Idea Transcript
INTRODUCTION 1 Corinthians 15 continues Paul’s letter to the believers in the ancient city of Corinth. Paul has just finished a three chapter discussion on spiritual gifts and now changes direction to share about the resurrection of Jesus. Chapter 15 is the most in depth discussion about resurrection in the Bible. Resurrection is the life blood of the gospel. Without the resurrection, Christians are a hopeless people. Obviously, there was some question in the Corinthians’ minds as to whether there was an actual bodily resurrection of Jesus. This passage shares that doctrinal truth. COMMENTARY v1 The word “brothers” here, and throughout this chapter (vs 6, 31, 50, 58) refers to brothers and sisters in Christ. In other words, this term refers to all believers. Paul is speaking to the Church at Corinth in this passage. Paul is reminding the believers about the gospel they have personally received and have acted on in faith. v2 The gospel that Paul has preached to them and that they have believed in has the power to save. The phrase here, “being saved,” probably refers to their sanctification. Jesus’ work on the cross and his resurrection brought the Corinthians and all Christians’ salvation to completion. Sanctification, the earthly process of molding Christians into the image of Christ, is the part of salvation that will be completed at their departure from this earth. “If you hold fast to the word I preached to you” does not question these believers salvation, but actually affirms their standing in Christ. To better understand this verse, it would be correctly interpreted by changing the word “if” to “since” in this phrase. Therefore, this phrase is better understood this way: “since you hold fast to the word I preached to you.” In fact, this is an argument for the resurrection of Jesus to the Corinthians. Because these Corinthians had believed, they had to have believed in the resurrection. Paul’s message always affirms the doctrine of eternal security. That’s the message that once one truly comes into a relationship with God through Jesus, they cannot lose your salvation. vs 3-4 The word “gospel” means “good news.” The “gospel” is the good news of salvation found in Jesus. A common question among Christians is “what is the gospel? When you take the gospel down to its irreducible core, what is it?” These two verses share the gospel in a nutshell. The foundation of the gospel is what is packed into these two small verses. There are three things mentioned in these two verses that bring the gospel to its barest minimum: 1) Christ died for our sins 2) He was buried 3) He was raised on the third day If someone does not have these three elements, they do not have the gospel. Paul is showing these believers that the resurrection is part of the foundation of the gospel as well as the foundation of their faith. Twice in these verses the phrase “in accordance with the Scriptures” is used. The Scriptures used at this time were the Old Testament. In other words, the Old Testament Scriptures revealed the promise of Christ’s death and resurrection. Paul was showing them the authority of the Old Testament and that bodily resurrection was a part of it as well. vv 5-6 The witness of the resurrection is one of the most well attested facts in history. Jesus appeared post resurrection to Cephas (Peter). That was an important appearance. The account is found in John 21 and shares Peter’s restoration with the Lord after his denials. The second post resurrection appearance of Jesus mentioned is the twelve. The twelve is a
reference to the original disciples. Jesus also appeared to over 500 believers in Christ! That’s a lot of witnesses. In the book of Acts you can see the boldness of the Christian witness. They were bold because they had witnessed the risen Lord. They knew the resurrection was real because they had witnessed it with their own eyes. By the time of the writing of this letter to the Corinthians, many of the believers who had seen the resurrected Jesus were still alive. The phrase “though some have fallen asleep” was a term used to speak of the death of some of the believers who had witnessed this miracle. When the Scriptures use the terminology of falling asleep, they refer to physical death. v7 James is believed to be the half brother of Jesus. In Luke 4:16 and following, Jesus and his disciples are in Nazareth (Jesus’ home town). Jesus made a proclamation that upset the city. James was probably one of the doubters that ran Jesus out of town. But after the resurrection, James became the leader of the early church in Jerusalem. The witness of the resurrection had a powerful impact on his life. vs 8-10 “one untimely born” is referring to the apostle Paul himself. Paul himself was a witness of the risen Savior. The word for “untimely born” in Greek was Ektrōma. Many times this word is used in the since of an abortion or a still birth. It could also mean being born too early or too late. Paul is using this word in the sense of not being a believer at the time of Jesus’ resurrection. In fact, Paul was persecuting the Church without mercy. The Lord’s appearance to Paul is unique in that it was after his ascension. Paul shares that God’s grace was not in vain. It is interesting to note that Paul said he worked harder than anyone. But he recognized