Yes, Jesus truly rose from the dead. But what about us?
In chapters 12 through 14, we saw that Paul corrects the Corinthians’ misunderstanding regarding spiritual gifts and their purpose in the church. In chapter 15, Paul corrects another of their misunderstandings—that concerning the resurrection. The Corinthians seemed to believe in Jesus’ resurrection. But some did not believe in their own resurrection. And for those who did believe, it raised many questions. With what kind of body will we be resurrected? Will we be angels or spirits? The question still arises today. Currently, science has no evidence that a person can return to life after the brain has ceased functioning permanently. So how can we be sure that we can be resurrected?
In this first part of chapter 15, which Vincent read to us, Paul tells us that our resurrection is assured because Christ has truly been raised from the dead. First, we will see that the Gospel is good news because Jesus has risen. Then we will see that Jesus’ resurrection is certain. And finally, we will see that this resurrection is essential to our faith.
The Good News of the Resurrection (verse 1-4)
The Good News of the Resurrection. Paul begins chapter 15 by reminding the Corinthians how the Gospel saves them and by reminding them what that Gospel is.
Verse 1: “The Gospel I have proclaimed to you.” Generally speaking, that’s how it begins: the Gospel is preached, it is proclaimed, and this allows as many people as possible to hear it. The word “Gospel,” from the Greek evangelion, means “good news.” Back then, it was a common term used to refer to all kinds of good news—not just religious news. If we still used it today, and someone announced the birth of a child, we might say, “Wow, what a gospel—what good news!” But as Christians, there is one piece of good news that surpasses all others. It is that we can be saved from God’s punishment—which we deserved—because Christ bore it in our place. What wonderful news! That is why Christians associate the word “Gospel” with the work of Christ.
So the Gospel is proclaimed, and then—still in verse 1—“which you have received.” Once proclaimed, this message must be received, believed, and accepted. Is that the case for you this morning? Do you believe that Jesus bore the punishment you deserved? Do you believe this is the best news possible? The Corinthians believed it. Paul had come to proclaim the Gospel to them, and they believed it.
And finally, after receiving it, after believing in the Gospel—still in verse 1: “in which you stand firm.” After believing, we must continue to believe. And that isn’t always easy. When you root for a sports team, it’s easy to believe in them when they’re winning. Victories come one after another, joy is written all over people’s faces, and we want to tell our friends just how much our team is the best. But it’s much harder to keep believing when the team keeps losing. No one wants to talk about their losing team; we just want to switch teams. It’s sometimes a bit like that in the Christian life. We believe that Jesus bore the punishment we deserve. But life’s difficulties and trials make us feel like we’re on the losing team, and the success of our friends or coworkers makes us want to join their team. But Paul tells us that the Corinthians stood firm.
Why did they stand firm? Verse 2: “It is also through him that you are saved.” This Gospel saves us! And what does it save us from? From the condemnation that God reserves for those who will be found guilty at the judgment. And that condemnation is eternal ruin—separation from God. 2 Thessalonians 1:6–9. “For it is righteous in God’s sight to repay with affliction those who afflict you, and to grant you who are afflicted rest along with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with the angels of his power, in flaming fire, to punish those who do not know God and those who do not obey the Gospel of our Lord Jesus [Christ]. Their punishment will be eternal destruction, far from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his power” We must hear the Gospel so that we may believe in it, and we must remain faithfully committed to it so that this Gospel may save us.
