1 Corinthians 15

Easter is typically the day when preachers will take out their easiest sermons. They’ll pick one verse or two, and talk about those verses for twenty minutes and leave everyone feeling good.

I’m not going to do that this morning. If you’re here for the first time, and you’re not a Christian, I’m very happy you’re here…but I’m not going to let you off easy. We’re going to work our way through chapter 15 of Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians—the whole thing. All fifty-eight verses.

And we’re doing it because in this one chapter, we have an entire overview of what the Bible says about the resurrection of Jesus and what it means for us as Christians.

But I promise I’m not doing it to torture you. My prayer is that for those of us who are Christians, we will leave this chapter simply refreshed and energized and encouraged by spending some time thinking of what Christ did; and for those here who aren’t Christians, my prayer is that what you might hear, as hard as it is to believe, might make you want this.

Let’s turn to 1 Corinthians chapter 15.

Before we start reading, a bit of context, and a bit of warning.

First, the warning. It would be tempting for us to take this passage—which does indeed say a good deal about us—and make it about us. This passage isn’t ultimately about us, but about God, as we’ll see.

Secondly, the context. Paul is writing to this church in Corinth which has gone seriously off the rails—in their Christian lives, in their struggle to obey God, in the things that they believed… This was a church on life support. So Paul is writing to help correct certain errors; to call the church out on many of their incoherent behaviors; and hopefully, to set them back on the path the gospel would have them on.

This chapter addresses one particular error that some Corinthian Christians had fallen into. Some of them believed that although Christ was raised from the dead, Christians would not be. They believed that resurrection exists, but only for Jesus. Now, they of course knew that Jesus had raised some people from the dead, like Lazarus, during his ministry. But Lazarus, at some point, died again—he didn’t live forever. And their understanding was that once we’re dead, we’re dead. Our spirits may live on, but they would live on in a non-physical form.

What’s interesting is that many Christians still believe this today. Our concept of what will happen to us after we die, and after Christ returns, is very fuzzy. A huge number of Christians (as much as one-fourth of all Christians, according to polls) don’t believe we’ll have bodies in heaven. We imagine ourselves almost in a cartoon, floating on clouds and playing harps for all eternity, or in a forever-long church service. My mother-in-law, a confirmed atheist, said she found the idea of heaven awful, because it would be so boring.

I have to say, if that’s her picture of heaven, I agree with her. But that’s not what the Bible tells us about heaven at all.

So we’re going to look at what the Bible says about this. We won’t be able to see everything—this is an incredibly dense subject. Rather, we’ll focus on those aspects of heaven on which nearly all Christians, throughout the history of the church, have accepted as true. And it may be surprising for many of us.

We see a lot of things in this text, but we can summarize them in two amazing truths Paul lays out for us.

I.

The first one begins, as expected, in verse 1.

1 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, 2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.

3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep.

(When Paul says “fallen asleep” in this chapter, he means “died”—he’ll use it again.)

7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. 9 For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. 11 Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

There are subjects we can disagree on and still be Christians. This is not one of them. This issue is of first importance. We are all rebels against the reign of a good God—we have all sinned against him—and the only just consequence for our sin is condemnation. So God came down to us. Jesus Christ lived the perfect life we should have lived, he suffered the death we deserve for our sin, as the Scriptures said he would; he was buried, a totally dead man; and he was raised on the third day. He took our death, and he gave us his life, so that God could declare us righteous, and we could belong to him.

Jesus died and was raised, he appeared to the disciples, and that he was changed after his resurrection, but he was still visibly recognizable as the same person: he still bore the marks of the nails on his hands and feet; he still had the mark of the spear in his side. And he was physical: they could touch him; they could see him; he could eat food.

This is of primary importance: he really did live, he really did die, he really was raised, and his resurrection proved that his sacrifice for us was sufficient and accepted by God—proved that he really had defeated sin.

Really, that’s all we need. If the good news of the gospel stopped there, it would already be enough to deserve the rest of our lives. But the amazing thing is, God doesn’t stop there, and neither does Paul: he goes further. Essentially everything that comes after is the icing on the cake—the good news added to the good news. God didn’t have to go this far; he went this far just because he’s good.

And that’s what Paul’s going to do for the rest of the chapter: he’s going to give us the icing on the cake, by showing what the long-term effects of the resurrection will be for us.

Let’s keep going, v. 12:

12 Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?

13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. 15 We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised.

17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. [Permanently. Forever.] 19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.

Do you see? He’s correcting another very common misconception. Christians often put all the emphasis on Jesus’s death, as if his death were the only thing that mattered. Believers see Jesus’s death as the ultimate thing that Jesus did for us. We are sinners—we are all rebels who have rejected God—and we are separated from God because of our rebellion. And on the cross, Jesus took our sin on himself and was punished for that sin in our place. That is wonderful news.

But here’s the thing: without the resurrection, his death means nothing. Without the resurrection, Jesus was just another man, like all the others. He’s now a pile of dust in a Jerusalem tomb.

Which means that everything we believe is meaningless: we are still under God’s wrath for our sins, and we still have no hope.

