“Paul Said What?” - Communion/Resurrection

Big Idea:

Following Jesus as Lord is built on the cross and resurrection.

This is what it’s all about (the gospel).

Intro:

Exegesis:

Why is communion important?

Remembering the death of Christ (1 Cor. 15:1-3 + 1 Cor. 11:23-26).

The gospel doesn’t stop at the cross. In fact, if it did, we are to be pitied above all people! Paul said this… [Paul said what?]

Why is the resurrection important?

Let’s continue to break down this passage…

v4 - Why the resurrection matters.In fact, this portion may have been considered an early “confession.” Something they repeated to focus on what’s of most importance! It’s according to the Scriptures… What does this mean? God’s been promising to fix the brokenness since the beginning. He has fulfilled His promise. This is the answer to the problem of sin and death! It’s new (eternal-resurrected) life in Christ!

There is an apologetic happening here…

The resurrection didn’t happen in a secret corner, but in public.

Why talk about all these people? Many of these people were still alive! Go talk to them! They’ll tell you. Additionally, many of these people have no reason to lie. It was of no benefit unless it was true.

James and Paul believed because of the resurrection. They didn’t believe before and Christ’s appearnce made them say “Oh snap!”

vv8-11 - God resurrected Paul’s life and calling. And he wants to do the same for you because you were created with a purpose, but without Jesus, you’ve been dead to it (Eph 2:1, 10). We’ve all been chasing everything. But the answer is Jesus. You could live with true purpose (have new life - in whatever way that needs to be applied; salvation, career, marriage, etc), if you’ll just believe. But in this new life, it’s only by God’s power, not our own strength (like before). This is the resurrection life!

v12 - Don’t you realize how important this is? It is essential, foundational to our faith! Why? Keep reading.

vv13-19 - If there’s no resurrection, it’s worthless. That’s how important this is! If there is no resurrection, it makes everything else a lie. It makes God a liar. And if God is a liar, everything unravels because He’s the one holding everything together. We have no purpose. We’re all random accidents. We’re on our own, so make the best of this pitiful life.

v20 - why the resurrection is important to us. God made good on His promise.

vv22-28 - how this impacts our future (? Not sure if that’s how it fits). Nobody wants to die. That’s because God has put eternity in our hearts. Death was never part of the plan. We’re supposed to look forward to an eternal future of beauty. And that’s what the resurrection is all about. That’s what it matters. But there’s a progression (as God often does), so don’t give up on foundational beliefs jsut because of timing. Trust the journey to Jesus! (vv.22-23)

Our biggest problem was sin leading to death. It ruined everything., Still is ruining everything.

But Christ fixed everything. He brought real life.

Why switch to v23? I need to study this!

What happened to Jesus will happen to us too!

Then, Jesus will make everything right. And His work will be finished. The world will be redeemed, restored, and reconciled to God’s purposes.

v32 - Life is meaningless without the resurrection. If there is no resurrection, it makes everything else a lie. It makes God a liar. And if God is a liar, everything unravels because He’s the one holding everything together. We have no purpose. We’re all random accidents. We’re on our own, so make the best of this pitiful life.

Why deal with all of this if there is no resurrection. It would be better to preserve this one-life as best as possible, since it’s all there is. But Pual took every risk for Jesus beacuse he knew there was more. And there was a mission. And this was not his home.

Do we live this way?

Or, do we preserve everything for this life alone?

What message does our current life choices preach about what we believe about the resurrection. Do we live for the temporary or the eternal? Josh moving across the country. Jackie leaving her job.

v33 - Isn’t this what the world teaches? Don’t believe it. It’s a lie! Who are you hanging out with? Youth? Are these people helping you follow Jesus or are they corrupting your character. That doesn’t mean we should live in a bubble. If we’re gonna be with unbelivers, which we should, then we should be influencing them. But we can’t influence them unless we have a firm grip on the resurrection.

vv.34-49 - Something more glorious is coming. Be excited!!!

We believe in stuff we don’t fully understand all the time. Like it’s said, “We all have faith.” They didn’t fully understand the seed and harvest. Not biologically. God designed us to live by faith (we’ll live by faith in eternity because we won’t be God then either). So why exclude faith when it comes to the resurrection, just because we can’t understand it! Some understand thing more than others, but we can all be impacted by it.

vv. 50-58 - Jesus fixed everything at the resurrection. So, what are you believing? Make sure youre putting your faith in the Lord Jesus, the One who was raised from the dead.

Response:

Everything we do is dead. We need Gods resurrection power for it to have life. Satans temptation is we do in in our own power (separate from God). The danger is our own strength produces results, it just doesn’t do anything that brings eternal life.(Victory over the darkness)

One way we can respond is by resting. To live freely, rest, and receive God’s love. Before the resurrection, we were slaves. In Christ, we are free and can rest. Our identity isn’t in work, but as sons and daughters in God’s family.

Communion:

Gospel presentation here….