that it was not really him working, it was the power of God that actually did the work by the grace of God. v11 No matter who had shared the message with the Corinthians, they had believed and their lives had been changed forever by the power of the resurrection. There is a correlation between preaching and believing. Paul affirms this correlation in Romans 10:14. v12 Paul begins a series of “if” statements that runs through verse 19. He shares a theological argument about why there must be a resurrection and the implications if there were no resurrection. Paul had already shown that the Corinthian Christians had become believers by believing in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Much of the prevailing culture of the day would have taught that the resurrection of the dead was impossible. Some groups believed that once you were dead, you were annihilated. There was nothing after death. Some would have taught that the body is evil and only the soul is good. Therefore, why would you want to be resurrected to a body that was evil? Even some former Jews, from the Sadducees, disbelieved in the resurrection of the dead in spite of Old Testament allusions to it in several places. Paul’s point is this: since Christ has been raised from the dead, how could there possibly be no resurrection as some were obviously claiming. Since Christ was raised, the idea of resurrection is possible for all. v13 If there is no resurrection, not even Christ was raised. The Corinthians knew that resurrection was a critical element of the gospel they had believed for their salvation. Jesus’ resurrection had to be real. v14 Paul is teaching that another consequence of not believing in the resurrection is that all the leaders preaching had been for nothing and the Corinthians’ faith was worthless. That’s a pretty strong argument for the resurrection. Again, these believers knew the resurrection
was one of the foundational elements of the gospel. The word “vain,” used twice here, means of no use, worthless, or without content. v15 If there is no resurrection, then everyone who claimed to witness Jesus’ resurrection was a liar and a fraud. No resurrection would also mean that everyone who had ever preached the resurrection of Jesus was no better than a con artist. That would also make Jesus a liar since he testified of the reality of the resurrection. v16 Again, if there is no resurrection, then Jesus wasn’t resurrected. These Corinthians knew better. v17 If there is no resurrection, the entire Christian faith is invalidated. The Corinthians and all Christians are still dead in their sins. If we are dead in our sins, that would mean that Jesus did not win the victory over death and the grave. We would be no better off than any pagan. We are a hopeless people without the resurrection. v18 Again, “fallen asleep” is talking about physical death. If there is no resurrection, those who have died as believers in Christ are hopeless. They are just dead with no hope. v19 Without the resurrection and the salvation that it brings, people might as well feel sorry for us. All of the sacrifice of being a Christian was for nothing without the resurrection. All hope of eternal life is nullified without the resurrection. People should totally pity us if the resurrection is not factual. Paul’s point in this section is that without the resurrection you can’t have the Jesus the Messiah. The resurrection is just as critical an element of the gospel as his death on the cross. You can’t have one without the other. v20 This section (vs 20-28) shares God’s future plan for resurrection. “First fruits” transliterated into English is the Greek word “aparche”. The concept of first fruits is first used in the Old Testament in Leviticus 23:9–14. This is an offering of the first and best of all crops to God for His abundant provision. The harvest could not be completed until the offering of first fruits was given. Therefore, Christ is the first fruit of resurrection. He was the first offering to be permanently resurrected. Because of Jesus’ resurrection, this verse means that there is resurrection for the rest of us as well. The logic behind this verse means that since Christ was resurrected, all those in Christ will be resurrected as well. He was just the first fruits of the resurrection. vs21-22 These verses point to the consequences of being in the linage of Adam and the consequences of being in the linage of Christ. In Adam (without Jesus), all die. In Christ (followers of Jesus), all live. Some have taken this verse to mean that all people are saved (Universalism). The argument is that the verse says “In Christ, ALL will be made alive” (emphasis mine). They take that to mean every living person receives salvation. Those who believe this teaching misunderstand what the phrase “in Christ” means. One must be careful not to take one or two verses in the Bible and attempt to make a primary theology (teaching) from these verses. By looking at the entirety of the New Testament, we see that to be “in Christ” means that an individual has believed the gospel (death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus) and surrendered their life to God for his use. Therefore, the correct (and widely held) interpretation of this verse is that those who are “in Christ” will be raised (resurrected).