Thank God that is not what happened! V. 20 :

20 But in fact Christ HAS been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.

We remember the story—Adam, the first man, rebelled against God and sinned. And when he sinned, his sin infected all of humanity. That’s how “by a man came death.”

So when God set in motion his plan to defeat sin and death, that defeat also came through “a man,” Jesus. Through man came death, and through a man comes eternal life. And Jesus is the first man to actually go through that process of dying and being raised to eternal life—that’s why Paul calls him “the firstfruits”.

And what are the firstfruits, in a vineyard or a garden? They are indicators: they show us what kind of fruit will come after.

23 But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.

In other words, what happened to Christ will happen to those who belong to Christ. V. 24:

24 Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death. 27 For “God has put all things in subjection under his feet.” But when it says, “all things are put in subjection,” it is plain that he is excepted who put all things in subjection under him. 28 When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God may be all in all.

29 Otherwise, what do people mean by being baptized on behalf of the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized on their behalf? 30 Why are we in danger every hour? 31 I protest, brothers, by my pride in you, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die every day! 32 What do I gain if, humanly speaking, I fought with beasts at Ephesus? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” 33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” 34 Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning. For some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame.

So let’s sum up what he’s said so far. In this passage Paul is trying to do three things: firstly, he’s trying to explain why rejecting the idea that we will be physically raised from the dead is so dangerous—why it’s dangerous to think we’ll just be disembodied spirits for all eternity.

And he’s working backwards to get there. Usually we begin with Christ and work our way down to us. In his logic, he starts with us and works his way up to Christ. He’s saying, if we won’t be raised—physically, bodily raised from the dead—then Christ wasn’t raised either, which means our faith is meaningless… And if our faith is meaningless, then you’d be much better off doing something else.

Christ’s followers at this time were not just embarrassed by their faith, like we are today. They were killed for it. It was a dangerous thing to be a Christian (as it still is in many parts of the world today). But if we won’t be raised, then Christ wasn’t raised…so what’s the point?

And then he works back to where he began, saying, “But Christ was raised! So our faith is not in vain! We’re not suffering for nothing! If Christ was raised, then he will be ultimately victorious! He prove that he has defeated sin and death! Because he was raised, we will be raised too!”

And that’s his first point:

Christ’s resurrection assures our resurrection.

That is the promise: at Christ’s return, we will be raised, and our bodies—these bodies we have today—will be renewed, made perfect, all of the effects of sin removed. We’ll no longer get sick, we’ll no longer have pain, we’ll no longer die. And we’ll live forever in these perfect bodies in a perfect, physical world.

Why is this good news? For all kinds of reasons! This world has a lot wrong with it, but there’s still a lot to love about it. I love mountains. I love the sun. I love good food. It’s wonderful news to know that we’re not going to have to give any of that up, but we’ll get to keep it, and an even better version of it: a world set free from sickness and decay and natural disasters.

And for anyone here today who is sick, if you have a handicap of any kind, this good news is particularly poignant, because your body will be healed, in the most complete sense of that word. It will be perfectly and eternally healed, made absolutely perfect. When you look at yourself in the mirror, it will be you—but there will never again be a single pained expression on your face.

Christ’s resurrection assures our resurrection. That’s the first amazing truth.

II.

The second begins at v. 35:

35 But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body do they come?”

THAT’S the question people would ask today.

To answer this question, Paul uses the image of seeds which grow into plants. Seeds are dry; there is no life in them; if they sit on a shelf somewhere, nothing will happen. But if you plant those seeds in the ground, and water them and give them sunlight…suddenly you have something different. V. 36:

36 You foolish person! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies.  37 And what you sow is not the body that is to be, but a bare kernel, perhaps of wheat or of some other grain. 38 But God gives it a body as he has chosen, and to each kind of seed its own body. 39 For not all flesh is the same, but there is one kind for humans, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish. 40 There are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is of one kind, and the glory of the earthly is of another. 41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.

42 So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. 43 It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. 44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 45 Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 46 But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. 47 The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. 48 As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. 49 Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.

So he gives us two points of reference here: the “man of dust” (Adam), and the “man of heaven” (Jesus).

We know what Adam gave us: because of his rebellion against God, Adam made us ALL rebellious; because of his sin he made us ALL sinners. And sin gave us these bodies: these bodies which get sick and hurt and ache and age and die. Every time you have a cold, every time you have insomnia and are tired, every time you feel yourself aging...remember where it came from. It came from Adam. It came from sin.

So that’s what we have from the “man of dust”; what do we have from the “man of heaven”?

Again, what happened for him will happen for us.

Just like Jesus, our bodies will be changed—they will be made perfect and eternal—but they will still be us. I’ll be able to recognize you if I see you in heaven. Might take me a second, but I’ll see that it’s you.

But how can this be? How can God take the ashes of someone who was cremated thousands of years before (perhaps even ashes which were scattered in the sea!) and put them back together into an even better body than before, and put life back into the body? It’s not for nothing that Adam is called the “man of dust”.