But Paul adds a small condition in verse 2: “It is also through him that you are saved, if you hold fast to the message just as I preached it to you; otherwise, your faith would have been in vain.” There are not multiple Gospels. Nor are there multiple versions of the Gospel. There are, in fact, four books in the Bible called the Gospels. But it is simply the same Gospel recounted by four different people, allowing us to appreciate all its nuances. So when we say “the Gospel of Mark,” we mean the Gospel of Jesus Christ as told by Mark. There is one and only one Gospel that saves. Any thoughts added to or taken away from this Gospel—which would distort it—render our faith useless. And Paul clarifies for us in verse 3, “the message that I, too, received.” Paul did not invent anything; he, too, received it. He is not proclaiming the Gospel of Paul, but the one and only Gospel—that of Christ. So let us be wary of false gospels. Those that claim our illnesses are the result of our sins? That God wants us to be rich and prosperous on this earth? Or that God will raise from the dead only those who have lived righteous lives? Let us not distort the Gospel, for as Paul says, if we change it, then our faith is useless. There is one and only one Gospel that saves, and Paul describes it to us in verses 3 and 4.
“Christ died for our sins, in accordance with the Scriptures. He was buried, and he rose again on the third day, in accordance with the Scriptures.” It is important to realize that the Gospel is based on real, historical events that actually took place. The Gospel is not a made-up story. It is not a tale that would be nice to tell children at Christmas. It is not a fable meant to comfort the elderly before they die. It is what actually happened. Nor is it a matter of opinion. We may have opinions about the future, but the past is etched in history. If someone says they don’t believe in Julius Caesar, that doesn’t change the fact that he really existed. So here are the historical facts that actually took place.
“Christ died for our sins, in accordance with the Scriptures.” The central message of the Gospel is Christ’s death—the punishment He endured in our place. No one disputes this event. Among those who wanted Jesus dead—the crowd present, the leaders, and the disciples—the number of witnesses at the time could be estimated in the hundreds, if not thousands. And even today, the vast majority of historians and scholars agree that Jesus of Nazareth was indeed executed by crucifixion under the authority of Pontius Pilate.
And the death of Jesus Christ on the cross is not a backup plan. God didn’t say to Himself, “Oh my, they’re messing things up. I thought that with the instructions I gave them after they left Egypt, it would work out. There were only 10 steps to follow, after all. I’ll have to come up with something else.” No. Christ’s sacrifice on the cross is God’s perfect plan to save us. A plan devised from all eternity and mentioned in Scripture even before His coming, Isaiah 53:4–5: “Yet it was our sufferings he bore, it was our sorrows he carried. And we considered him punished, stricken by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brings us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.”
So Jesus was put to death on a cross, and what happened next? At the beginning of verse 4: “He was buried.” We never think of Jesus’ burial as an essential part of the Gospel. We often say that Jesus died and rose again. Rarely do we say that Jesus died, was buried, and rose again. But his burial is important because it proves that Jesus was indeed dead. As far as I know, we don’t bury the living—only the dead. And what about those who say that Jesus was buried while he was merely asleep? The Roman soldiers’ job was to verify that the condemned men were truly dead before taking them down from the cross. John 19:32–34 “So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first man and then of the second who had been crucified with Jesus. When they came to him, they saw that he was already dead. They did not break his legs, but one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and immediately blood and water flowed out.” A spear thrust into his side—hardly likely that he would remain asleep. Just as his death was foretold, so too was his burial foretold in Scripture, still in Isaiah 53, beginning of verse 9: “They made his grave among the wicked, his tomb with the rich.”
Jesus died—truly died. He was laid in the tomb; He was truly buried. And finally, continuing from verse 4: “He was raised on the third day, in accordance with the Scriptures.” We have finally reached the point Paul is trying to make. Jesus has risen; He has truly risen. Christ’s work is only complete at the resurrection. Although Jesus bore the full wrath of God on the cross—as if He were a sinner, as if He were guilty of all our sins—Jesus Christ Himself did not become a sinner. Jesus bore our punishment for sin on the cross while remaining a holy and perfect Savior. And at the resurrection, Jesus demonstrated that He is thus victorious over sin and death.