v23 One truth that the New Testament clearly shares is that Jesus is coming back to earth again. Jesus was the first fruits of the resurrection. We will be resurrected at the full harvest of the resurrection at his next coming to earth. vs24-25 This section is talking about the end of this age. Jesus will come back and be the ruler that was prophesied about in the Old Testament. “All his enemies” is referring to Satan. He is the one enemy that must be defeated in the unfolding of the end times. v26 The last enemy to be abolished is death. To abolish means to get rid of it forever. Death will have no further place in history. Jesus will be the King and righteously rule his Kingdom. vs27-28 These verses are talking about the Son’s role in relationship to God the Father. Everyone and everything are subject to Jesus, with the exception of the Father. v29 There is some dispute to the actual meaning of this verse. This passage is NOT teaching that Christians are to be baptized for dead friends and relatives. There is no other place in the New Testament that even alludes to this possibility. Warren Wiersbe explains this verse as well as anyone: “The phrase probably means “baptized to take the place of those who have died.” In other words, if there is no resurrection, why bother to witness and win others to Christ? Why reach sinners who are then baptized and take the place of those who have died? If the Christian life is only a “dead-end street,” get off of it!”1 vs30-32 If there is no resurrection of the believing dead, then why not just live for today? Why would Paul have had to suffer so much? Why would we need to suffer for Christ if everything ends at death? Paul is sharing that life doesn’t end at death. vs33-34 Belief in resurrection should lead us to live holy, peaceable lives. Knowing that we will be resurrected should cause us to want to live for Jesus. The first section of this chapter dealt with people who did not generally believe in bodily resurrection. This next section deals with how this resurrection is possible. v35 Paul raises two questions about resurrection. 1) How are they raised? 2) With what kind of body do they come? They are pretty realistic questions. How does it happen? What about people who have been cremated? What about those blown up in an explosion? How can it be? Here’s the thing we must remember though. God created the universe from nothing. Is it too hard for him to handle resurrecting the dead? The God that breathed life into Adam, can he not resurrect us just as easily? When you think about it in that context, it doesn’t seem so impossible, does it? vs36-38 Paul calls them foolish. These questions may seem logical but stem from a lack of faith. These early Christians had their lives transformed by the power of the resurrection yet they were letting worldly philosophies override their faith. Paul gives an example from the plant world of a kernel of grain has to die before it can come to life again. Paul is sharing that we must die in order to receive the resurrection bodies that God has for us. God takes care of all the details of our resurrected bodies.
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Books.
Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (1 Co 15:29). Wheaton, Ill.: Victor
vs39-41 These verses reflect the truth that our resurrection bodies will be different than our earthly bodies. v42 Resurrected bodies will be distinctly different from our earthly bodies. Our earthly bodies are perishable. They will rot and decay. They were not made for our eternal home. Resurrected bodies are imperishable. They will never die. They are perfect bodies for our perfect home. From looking at the stories following the resurrection of Jesus, there were obviously some similarities to the earthly body of Jesus yet many when they first saw him did not know him. vs43-44 These two verses contrasts our resurrected bodies with our earthly bodies. Verse 44 closes with another argument for the resurrection. Paul says if we have an earthly body, we will have a resurrected body. v45 The first Adam refers to the first human. This refers to Adam being physically born with a body. The last Adam is talking about Jesus. Jesus gives us the supernatural spiritual life. This contrast of Adam and Jesus is seen in Romans 5:19 (ESV) too, “For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.” Through Adam we have inherited our physical bodies. Through Jesus we will inherit spiritual bodies through the resurrection. v46 The physical body is born first. The resurrected body comes later. In other words, we are not physically born with our resurrected bodies. They are indeed different. v47
Adam was made from the dust of the earth. Our spiritual bodies are made in heaven.
v48
Physical bodies are for the earth. Spiritual resurrected bodies are made for heaven.