This should be impossible; but with God nothing is impossible (v. 50):

50 I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality.

In other words, this should not be possible. Perishable beings should not be able to become imperishable. The only way for this to work would be for the imperishable—the divine; God himself—to come into our perishable humanity and give us what we are lacking. The only way for this to work is for God to become like us, and then use his divine power to reverse our perishable humanity and make us imperishable, clothing us in perfect, eternal humanity like a garment.

V. 54:

54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

“Death is swallowed up in victory.”

55  “O death, where is your victory?

O death, where is your sting?” 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.

It’s almost ironic that these verses are often read aloud at funerals. “Death, where is your victory? Death, where is your sting?”

It’s right there! In that casket! This person died: their body was made imperfect of sin, and this person was a sinner because he was born into a world where he was submitted to a law of perfect righteousness that he could not obey. There’s the sting of death. It makes no sense to say this at the funeral of someone who doesn’t know Christ.

But for someone who belongs to Christ, it makes perfect sense. We can say itbecause we know the person lying there dead in that box won’t stay that way. When Christ returns, he will raise us; and he will raise us in perfect, renewed, imperishable bodies.

57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Christ, the Son of God, God himself, became a man; he lived a perfect life; he died for our sins; he was raised in a perfect, glorified body; and

he gives his victory over sin and death to us.

His victory is our victory. His resurrection will be our resurrection. He will raise us, just as he was raised.

III.

Now the question here is, What difference does all of this make? Is Paul just telling this stuff to the Corinthians to make them happy? So that they’ll be comforted knowing that there is more after death than just an ethereal, spiritual existence?

Partially, probably. It’s quite possible that there were people in the Corinthian church, like there may be here today, who had doubts about the Christian faith, and Paul’s letter would have perhaps encouraged them to think more deeply about their faith, and even place their faith in Christ. And it’s quite possible God is doing that in some of you today.

This is wonderful news for people who are afraid—afraid of the unknown, of the future, of death. This means that everything truly will be okay. Think about that: we are the only people who can say that. We are the only people in the world who can truthfully, and with assurance, say, “I know it hurts, and it will probably keep hurting until he comes back, in one way or another. But I promise you, in all truth—everything’s going to be okay.”

No one else can say that, and what wonderful news it is.

But that’s not the only thing, or even the main thing. Paul is speaking mainly to Christians here, and he’s telling them all of this in order to drive them to the proper response. And we know this because he begins the last sentence of this chapter (v. 58) with the word “Therefore.”

58 Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

In other words, given all that we have just seen, knowing that Christ’s resurrection assures our resurrection, knowing that Christ’s victory over death and sin is our victory over death and sin,

do not fear death, and serve your Lord.

The Christian life is a hard life. It’s harder in some places than in others. Some Christians today are being killed for their faith. Most Parisian Christians won’t have to die for their faith, but they’ll probably face ridicule; they’ll face losing friends or family; they may even face losing job opportunities.

Whatever difficulties your Christian life brings you, however, keep going. Be steadfast. Be immovable. Continue to obey your Lord. Kill your sin. Share the gospel. Do the work of the Lord, whatever work he gives you to do this day.

And do it because you know that your labor is not in vain.

Whatever pain you’re enduring today because of your faith is nothing compared to what you’ll gain from your faith when Christ returns.

We are suffering today. But we persevere. We remain steadfast. We remain immovable. That suffering in obedience is just our muscles burning; it is just a reminder that we are going somewhere. That one day we will be with him. That one day we will be like him.

Jesus lived for us, he died for us, and he was raised for us. And he did all of that so that we might be raised with him—that we might see him, physically, and hear his voice, and touch him and know him. And glorify him, forever.

If you know him, then don’t despair. Look at what is ahead of you and keep going: your labor is not in vain. 

If you don’t know him, then don’t imagine for a second that everything I said this morning is just for us. It is for anyone who turns to Christ in faith. Come to him, repent of your sins and trust in him, and believe that our end will be yours.

Now, I gave a warning at the beginning, and I’d like to come back to it as we close. It would be tempting for us to see everything Paul is saying here and to make it all about us. To think of ourselves as future superheroes because we’ll be given resurrected, glorified bodies like Christ. Or even worse: to somehow imagine that because he’s promised us these things, we somehow deserve them.

But this passage is not about us. This passage—from beginning to end, including all the things he says about what will happen to us—is about God. About what he has done. About who he is.

God didn’t need to create us. And he didn’t need to save us. He has always been perfectly complete in himself; he has always been perfectly and infinitely happen in the fellowship of the Trinity, and he didn’t need us to fill some kind of hole in his own heart.

And he didn’t send Jesus because we’re just that fantastic. Marshall Segal writes, “God did not write Holy Week into history because he was desperate to have you (cf. Acts 17:25), but because loving you, despite how little you deserved his love, would display just how loving he is—how glorious he is.”

So when you think about heaven, when you think about these wonderful promises, don’t think about them for your own sake. Let the comfort of these promises drive your eyes up to God, and be thankful for the blessing of simply knowing him.