for the fountain of youth. Nowadays, folks try all sorts of creams, plastic surgery, and if all else fails, they will place you in a tub of liquid nitrogen in some cryogenic laboratory. All of these efforts are a desperate attempt to thwart the decay that is inevitably coming upon each of us. Well, here is the first way in which our new bodies will be superior to our old bodies: our new bodies will be raised in “incorruption”! This word Paul uses here appears 8 times and most often is rendered this way, with the exceptions where it is translated “immortality” and once in Ephesians 6:24 where it is translated as “sincerity.” Wow, does that ever shed light upon the superiority of our new bodies when compared with the old ones, which are in a state of decay. Our bodies will be raised in immortality, in sincerity. Webster’s dictionary defines the word “sincerity” as “honesty of mind, freedom from hypocrisy.” Clearly, Paul means to tell us that our durability, as it relates to our new bodies, will not be as we have them now, just being immortal. No, they will never run down in any way to which we are prone to be not honest of mind or pretend they are as they once were. Does that make sense to you? You won’t need to suck in your belly or dye your hair to hide the gray! Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:3-4 that “our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you.” All the effects of our decay that we all experience today will never again be realized. I’m never going to lose something, forget something, get sick, or grow old!

2. Vs. 43a Possibility: “It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory.” The word Paul uses here for “dishonor” in the Greek speaks of a fading attractiveness. Peter put it best in 1 Peter 1:24 when he wrote, “All flesh is as grass, And all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, And its flower falls away.” Oh, there is “glory to this body.” Take the best of what our bodies are capable of doing in their prime, and those of us with lesser abilities in the same gifts marvel in awe at the glory of it. But the truth is, no one maintains that glory it attains at its prime. That is why the athlete retires in their 30s, why all of us realize a decline in our potential as years go on, don’t we? The brightness of our candle grows more and more faint until it is extinguished. It is for the frustration of potential without the wisdom to use it properly that we have said, “youth is wasted on the young!” Oh, but we can look forward to our new bodies, as we won’t have to either reach our prime or lose it, having attained it! Throughout eternity, our bodies will function at their highest rate and never dim. The earthly body can never sustain its potential, whereas the heavenly body will never not live to its fullest potential.

3. Vs. 43b Capability: “It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power.” The word “weakness” has to do with both body and mind. Simply put, we exhibit our weakness not only in declining strength but also in a lack of endurance, resistance to disease, as well as our mental abilities. Of course, there is nothing more weak than our bodies once they are dead, when every part of our earthly body’s ability to function will have ceased to operate. It is interesting to me to look at Scripture with reference to our weaknesses and limitations, especially as believers. Paul wrote in his second letter to these same Corinthians in 12:7-10 that “a thorn in the flesh was given to him, and concerning this thing, he pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from him. And the Lord told him that; ‘His grace is sufficient for you, for His strength is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore (Paul said) most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” Jesus, in His earthly body, said something very interesting in John 5:19 when He said, “the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner.” Then Paul told the Philippians in 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” It seems as though our earthly existence is constantly pointing towards our weakness so that the reality of our power may be realized as we are totally dependent upon God’s power! In our resurrected bodies, we will have no problem with capability, as we are raised in power. That word here is where we get our word “dynamic” and “dynamite.” It is a word often used for God’s power, and thus we will have God’s power in constant supply so that anything that our heavenly hearts want to do, our heavenly bodies will be able to accomplish!

4. Vs. 44a Adaptability: “It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.” This last area that shows the superiority of the glorified body over the earthly body deals with the sphere of existence. The word “natural” is the Greek word “psychic” and has a broad definition, but in this context, it refers to the limitations of the environment it has been placed in, namely earth. In other words, God gave us an “earth suit.” It is designed to function only for the time we have on this planet, and even then, we have to keep it repaired. It functions by the control of my soul—“the center of my emotions, intellect, and will.” Now, that is fine, but if one of those areas gets out of control, your body has to go along with it. I mean, your body can’t go out on strike even if what your emotions, intellect, or will is telling it to do something harmful to it or to someone else. But get this, saint: in the resurrected body, it will be under complete control of your redeemed heart that only desires to follow the Lord. Several years ago, I came across a visible description of what we have as believers living in this body. I was cruising down the freeway when right in front of me was an old beat-up Datsun pickup. I mean, this thing was probably built in the 60s. I don’t know how it was even able to run. But right on the tailgate, in perfect paint, was the red and white lettering that simply said Ferrari. That is us to a tee: we are old jalopies with Ferrari hearts waiting to get the bodies to go with the heart! We will be perfectly adaptable to heavenly life and of everything in it for eternity!

