SCRIPTURE: 1 CORINTHIANS 15
MEMORY VERSE:
“Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” (1 Corinthians 15:58)
THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST
According to the Scriptures, Christ died for our sins, he was buried, he was raised on the third day and he appeared to Peter and to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to Paul. (vs. 1-8)
Paul said: “I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them – yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believe. (vs. 9-11)
THE RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD (vs. 12-34)
Since Christ has been raised from the dead, so there is resurrection of the dead. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own turn: Christ, the first fruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For he “has put everything under his feet”. Now, when it says that “everything has been put under him, it is clear that he does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ. When he has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all.
Paul said: If there is no resurrection, what will those who are baptized for the dead do? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized for them? And as for us, why do we endanger ourselves every hour? I die every day – I mean that brothers – just as surely as I glory over you in Christ Jesus our Lord. If I fought a wild beast in Ephesus for merely human reasons, what have I gained? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die” (v. 32). Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good characters”. Come back to your senses as you ought, and stop sinning, for there are some who are ignorant of God.
THE RESURRECTION BODY (vs. 35-58)
What we sow does not come to life unless it dies. We sow a seed and the kind of seed gives its own body. All flesh is not the same. Men have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds another and fish another. There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies; but the splendor of the heavenly bodies and the splendor of the earthly bodies are different. Likewise, the sun, the moon and the stars have different splendors.
It is also true with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.
There is a natural body and a spiritual body. “The first man Adam became a living being”., the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. The natural comes before the spiritual. The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven. The earthly man comes from the earth while the heavenly man are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, we also bear the likeness of the man from heaven.
Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Here is a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed. In a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then “Death has been swallowed up in victory” (v. 54)
The sting of death is sin and the power of sin is the law. But God gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. “Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” (v. 58)
THOUGHTS:
Paul assured us that many people saw Jesus after his resurrection. Resurrection is a historical fact so that we have hope that one day we will see the living proof when Christ returns.
As a zealous Pharisee, Paul had been an enemy of the Christian church – even to the point of capturing and persecuting believers. Thus, he felt unworthy to be called an apostle of Christ. However, when Paul met Christ, he humbled himself and worked hard to preach the gospel because he knew that God had poured kindness upon him. True humility is having God’s perspective on who you are and acknowledging His grace in developing your abilities.
Most Greeks believe that the afterlife is something that happens only to the soul. They consider the soul as the real person imprisoned in a physical body, and at death the soul was released. There is no immortality for the body, but the soul enters an eternal state. Christianity by contrast, affirms that the body and soul will be united after resurrection. Since the church at Corinth was in Greek culture, many believers did not believe in a bodily resurrection. Paul wrote this letter to clear up the confusion about the resurrection .
The resurrection of Christ is the center of the gospel message:
- Because he rose, we are certain that our sins are forgiven.
- Because he rose, he lives and represents us to God.
- Because he rose, he defeated death and we will also be raised.
- Because he rose, he guarantees our eventual resurrection to eternal life.
Paul compares the resurrection with the growth of a seed in a garden. Seeds placed in the ground don’t grow unless they die first. The plant that grows looks very different from the seed because God gives it a new “body”. There are different kinds of bodies – angels, people, animals, fish, birds. Our resurrected body will be very different from our earthly body. It will be a spiritual body full of glory.
Our spiritual bodies are more superior than the earthly bodies. It will not be weak, will never get sick and will never die. These new bodies will be without disabilities. This gives us hope in our suffering.
Paul encouraged the believers to stand firm and with every opportunity, serve the Lord faithfully and enthusiastically. For our labor in the Lord will never be in vain.