1 Corinthians 15:12-24
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. 19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.
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. 23 But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at His coming those who belong to Christ. 24 Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power.
The bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ is one of the cornerstones of the Christian faith. As Paul said, “If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.”
To find the meaning of the Cross, we need to understand it not as a tragedy, but as the key to God’s triumph over Satan, sin, and death.
Matthew, Mark and Luke all record the tearing of the curtain in the temple at the moment Jesus died. This barrier was a thick, woven curtain that hung between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies in the temple. Over hundreds of years new layers were added as the older layers wore out. The curtain couldn’t be taken down for repairs, as this would have exposed the Holy of Holies, which was strictly out of bounds. It was over 10 metres high, and some historians have estimated the curtain was anything up to half a metre thick. No man could rip it apart. It was only God who could do that, but the reason was more spiritual than natural.
Only once a year the high priest would go behind this veil on the Day of Atonement, when he took with him sacrificial blood to sprinkle on the cover of the Ark of the Covenant as an atonement for Israel’s sins.
The veil cut off not only the people but even the priests from direct access to God. It was a symbol of the reality that there was no way for sinners to approach God in Old Testament times.
But with the death of Christ, a radical change took place. He took our sins upon Himself and opened the way to God through His sacrifice. Hebrews 4:16 says, “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” Sinners are now able to approach the Holiness of God, because we are clothed with the righteousness of Jesus.
The wonder of the torn veil symbolises the end of one age and the beginning of another. In this new age, all believers can enter the holiest of all places boldly and with confidence, knowing that God’s throne is a throne of grace for all.
Matthew reports that at the moment of Jesus’ death there was an earthquake and a number of graves were opened. Many of the saints rose from the dead and were seen in Jerusalem after Jesus’ resurrection.
The implications of this miracle are clear. Jesus’ death brought life to some who had been dead. What a symbol of victory over death, and of the resurrection life that Jesus offers to all who trust Him as Saviour.
All four Gospels record in great detail Jesus’ trial, crucifixion and death, yet they all end on a note of triumph. Jesus had been falsely accused and executed, but death cannot hold Jesus. The great miracle of Easter is that Jesus rose from the dead, and this miracle was associated with many others on that Easter morning. Each of these points to the absolute truth of the physical and bodily resurrection of Jesus.
What does the resurrection of Jesus actually mean, both historically, and spiritually?
Some theologians have argued that it doesn’t matter whether the resurrection of Jesus was literal and historical or not. They claim that a spiritual resurrection is all that is needed. What mattered is not whether or not Jesus’ body was raised and transformed. What mattered is that the disciples believed that Jesus was raised. What mattered is that they experienced Him in a different way than when He lived among them.
But the Bible makes it very clear that the resurrection of Jesus was a literal resurrection of the material body, and that the resurrection took place in space and time as a true historical event. Romans 1:4 says that Jesus “declared with power to be the Son of God by His resurrection from the dead.”
The resurrection is the capstone miracle, which confirms once and forever Jesus’ claim to be God the Son and Son of God.
Paul goes into great detail about the resurrection of Jesus in 1 Corinthians 15.
His death, burial, and resurrection are all historical events prophesied in the Old Testament. Paul stresses that the death of Jesus was a real death, and the resurrection of Jesus was a real, historical resurrection.
He was seen alive after His resurrection by many witnesses who knew Him, and who could not have been deceived by some kind of trickery. Paul not only mentions the remaining eleven disciples, but also some 500 others who saw Jesus after His resurrection.
Paul goes on to teach that the Christian faith promises resurrection to all who believe in Jesus. He says that if Jesus was not raised, this critical promise is an empty one. On the other hand, because Jesus did experience a bodily resurrection, our own future resurrection is assured, despite the fact that we will die a physical death, just as Jesus did.
The resurrection is a critical element in God’s eternal plan to destroy death itself. Adam’s sin introduced death. This first spiritual death as a result of the fall that we are all born into is the corruption of human nature which separates us from God and brings us under divine judgment. One of Satan’s greatest lies is that we are essentially good people. We’re not. We are sinners, born under a death sentence which we can do nothing about. But in dying physically, Jesus paid the penalty for our sins, on the condition that we put our faith in His saving grace. In His resurrection Jesus provided eternal life for those who believe in Him.
This is why Jesus said to Nicodemus that he had to be born a second time in order to defeat death once and for all.
That is what the death and resurrection of Jesus means to us – triumph over sin and death.
The literal, bodily resurrection of Jesus is a miraculous confirmation of our own destiny, and because of this, it is foundational to authentic Christian faith.
Jesus Christ is alive. He did go to the cross. He did hang there until He died. He did die for our sins. He did extend undeserved mercy and grace.
And now He gives us life.
Death was not the end for Jesus. Three days later, He walked out of that grave alive. He was seen and He was touched by hundreds of witnesses.
Jesus is alive, and because He lives, we can live. He proved that He can conquer death. He proved that He is in control of death. The words of Jesus in Revelation 1:18 is often quoted at Christian funerals: “I hold the keys of death and Hades.”
Jesus promises that everyone who believes in Him will have eternal life, and He has proven that He can deliver on that promise because He conquered death.
And this is the gift of grace He offers to you.
He offers you mercy, grace and life.
All you have to do is trust in Him.
Isaiah 53:5 says, “He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.”