Vs. 45-50 A Tale of the Tape

Vs. 45-49: The tale of the tape has to do with two Adams, and here is what Paul reveals about them:

• a. Vs. 45: There are two prototypes, if you will:
  • “The first man Adam became a living being.” Adam was created with a natural body that was declared “very good” by God. Had they remained obedient and eaten of the tree of life instead of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, their bodies would have been glorified. Instead, the first Adam sinned and has passed on two things that he has been the prototype for ever since:
    • Physical life in an earthly body designed for this time on this planet.
    • Death, which is the wages of sin, based upon a sin nature as well as sinning by way of choice.
  • “The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.” Jesus has also become a prototype as He has conquered the wages of sin—“death”—by dying on the cross and being raised from the dead. Therefore, all who are “born again” will also inherit a resurrected body as well as a body that is in right relationship to its Creator.
• b. Vs. 46: Here Paul lets us know that the physical has to come before the spiritual. Simply put, we have to be born before we can be born again. There are those who believe, as the Mormons do, that the spiritual starts first, then it becomes physical. As there are “spirit babies” up there in heaven waiting to have earthly bodies—not so, says Paul. As such, you and I are in a state of transition, awaiting a body that will match our redeemed hearts.
• c. Vs. 47-49: Jesus told us as much in John 8:23 when He declared, “You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world.” Here we are told that we will “bear the image of the heavenly Man.” We will, Christian, be changed into the image of the heavenly man. In fact, we are told in 2 Corinthians 3:18 that “we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.”

Vs. 50: Is that not a great comfort to realize that the Holy Spirit is already at work making us like Him? The apostle John wrote this truth in 1 John 3:2: “Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.” The hardest part has already been won for us in Christ; now we are waiting for the glory of a body that will be like Him!

1 Corinthians 15:51-57

We Shall All Be Changed

Intro

Last week Paul compared our earthly body against our heavenly body and revealed that our heavenly body will be superior to our earth suit in four ways:

• Vs. 42b Durability
• Vs. 43a Possibility
• Vs. 43b Capability
• Vs. 44a Adaptability

He then compared the two bodies based upon their prototypes: Adam and Jesus. I’m reminded of Paul’s words to the Romans 5:20 when looking at Jesus compared with Adam: “where sin abounded, grace abounded much more.” Since being in Adam has passed on to all of his descendants a sin nature, which we all experience the effects of daily, we can tend to think that the state we are in will be a permanent one. But this verse in Romans reveals that as binding as our “earth suit” is on us now, our “grace suit” will be free from everything that binds us now and truly permanent.

In the section before us, Paul finishes dealing with the resurrection with a word about the change itself. In fact, this section can be divided into two divisions, both of which deal with the change that will occur at our resurrection. What is interesting to me is that the truth of our future bodily resurrection is the cause of the change in our present everyday life.

Vs. 51-54a The Final Frontier

Vs. 51: A “Mystery” in scripture is a term used to describe something that is revealed that could not have been known apart from being made known. By the use of this word, Paul anticipates the question, “What about believers who are alive when Jesus returns?” I believe that there are two mysteries that Paul lists in this verse, but he says them in such a way to give all believers three assurances.

a. Vs. 51a “We shall not all sleep”

The first revelation concerns our death as believers or, in the case of some, the lack of death. Paul inadvertently gives us two assurances as believers in this statement:

• 1. “Sleep”: From a worst-case scenario, we die and our physical bodies cease to function on any level, and we’re gone. I can think of no greater thing in all of human experience that brings forth more of a sense of hopelessness to loved ones than death. This week I have spent a great deal of time at the hospital praying for a dear lady who was not expected to make it. The despair and hopelessness of the situation were extremely heavy. But why is it so despairing and hopeless? Well, I believe it is because of the fear of the unknown. Here, Paul uses a word to describe a believer’s death that ought to arrest our attention. He simply calls it “sleep.” To Paul, the word did not mean “eternal sleep” in which we are in some “unending night.” No, to him, the word meant “resting in the Lord.” In fact, it was Christians who first coined the word “cemeteries” as the word literally means “sleeping places.” So what is the assurance that Paul speaks of here? Even in a worst-case scenario in which a believer dies, they are just going to be resting with Jesus. In fact, Paul says as much in his second letter to the Corinthians in 5:8 that for the believer, “we would rather be away from these bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord.” As Christians, we don’t have to fear death, as we know exactly what awaits us: we will be resting with Jesus, in His presence, at home with Him. All right, praise the Lord, what a great assurance!
• 2. “Not all sleep”: The second assurance deals with the truth that some Christians who are alive at the time of the rapture will not even experience death. Some of us in this very room, perhaps, will not even have to pass through the door of death. Some of us will not go through the uneasiness or pain that causes us to cross the bridge into Jesus’ presence. No, we will just be going on in our everyday life, as we are today, and then “bam,” we are ushered into His presence at home with Him! I’m not going to tell you that this will be your or my experience, but it very well may be. I could be in mid-sentence and not be able to finish it! Doesn’t that excite you with the possibility of instant eternity?

b. Vs. 51b “We shall all be changed”

This leads us to the second mystery that Paul reveals and the third assurance. I believe that this is the greatest of them all as it covers in hope both assurances as well as the first mystery. Paul says, “We all shall be changed,” YES! Our corruption is going to put on incorruption, our dishonor is going to put on glory, our weakness is going to put on power, and our natural body is going to put on a spiritual body! It matters not if we sleep in Jesus or are just raptured, as we all will be changed. Every day on the way to church I pray that I will be changed more into Jesus’ image, that His character and nature will be more visible and less of me will be seen in my attitude and actions. And you know what? By the end of the day, I realize that I did not meet my expectations, so I confess my failures and start the next day with the same prayer! Oh, but one day something glorious is going to happen to me, as my prayer for transformation will be complete one way or the other—I’m going to be changed. I’m so sick and tired of my lack of change at times. The truth be told, most of the time I can’t stand me. Paul spoke to the Romans (7:24-25) about this feeling he had about himself when he said, “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” He then answered his own question by saying, “I thank God; through Jesus Christ our Lord!” That is it, “we all shall be changed”!

Vs. 52a How and When?

a. How?: “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye”: This describes the method of change, doesn’t it? In describing the method of change, Paul gives two words to describe its instant transformation.

• 1. “In a moment”: The word in the Greek is where we get our word for “atom.” An atom is the most “minute indivisible particle” known to man. So Paul, by the use of this word, means to say that our change will be in the smallest amount of time that it cannot be further divided. The emphasis is not on the change but rather on the speed of the change. Our transformation into a glorious heavenly body will not take any time; it will be instantaneous.
• 2. “In the twinkling of an eye”: The word here for “twinkling” is a word that means to throw, and it refers to the fastest speed known and experienced by mankind. It is the speed it takes for the slight change in light when you blink. It is much faster than when you blink; it is your ability to adapt to the change of light once you blink.

So why the emphasis upon speed or time as it relates to our transformation? Well, I think that this creates in us a great sense of hope that our glorification will not have to be some progressive maturity as we know it now. It is of great frustration that the “things we want to do we do not, and the very things we do not want to do we do!” How great is it going to be to instantaneously and forever be like Jesus in our behavior, attitude, and actions?

b. When?: “For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed”

When is this going to be? Well, when the trumpet sounds! Yes, but when is that going to be? That question is not answered specifically, and based upon verse 58, apparently Paul believed that it could be at any moment.