v49 The only example we have of a resurrected body made for heaven is that of Jesus. Our Lord could walk through walls and go from one place to another in no time at all. He could also eat, talk, listen, and do the things that he did in His physical body. As we have borne the image of Adam in our physical bodies, we will be in the image of Jesus in our resurrected bodies. v50 Paul tells us once again that our earthly body was not made for heaven. Our earthly bodies have been corrupted by sin and cannot be used in heaven. We will have heavenly resurrected bodies that are specifically made for their heavenly purpose. vs51-52 Paul now shares what happens to believers that are alive at the return of Christ. First he says that the dead in Christ will be raised. They will be raised with their perfect, made for heaven, resurrected bodies. Those alive in Christ will be changed. The word “changed” here is the word transliterated “allasso” which means “to change, to exchange one thing for another, to transform”2 This is not some minor change that happens. You exchange your earthly body for a brand new, heavenly one! v53 Because our earthly bodies can’t be heaven bound, we must “put on” our heavenly bodies. Our resurrected spirits need resurrected bodies to prepare us for heaven. Strong, J. (1996). The exhaustive concordance of the Bible : Showing every word of the text of the common English version of the canonical books, and every occurrence of each word in regular order. (electronic ed.). Ontario: Woodside Bible Fellowship. 2
v54 The resurrection of Jesus broke the power of death over followers of Jesus. Romans 6:9 (ESV) says “We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him.” Because we are “in Christ,” we receive what he receives. Since death no longer has dominion over Christ, it no longer has dominion over us as well. Death has been defeated. The end of this verse is a quote from Isaiah 25:8. Isaiah foretold this hundreds of years before Jesus came to earth. v55 This is a quote of Hosea 13:14. Christ took the sting of death for us. He took the finality of death, a punishment we deserved to experience, and gave us future new life through the resurrection, something we simply do not deserve. That’s the great mercy of God shown to us. v56 God’s law, his standard, reveals to every person that they are sinners in need of a Savior. If there was no law, there would be no breaking of the law. Romans 4:15 (ESV) says, “For the law brings wrath, but where there is no law there is no transgression.” God’s law today is the plumb line to show the lost their need of Jesus. v57 This verse is a shout out of joy and thanks to God. Our victory is assured through the resurrection of Christ. Nothing can take that away. v58 This verse sums up the actions we can take because of the truthfulness of the resurrection of Jesus. First, we must be steadfast. That means we must hold our course and not let anything get in the way of our mission. Second, we must be immovable. The doctrine of the resurrection of Jesus is one of the core beliefs of Christianity. If you sway on this doctrine, the entire premise of Christianity falls. We must stand strong in the knowledge that Jesus’ resurrection gives us life now and hope for the future. Third, we must be abounding in the work Jesus has left for us to do. That means we must be “all in.” Because of the resurrection, we must surrender our lives to his Lordship for his use. And the final promise in this chapter is that our labor is not in vain. Everything that the Lord uses you to do will have a Kingdom impact. God wants to use you to carry out his mission.
Resources Series Overview of 1 Corinthians - www.vintagenola.org/inthecity Articles: “Chapter 15: If There is No Resurrection” http://thegospelcoalition.org/resources/a/If-There-is-No-Resurrection_2 Sermons: “Jesus’ Resurrection” - 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 - Mark Driscoll http://marshill.com/media/1st-corinthians/jesus-resurrection “Our Resurrection” - 1 Corinthians 15:12-34 - Mark Driscoll http://marshill.com/media/1st-corinthians/our-resurrection “Our Resurrection Bodies” - 1 Corinthians 15:35-58 - Mark Driscoll http://marshill.com/media/1st-corinthians/our-resurrection-bodies “Pity Not Them Who Rise With Christ” - 1 Corinthians 15:12-20 - John Piper http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/sermons/pity-not-them-who-rise-with-christ
“What Happens When You Die: The Dead Will Be Raised Imperishable” - 1 Corinthians 15:50-58 - John Piper - http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/sermons/whathappens-when-you-die-the-dead-will-be-raised-imperishable Study Tools: A.T. Robertson’s Word Pictures of the New Testament - 1 Corinthians 4 http:// www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/robertsons-word-pictures/1-corinthians/