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. 19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.
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. 23 But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at His coming those who belong to Christ. 24 Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power.
The bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ is one of the cornerstones of the Christian faith. As Paul said, “If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.”
To find the meaning of the Cross, we need to understand it not as a tragedy, but as the key to God’s triumph over Satan, sin, and death.
Matthew, Mark and Luke all record the tearing of the curtain in the temple at the moment Jesus died. This barrier was a thick, woven curtain that hung between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies in the temple. Over hundreds of years new layers were added as the older layers wore out. The curtain couldn’t be taken down for repairs, as this would have exposed the Holy of Holies, which was strictly out of bounds. It was over 10 metres high, and some historians have estimated the curtain was anything up to half a metre thick. No man could rip it apart. It was only God who could do that, but the reason was more spiritual than natural.
Only once a year the high priest would go behind this veil on the Day of Atonement, when he took with him sacrificial blood to sprinkle on the cover of the Ark of the Covenant as an atonement for Israel’s sins.
The veil cut off not only the people but even the priests from direct access to God. It was a symbol of the reality that there was no way for sinners to approach God in Old Testament times.
But with the death of Christ, a radical change took place. He took our sins upon Himself and opened the way to God through His sacrifice. Hebrews 4:16 says, “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” Sinners are now able to approach the Holiness of God, because we are clothed with the righteousness of Jesus.
The wonder of the torn veil symbolises the end of one age and the beginning of another. In this new age, all believers can enter the holiest of all places boldly and with confidence, knowing that God’s throne is a throne of grace for all.
Matthew reports that at the moment of Jesus’ death there was an earthquake and a number of graves were opened. Many of the saints rose from the dead and were seen in Jerusalem after Jesus’ resurrection.
The implications of this miracle are clear. Jesus’ death brought life to some who had been dead. What a symbol of victory over death, and of the resurrection life that Jesus offers to all who trust Him as Saviour.
All four Gospels record in great detail Jesus’ trial, crucifixion and death, yet they all end on a note of triumph. Jesus had been falsely accused and executed, but death cannot hold Jesus. The great miracle of Easter is that Jesus rose from the dead, and this miracle was associated with many others on that Easter morning. Each of these points to the absolute truth of the physical and bodily resurrection of Jesus.
What does the resurrection of Jesus actually mean, both historically, and spiritually?
Some theologians have argued that it doesn’t matter whether the resurrection of Jesus was literal and historical or not. They claim that a spiritual resurrection is all that is needed. What mattered is not whether or not Jesus’ body was raised and transformed. What mattered is that the disciples believed that Jesus was raised. What mattered is that they experienced Him in a different way than when He lived among them.
But the Bible makes it very clear that the resurrection of Jesus was a literal resurrection of the material body, and that the resurrection took place in space and time as a true historical event. Romans 1:4 says that Jesus “declared with power to be the Son of God by His resurrection from the dead.”
The resurrection is the capstone miracle, which confirms once and forever Jesus’ claim to be God the Son and Son of God.
Paul goes into great detail about the resurrection of Jesus in 1 Corinthians 15.
His death, burial, and resurrection are all historical events prophesied in the Old Testament. Paul stresses that the death of Jesus was a real death, and the resurrection of Jesus was a real, historical resurrection.
He was seen alive after His resurrection by many witnesses who knew Him, and who could not have been deceived by some kind of trickery. Paul not only mentions the remaining eleven disciples, but also some 500 others who saw Jesus after His resurrection.
Paul goes on to teach that the Christian faith promises resurrection to all who believe in Jesus. He says that if Jesus was not raised, this critical promise is an empty one. On the other hand, because Jesus did experience a bodily resurrection, our own future resurrection is assured, despite the fact that we will die a physical death, just as Jesus did.
The resurrection is a critical element in God’s eternal plan to destroy death itself. Adam’s sin introduced death. This first spiritual death as a result of the fall that we are all born into is the corruption of human nature which separates us from God and brings us under divine judgment. One of Satan’s greatest lies is that we are essentially good people. We’re not. We are sinners, born under a death sentence which we can do nothing about. But in dying physically, Jesus paid the penalty for our sins, on the condition that we put our faith in His saving grace. In His resurrection Jesus provided eternal life for those who believe in Him.
This is why Jesus said to Nicodemus that he had to be born a second time in order to defeat death once and for all.
That is what the death and resurrection of Jesus means to us – triumph over sin and death.
The literal, bodily resurrection of Jesus is a miraculous confirmation of our own destiny, and because of this, it is foundational to authentic Christian faith.
Jesus Christ is alive. He did go to the cross. He did hang there until He died. He did die for our sins. He did extend undeserved mercy and grace.
And now He gives us life.
Death was not the end for Jesus. Three days later, He walked out of that grave alive. He was seen and He was touched by hundreds of witnesses.
Jesus is alive, and because He lives, we can live. He proved that He can conquer death. He proved that He is in control of death. The words of Jesus in Revelation 1:18 is often quoted at Christian funerals: “I hold the keys of death and Hades.”
Jesus promises that everyone who believes in Him will have eternal life, and He has proven that He can deliver on that promise because He conquered death.
And this is the gift of grace He offers to you.
He offers you mercy, grace and life.
All you have to do is trust in Him.
Isaiah 53:5 says, “He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.”