Paul reminds them of the Gospel to show them the importance of the resurrection. He reminds them that this Gospel is fully fulfilled in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The Resurrection of Jesus (verse 5-11)
This brings us to our second section: the resurrection of Jesus. In verses 5 through 11, Paul reinforces the truth and certainty of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. In these verses, we find a list of witnesses who saw Jesus with their own eyes after his death. There are three groups of witnesses. These groups differ based on the relationships they had with Jesus before his death. There are witnesses who lived with Jesus and recognized that he is the Son of God. There are also witnesses who associated with Jesus but did not recognize his divinity. And finally, there is a witness who did not even know Jesus and who was opposed to him and his ministry.
Let’s start with the first group—those who lived with Jesus and recognized that Jesus is the Son of God. In verse 5, it says, “After that, he appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve.” Cephas is simply the Aramaic name for Peter. So Jesus was seen by his disciples. They saw him live, they saw him die, and they saw the risen Jesus. Not a spirit, not a ghost, but Jesus in a real body of flesh, able to eat and drink with them.
Continuing from verse 5: “After that, he appeared to more than 500 brothers and sisters at once, most of whom are still alive, though some have died.” For that time, testimony from 500 people would have been more than enough. But here, 500 people at once—500 people all at the same time—saw Jesus after his death. Even though this event isn’t described in detail in the Bible, there are historical events that are now considered true by most of our contemporaries—and those events have far fewer witnesses than this. Paul tells them that most of these witnesses are still alive. He’s telling them, “Don’t just take my word for it. Go see these people; ask them if Jesus really rose from the dead.”
In a more literal translation of verse 5, the ending reads: “Most of whom are still alive today, but some have also fallen asleep.” “Fallen asleep” is, in this context, a euphemism for death. But it implies the resurrection. When we fall asleep, we expect to wake up the next day. Falling asleep doesn’t scare us; we do it every day. I know that for some people, sleeping is even their favorite part of the day. The resurrection promised to us should help us see death as a long sleep from which Jesus will come to wake us. It shouldn’t scare us because, for Christians, it is only temporary.
After mentioning people who had followed Jesus and believed in his ministry, Paul moves on to another group of people—those who had been in Jesus’s presence but did not recognize his divinity. Verse 7: “Then he appeared to James, and then to all the apostles.” James was one of Jesus’s four brothers. Growing up alongside Jesus, James and his brothers had not recognized him as the Son of God. John 7:5, speaking of Jesus: “In fact, even his brothers did not believe in him.” But something happened at the resurrection; James saw Jesus with his own eyes, his doubts vanished, and James believed. In Acts 1, after Jesus’ ascension, among those who gathered to pray were James and his brothers; Acts 1:14: “They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women, Mary the mother of Jesus, and Jesus’ brothers.” Unlike the other disciples, James wasn’t specifically expecting his brother to be resurrected. He would certainly have been overjoyed to see his beloved brother alive again. But in this resurrection, which he witnessed with his own eyes, he recognized the divinity of Jesus.
And finally, the last person to witness Jesus’ resurrection—the one who had nothing to gain from it—Paul himself, verses 8 and 9: “After all of them, he appeared to me also, as to one born out of due time. For I am the least of the apostles, and I am not even worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. ” Sometimes we become so fixated on something that we see it everywhere. Since becoming a father, it’s true that I notice a lot more strollers. Not because there are more of them, but because I’m paying more attention to them. Perhaps it was the same for the disciples after Jesus’ death. They were surely trying to find signs of hope everywhere. And wow, what a relief when Jesus finally appeared to them. Some might say, then, that it suited them just fine that Jesus was resurrected to prove that he truly was the Son of God. But what about Paul? In the past, Paul had persecuted Christians. If Jesus really was the Son of God, Paul’s credibility would be completely undermined. He was perhaps the person least likely to expect to see Jesus, because he had everything to lose—he would have to admit that the Christians he had been persecuting were right. And Jesus appeared to him.
To conclude this section, let’s look at verse 11: “So then, whether it is I or they, this is the message we preach, and this is also what you have believed.” Different people, based on their relationships with Jesus, are in complete agreement on the message of the Gospel, which was fully fulfilled at Jesus’ resurrection. This is where Paul addresses their misunderstanding of their own resurrection.