The difficulty in answering this hinges upon what Paul meant concerning the “trumpet” or, as other versions put it, the “last trumpet.” Some believe that this “last trumpet” deals with Jesus gathering His people in Revelation 11:15-19. It is here that we read that the “seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, ‘The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!’” However, there is more than one trumpet passage in scripture. In 1 Thessalonians 4:16, Paul tells us that “the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.” The Greek language reveals that these two trumpets are different, as one is the trumpet of an angel and the other that of God. The simple interpretation is that this will happen at the rapture, and it will be the last one we hear with these ears, as it will come at a time that will not be able to be known. Hence, we ought to live as if it will happen today.

Vs. 52b-54a Order of the Resurrection

Here we are given the order of the resurrection, namely that the “dead will be raised incorruptible.” This, of course, agrees with Paul’s words to the Thessalonians in 4:16-17, as we are told, “the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.” So what happens to those who have died as believers? Well, here is what we know:

• a. 2 Corinthians 5:8: “To be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.”
• b. 1 Thessalonians 4:17: “Shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.”

So based on these two verses, we know that we will be present with the Lord and shall always be with Him. But that does not answer when we shall receive our glorified bodies.

Many believe that we will not receive our glorified bodies until the second coming, and others still believe later, at the end of His 1,000-year reign. I’m not so sure that we can be dogmatic on this. First, time and eternity are two very different categories of experience.

• Time: Is a numeric way of measuring chronological events, and in this life, we are locked into this. Every event of our life is measured the same way and always follows the same sequential pattern: “tomorrow becomes today, then afterwards becomes yesterday!”
• Eternity: Is not measured by a numeric system as all our events are not chronological because there is no tomorrow, only today! We are forever in a state of NOW! My point is that in eternity, it is quite possible that the moment we step outside of this body, we step into His presence, and that would bring us to where there would be no waiting period for our glorified bodies. Peter declared something very interesting to me in 2 Peter 3:8-9, where he said, “beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” Yes, so? Well, He has promised us a resurrected body, and He is not slack concerning His promise; thus, in eternity, a thousand years is as a day. Now, I’m not going to say that Peter was being literal here, but I think that the principle is true, and to me, it answers the question as to when we receive our glorified bodies as it relates to those who have died as well as those who are raptured. We get them the moment we die, but in time, we get them at the time planned for them!

Vs. 54b-57 Life, Not a Waste of Time

Vs. 54b-55: Paul starts off here with two Old Testament quotes:

• a. Vs. 54b (Isaiah 25:8) “Death is swallowed up in victory”: Here is what Paul is saying: Death is not only destroyed so that it can do no more harm, all of its apparent victories are overturned in Christ! Even our apparent death and decay are overturned as we are given an imperishable body! Simply put, the effects of death are even more than overturned inasmuch as our heavenly bodies are more superior than our earthly bodies.
• b. Vs. 55-56 (Hosea 13:14) “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?”: Here Paul clarifies his point by giving us verse 56. The harm of death is caused by sin, and in fact, sin is the cause of death. Paul, speaking to the Romans, said in 5:12, “just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned.” So by quoting this verse, Paul is speaking about the destruction of sin, as we are told in Romans 5:20, “where sin abounded, grace abounded much more.” It is not as though in this body I don’t sin, but rather that the blood of Christ cleanses me from all my sin (1 John 1:7). The law reveals to us our sins; it shows us that we are in need of a redeemer.

Vs. 57 Here then we are told Who we can thank for such a great & glorious victory

“Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Now, as great a verse as this is for the future hope of life in our glorified bodies without sin, notice the tense of the sentence. Paul writes concerning the victory we have in Jesus not in the past tense (“Who HAS given us victory”), nor in the future tense (“Who will give us victory”), but rather in the present tense (“Who gives us the victory”). Yes, so? That means that every day, every moment of the day, I can walk in His victory over my sin! Paul wrote to the Galatians 2:20 of this in what each of us ought to place where we can read it every chance we get: “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”