1 Corinthians 15:12-34, Called to Hope
Theological Proposition/Focus: Resurrection is real.
Homiletical Proposition/Application: Make sure that your life here and now reflect the reality of our future resurrection.
Introduction:
Image: Acceptable Risk
In your life you are constantly making decisions that can be summarized as acceptable risk. Think about it, every time you get in a car you are taking a big risk but you have determined that it is an acceptable risk.
In aviation we are constantly evaluating risk and determine what is an acceptable risk. As an example, when I am out practicing stalls I am taking a risk. When an airplane is in a stalled condition it can enter a spin and spiral into the ground. So, what do I do? I mitigate this risk by climbing up higher and carefully entering and exiting the stall. The risk is worth taking because I want to train myself to handle stalls correctly so that if I ever accidentally enter a stall close to the ground I know exactly what to do. I have decided that at 6000 feet practicing stalls is an acceptable risk.
However, there are some things that I don't do. I have never done a barrel role in my airplane. I think it probably could do it but it is not certified for it and the risk is far too high.
In theology, and doctrine in particular, we could think of things in terms of acceptable risk. I believe in a pre-tribulational rapture but if I am wrong oh well, it is an acceptable risk. But there are somethings that I believe that I am not willing to be wrong on. One of those items is the resurrection of Jesus.
Need: In our beliefs there are some doctrines that we can get wrong and be okay but there are some that we cannot get wrong. The resurrection is one such doctrine.
Preview: Today we are going to see that without the resurrection we have no future, but the resurrection is real and marks the beginning of the culmination of God's plan. Therefore, life here and now should be lived in light of the resurrection.
Text: 1 Corinthians 15:12-34 read following each main point
Setting the Stage:
In 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 Paul carefully laid out the Gospel. Now he moves onto the significance of the Gospel, Hope
Body
Without the resurrection we have no future (12-19).
The Gospel of Christ demands resurrection (12-13).
In order to understand verses 12-13 we must do a little of what is commonly called mirror reading.
That is we look at the text, see that there was something Paul disapproved of and try to use his arguments to better understand what that something was.
Theologians have pieced together six possible issues that the Corinthians might have wrestled with and while all of these issues are nuanced differences they really come down to one simple issue.
It seems like some in Corinth had rejected the future bodily resurrection.
The problem, the Gospel does not allow for this rejection. You see, Christ was fully man. We don't need to get into all the details of the hypostatic union, but a few details are helpful.
The hypostatic union is a theological term used in Christianity to describe the union of Christ's humanity and divinity in one individual existence.
This doctrine asserts that Jesus Christ is both fully God and fully man, possessing two distinct natures that coexist within a single person.
Key to our understanding is the fact that Jesus possesses two natures:
Divine Nature: Jesus is fully divine, sharing in the same essence as God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. This includes attributes such as omnipotence, omniscience, and eternality.
Human Nature: Jesus is fully human, experiencing all aspects of humanity, including birth, growth, emotions, and death. He possesses a human body and soul.
But these two natures exist within one person:
Despite having two natures, Jesus is one person. The divine and human natures are united in the person of Jesus Christ without mixing, changing, or dividing.
Several key passages give us our biblical basis
John 1:1, 14: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God... The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us."
Philippians 2:6-7: "Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness."
Colossians 2:9: "For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form."
In short, Jesus is fully man and fully God which means when he died he really truly died.
This means that without resurrection Jesus would still be dead.
Our faith depends on resurrection (14-15).
Since the Gospel is the message of the death of Jesus atoning for sin and his resurrection we need the resurrection.
Consider this
The resurrection validated Jesus's claims
- The resurrection confirms Jesus as the Son of God. Romans 1:4 states that Jesus was "declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead."
- The resurrection fulfills Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah. For example, Psalm 16:10 foretells, "You will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, nor will you let your faithful one see decay."
The resurrection proved Jesus had conquered sin and assured our justification
- The resurrection signifies that Jesus' sacrifice was sufficient and accepted by God, breaking the power of sin. Romans 4:25 says, "He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification."
- Jesus' resurrection is a divine endorsement of his atoning work on the cross. It assures believers that they are justified before God. Romans 4:25 links the resurrection with our justification.
