What If There Had Been No Resurrection

Introduction

Here we are on another Easter Sunday. And you all know that Easter Sunday is the greatest day of the year for a Christian. It’s greater than New Years, it’s greater than Thanksgiving, it is even greater than Christmas.

You see, Easter is our Super Bowl, it is our World Series, it is our Daytona 500. It is much more than an opportunity to wear our newest outfit, and have a big meal after church, it is a celebration of all our hope in Christ Jesus.

Our main passage for today is found in 1 Corinthians.

1 Corinthians 15:1–20 (ESV)

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.

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.

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. a

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.

Paul is speaking here of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. This is what Easter is all about. When we think of Easter the first image in our mind should be of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, not a rabbit, or brightly colored eggs. This is the time when we need think about and rejoice in all the resurrection means to us.

So really, how important is the resurrection? What does the resurrection mean to us personally? And what if there had never been a resurrection?

That is the first idea we will take up today, what if there had never been a resurrection.

There are many people today who will tell you there was no resurrection, it never happened. They will tell you that Jesus did not miraculously disappear from His borrowed tomb.

They will tell you that the apostles stole His body away to make it appear that Jesus had been resurrected. Or they will tell you that the people attending to Jesus’ body somehow got their directions mixed up and went to an empty tomb rather than one where Jesus’ body was.

It’s relatively easy for people to accept that Jesus died. After all, everyone dies sooner or later.

But believing that the resurrection actually occurred is another matter entirely.

Let’s make sure we understand the terms. Resurrection means a person who was physically dead came back to life. We are not talking about someone who was in a comatose state and revived, we are not talking about a person who pronounced as brain dead and then recovers, we are talking about someone with no breath in their body, no blood moving through their veins, no heartbeat in their chest who came back to life.

Believing in this resurrection requires faith through the power of the Holy Spirit.

One of the requirements for salvation is that you believe in both the death and resurrection of Jesus. Our belief in the resurrection affects everything else we believe. Christianity itself stands or falls on the reality of the resurrection.

So, if there were no resurrection, how would it affect us?

If There Was No Resurrection

Verse 13 tells us:

13) But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised.

If there was no resurrection, then everything that Jesus taught about Himself is a blatant lie.

John 2:19

19 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”

Jesus taught on many occasions that He would rise again. There are at least 34 Bible verses where Jesus says He would rise again, or the Apostles make reference to that teaching of Jesus.

Simply put, if there is no resurrection, Jesus was a fraud.

If there is no resurrection, then God doesn’t have the power to resurrect. In John, chapter 10 Jesus explains that He can lay down His life, and by the charge of His Father, take it up again.

If God does not have the power of resurrection, then what power does He have? If God does not have the power of resurrection, how can we believe anything that we find in scripture? If there is no resurrection, then the Bible simply is not true.

If the Bible is wrong about the resurrection, how can we believe anything else?

14) And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain

If there is no resurrection then what I have to say to you is of no value, my preaching is empty and void. I’m just an entertainer. I am only here for your amusement. I’m a fool and to be pitied.

Any all of you; If there is no resurrection you are just wasting your time here. You should be home playing video games or watching TV.

If there is no resurrection you have nothing to gain here. You are believing a myth, your caught up in a fantasy, you have been cruelly deceived by ever preacher you have ever taken the time to listen to.

And verse 15 tells us if there is no resurrection then we are all liars against God.

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.

If there is no resurrection, then we are saying God did something that He didn’t do. We are attributing power to a powerless God. We ourselves have become liars.

If there is no resurrection, then there is no hope for our loved ones who have gone on before us as stated in verse 18.

18) Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.

All of our ancestors who were Christians lived in vain. All those throughout history who lived their lives for God did so for nothing. Their example to us was just a waste.

They all died in vain. They don’t have eternal life. They are not in heaven waiting for us. We won’t see them again.

If there is no resurrection then there is no hope for us, verse 19.

19) If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.

We have no hope for forgiveness. We live with no hope of relief, or joy, or peace. We have no hope of anything after death. We spent eternity in a cold hole in the ground, unknowing, unfeeling, and oblivious to the passing of time.

If there had been no resurrection, then there are no reunions with family or friends. Without the resurrection, death is just the end.

But There Was A Resurrection

20) But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.

As we study scripture the evidence of the resurrection is overwhelming. Jesus was seen by many individuals after His resurrection.

Peter saw Him. In turn, all the other disciples saw Him. Five hundred different people saw Him at one time.

James saw Him. Paul saw Him.

Because there was a resurrection, we know God does have all power. We know God can give life to the dead.

God is almighty and all powerful. We can be sure of the Omnipotent One who saves our souls.

Because of the resurrection, we know the Bible is true. We know that the Bible can be trusted. We know that we can have confidence in scripture from Genesis to Revelation.

The word of the resurrection is true, and our preaching will forever proclaim it. We proclaim the power of God. We don’t proclaim the power of men but the power of God.

We proclaim a living Savior. Jesus Christ is alive today. Jesus Christ conquered death forever. He broke the chains of sin and death that bound us.

Because there was a resurrection, we proclaim eternal life. There is eternal life. Verse 20 tells us that Jesus was the firstfruits of the dead.

Because there was a resurrection, our faith has an anchor. And we can believe with confidence that the anchor holds.

Because there was a resurrection, we know that Jesus is everything He claims to be, we know that scripture is true regarding the account of our Savior.

Because there was a resurrection, we know we have the truth that can’t be changed.

We know that we have forgiveness of sins. We know that we don’t have to die in our sins. We know we can have peace with God.

We know that we can have our guilt removed.

Because there was a resurrection, we know that our loved ones who have died in Christ have had their hopes fulfilled.

We know that they have met the person on whom they believed.

They have seen Jesus Christ and continue to abide in His glorious presence.

Because there was a resurrection, they now live in that promised place of peace and love where there is no pain and no worries and no death.

Because there was a resurrection, their hope is fulfilled forever. The promises they lived for have become reality. And even now, they await our arrival in that glorious place.

Because there was a resurrection, we have an assured hope. We’re assured of our faith in Jesus. We know that Jesus is everything He says He is. And because He is everything He claimed to be, we have everything He tells us we have.

We have the hope of eternity in the presence of Jesus Christ. Jesus broke the power of death so it can have no part of us.

Because there was a resurrection, we know that our permanent home is in heaven.

We can now go forward in life with confidence. We can live our lives for Christ with all confidence and knowledge that His promises are true.

We can endure all things, knowing that this life is not the end.

Conclusion

We always look forward to Easter. It comes during the early spring when winter has started to loose its hold on us and we see new life budding all around us.

We take the occasion to plan get togethers with family and friends, have a grand meal, visit the grand kids, hunt Easter eggs, watch ball games on TV.

But let us not forget that Easter is so much more. Let Easter Sunday be a reminder to you that, bound up in the resurrection of Jesus Christ, we have all the promises of God.

Let this Sunday be a time of praise and worship to the One who conquered death for all of us and sits on the throne today.