1 Corinthians 15:1-58
The church at Corinth had its problems with divisions, immorality, and the abuse of spiritual gifts. However, these serious problems pale in comparison to the one mentioned in this chapter. "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?" 1 Corinthians 15:12. There were some in the church, who did not believe in the resurrection.
No resurrection? What if this was true? "But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen." The resurrection of Christ is the foundational truth of the Christian faith.
What if Jesus Christ never rose again from the dead? "And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty." The basic message of the gospel is "that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures." 1 Corinthians 15:3, 4. We would have preachers without a message, and our faith without an object.
The apostles and the preachers of the gospel in the early church would be liars. "Yes, and we are found false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ, whom He did not raise up---if in fact the dead do not rise." Jesus Himself would have lied, because He had foretold His resurrection.
Christ would not be the Savior of those who believe. Paul wrote to the Corinthians, "And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!" And those who had died would have perished. We would pay the consequences of our sins, dying in them.
"If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable." Our hope would be a false hope apart from the resurrection. Life would be meaningless, if the Lord Jesus Christ did not rise from the dead.
"But now Christ is risen from the dead...." How do we know this? After Jesus rose again "He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once.... After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles." And Paul adds, "Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time." 1 Corinthians 15:6-8. We have the eyewitness testimonies of those who saw the resurrected Lord.
Most of these men, who preached Jesus and the resurrection, were persecuted and killed. Would they be willing to die for a lie? Of course not! Christ is risen! Our preaching and our faith is not in vain.
Almighty God, we believe in the resurrection of Your Son, our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank you for the living hope which is ours. Death has no sting. The grave has no victory. In Jesus' name. Amen!