The ressurection gives us hope for Christian living
- The resurrection empowers believers to live a new life. Romans 6:4 states, "We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life."
Hope is based on resurrection (16-19).
- The resurrection assures believers of their own future resurrection and eternal life. Jesus’ resurrection is the "firstfruits" of those who have fallen asleep (1 Corinthians 15:20).
We need to realize that so much is wrapped up on the resurrection.
Image: The Chinese phrase "I have no future."
When we were in China we enjoyed playing a lot of games with Chinese college students but one phrase stuck out to us "I have no future"
The phrase "I have no future" (没有未来, méiyǒu wèilái) in Chinese culture, when used in the context of making a mistake, can be understood as a form of self-deprecation or expressing disappointment in oneself. This expression may reflect a momentary feeling of hopelessness or frustration, but it's typically not meant to be taken literally.
Nevertheless the phrase is significant because it reminds us that there is a future and that future matters.
We do have a future, but not just a short future of a few decades.
We have an eternal future.
MTR: Evaluate your life, are you living as if there is a future resurrection?
How?
How do you invest your time, resources, money?
But the resurrection is real and marks the beginning of the culmination of God's plan (20-28).
Every good negative statement has a "but" and 1 Corinthians 15 is no different. In verse 20 Paul begins with "but Christ." This radical change from negative to positive is possible because Christ is radical and
Resurrection begins with Jesus (20).
The reality is that Jesus did rise from the dead. Jesus did not stay dead! In verses 12-19 Paul explored the logical consequences of a denial of the resurrection but here he moves to consider the reality of the resurrection.
From a theological perspective, resurrection begins with Jesus.
Paul presents the theological reality that Jesus is the first-fruits.
The word first-fruits bears an important theological principle in the Old Testament.
In Exodus 23:16,19. Israelites were expected to bring their first fruits to God.
This act of faith was a work whereby an Israelite demonstrated that they trusted God enough to declare that the first-fruits were a guarantee of future blessing.
Imagine the following scenario. Last Fall you had a plentiful harvest and store enough food to make it through winter. Spring came and you planted but as the rains fall and the seeds begin to grow you notice that your food stores are running dry. You have enough to make it but the food is getting old and the meals keep getting leaner. Then one morning you go out and discover fruit on the plants. It has been a long winter but the end has come and there is fresh food available. Yet, out of faith, instead of enjoying the fruit, you opt to take the fruit to the temple and offer it to God as a reminder that there is much more to come.
This is what we have int he resurrection of Christ. Jesus rose from the dead but that is only the beginning! Each of us here today is going to rise and if we have accepted Jesus as Savior that resurrection will be into eternal life, abundant life.
In verses 21-22 Paul provides the theological explanation for all of this.
Death started through Adam but ends through Christ (21-22).
Adam was the father of all mankind and as such his failure has brought death upon all his decedents.
We don't need to debate between federal headship and seminalism to understand that it is Adam's fault.
Theologians debate between federal headship and seminalism to explain exactly how Adam's sin, sin nature, and the consequences, are passed down to each individual. We are not going to get into all the details today. Maybe when we study Romans. The point of the passage today is not the how but the reality. Because Adam sinned we each here deserve to die.
However, there is a parallel. One man's victory brings victory to all. Because of Jesus we all have the opportunity, the offer, to live.
The death that comes from sin is far more than mere physical death
Let me point out something particularly interesting in this passage. We often emphasize the notion of physical death as a consequence of sin and it certainly is. the Bible is very clear, we all face physical death because of our sin. However, the death that comes from sin is far more than mere physical death.
The text tells us that in Adam all die, the verb is a present tense verb. Adam's fall was in the past but the consequences continue today.
Moreover, In Christ all will be made alive, a future passive.
We are all here today breathing but I want to propose something to you, we have not yet experienced real life.
If you have accepted Jesus as your Savior, if you are depending solely on the death and resurrection of Jesus, then there will come a day in the future when you will truly experience life!
How is this possible? Look at 2 Corinthians 5:21 "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."
The end result is well described in 2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!"
The reality is that
The resurrection enables participation in God's culminating plan (23-28).