The Resurrection is essential (verse 12-19)
Part 3: The resurrection is essential. Let’s read verse 12: “Now if we preach that Christ has been raised, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?” The Corinthians doubted their own resurrection. Perhaps, due to the influence of Greek philosophy, they believed in the resurrection of the soul but not that of the body? Or perhaps they thought that Christ was raised because He is God, but that we, as mortals, cannot be raised? What Paul wants to show them is that Christ’s resurrection is essential to our faith. Paul tells them in verses 13 and 14, “If there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain, and your faith is in vain.”
Paul said it in the first 11 verses of this chapter: the Gospel we have heard, in which we believe and hold fast—this Gospel that saves us—is that of a risen Jesus. And this Gospel is true. If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then everything that has been said is nothing but a lie. A lie to people and an offense against God, because we are proclaiming something that God did not do. Verse 15: “We are even found to be false witnesses against God, since we have testified against God that He raised Christ from the dead. But He did not do so if the dead do not rise.” Paul is telling them, “If you do not believe in the resurrection, then I am a liar. So why do you continue to listen to me?” Today, the death and crucifixion of Jesus are widely acknowledged by many historians. Furthermore, we have the privilege of having the Bible—the complete and perfect Word of God. And when we meditate on it, we see the coherence of God’s perfect plan, from creation to the return of Christ. As Paul told the Corinthians, let’s not take everything we hear for granted. But let’s go to the source, open the Bible, and see just how true the Gospel is. And if Christ has risen, then the resurrection is possible.
Paul goes on to say that, beyond being a lie, if Jesus did not rise from the dead, the entire message of the Gospel collapses. Verses 17 and 18 read: “But if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins, and therefore those who have died in Christ are also lost.” Here’s a slightly more detailed explanation of what Paul is telling them. Hold on tight. If you don’t believe in the resurrection, then Christ has not risen. If Christ has not risen, then death still holds full power, since He has not conquered it. If He could not conquer death, then He is not God. If he is not God, he cannot offer a complete and perfect sacrifice for our sins. If Jesus cannot offer this complete sacrifice for our sins, then our sins are not atoned for before God. And if our sins are not atoned for, then we are still considered guilty in God’s eyes. And so we still deserve his righteous judgment and condemnation. The only way for our sins to be forgiven and for us to be declared righteous before God is for Christ to take the punishment we deserve and to rise from the dead. And if Christ has risen, then the resurrection is possible.
And finally, in verse 19: “If we have put our hope in Christ only for this life, we are to be pitied more than anyone.” What is the point of abstaining from what the world offers and of suffering, if this false message leads us to the same end as everyone else? Without Christ’s resurrection, we are still under condemnation. What anguish for the living, and what sorrow for the dead!
I find that Paul’s argument by way of negation isn’t necessarily easy to follow. But in short, here’s what Paul means: The Gospel is true; Jesus truly rose from the dead. This resurrection brings about the forgiveness of our sins and declares us righteous before God. His resurrection signifies victory over sin and death, and if Jesus rose from the dead, then resurrection is possible.
As Christians, we are already united with Christ through the Holy Spirit. Through this union, our resurrection has in fact already begun and will be fully realized at Christ’s return. When He returns, the hour of judgment will come, and since death will have lost its power, it will not be able to hold back those who are called holy before God—that is, all those who have heard the Gospel, accepted it, and remain faithfully committed to it.
In conclusion, in this passage, Paul simply tells us that without Christ’s resurrection, faith is useless. So I hope that this morning you are encouraged by the knowledge that Christ has truly risen and that our faith has meaning. May His victory over sin and death ensure our resurrection. But perhaps you’re thinking this morning, “Paul didn’t fully answer the Corinthians’ question.” Well, that’s to be expected, since we’ve only gone up to verse 19. So I’ll see you next Sunday for the rest of Paul’s explanation regarding the realities of our resurrection.