There is a lot going on in verses 23 through 28 so let me try to break down the text. First of all a summary. God has a plan for each of us but also a plan for eternity. The resurrection of Christ is our ticket to be part of that grand culminating plan!
Now some details.
The text states "but each in turn: Christ' the first fruits then when he comes those who belong to Him."
The Greek word τάγματι (in turn) is a hapax legomenon meaning it is only used here but in other places it is used of military rank.
The idea here is not necessarily temporal order, although that is the case, but rather that Christ outranks us and is our representative.
The generative those who belong to him is a powerful reminder that we get to participate because our representative has won the victory.
The temporal "when he comes" is a reminder that our participation in God's plan is because of Christ.
The culmination of history will occur when God the Father reigns supreme.
God the Father and God the Son are ontologically equal. However, the Son willingly submits to the Father and even puts Himself in subjection to the Father.
Image: Kids missing out.
One of the hardest things for most kids is to feel like they are going to miss out on the culmination of an event. Over the Fourth of July my niece was visiting and we had the college students over. We were all outside playing frisbee but bedtime was coming. My niece did not want to go to bed and miss out not he fun the college kids were having. Thankfully, Lily was willing to take her to bed and the opportunity for some special time with Lily made it a lot easier. No one wants to miss out so, don't miss out!
MTR: Take some time to remind yourself that this is all real.
We have taken a lot of time to talk about the reality of resurrection and God's ultimate plan. But let's not get so lost in the future that we forget the here and now.
Therefore, life here and now should be lived in light of the resurrection (29-34).
As we dig into the here and now make sure not to lose sight of Paul's ultimate argument. The resurrection is real. Verse 29 is infamously hard to interpret but let me lay out the argument that I think Paul is making.
Baptism reveals that we accept the reality of resurrection (29).
I read in one commentary that up to 200 explanations have been given for verse 29.[1]
The traditional interpretation is that some in Corinth were engaged in a practice whereby they were being baptized vicariously for those who had passed away.
In the big picture of theology this act makes no sense but instead of changing subjects and attacking a bad teaching here Paul decides simply to say. Look, you all are doing practices that demand a resurrection. You innately know there must be a resurrection.
Even in your misunderstandings you are revealing that you believe in resurrection.
I however, want to offer a slightly different explanation.
Paul has been talking about death already but Paul's talk about death was in the context of death because of sin, separation from God. Baptism is the visible symbol of the inward change and in particularly baptism visibly represents death to the old and resurrection to the new. I think Paul may be saying, if there is no resurrection then what is the point of the symbolism of baptism.
Because of the resurrection we can live boldly for Christ (30-32).
Paul makes it personal and boldly declares "Everything I do, I do because of the reality of the resurrection."
Paul even gives a curious example of fighting beasts in Ephesus.
Why put myself in mortal danger for Christ if there is no hope of resurrection? In verse 32 Paul makes a curious claim that he even fought wild beasts in Ephesus. This claim is the subject of much debate. Anyone thrown into the arena lost their rights as a Roman citizen but this does not seem to have happened to Paul.[2] Nevertheless, it is possible that in the midst of a riot Paul found himself in the arena facing a lion or something like that. Otherwise it could be that Paul is using a metaphor to describe those who opposed him.
In any case, Paul's point is that without the resurrection, "what's the point?"
In fact, without the resurrection, the Epicurean's have a good point, pleasure is the highest good and the primary goal of life.
The quote from Isaiah 22:13 is fitting "'Let us eat and drink,' you say, 'for tomorrow we die!'"
Thankfully, the resurrection is real and so we can live boldly not for pleasure for Christ.
Resurrection life is life lived with the earnest hope, expectation, of an eternal future (33-34).
Paul's concern in verse 33 and 34 is that the Corinthians were too closely associating with those who denied the resurrection and this association was corrupting.
The solution, separate from those who deny the resurrection. Stop living like there is no future because there is a future!
Image: Lessons learned from the reset and save button on Zelda
I love playing Zelda, especially because I can save my work. I can take risks with my character knowing that the consequences are minor. We should never be dumb, but living in life of the resurrection means we can take some risk for our Savior.
