Poole memoral - Jennifer

1 Corinthians 15:20–23 NIV

But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him.

1 Corinthians 15:42–47 NIV

So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual. The first man was of the dust of the earth; the second man is of heaven.

1 Corinthians 15:50–58 NIV

I declare to you, brothers and sisters, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed—in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

The chapter of 1 Corinthians 15 is probably my favorite chapter in the whole Bible. Paul is writing about how important the resurrections is. If Jesus didn’t really rise from the dead, then the Christian faith is futile and we should be pitied for believing the things we do.

The resurrection is the nail in the wall that holds the picture of Christianity up. If you take out that nail, the rest comes crashing down.

But Jesus did rise from the dead. The Easter story is true. Because of this we can have confidence that we too will rise from the dead.

In verse 20 Jesus is described as the first fruit. A tree produces the same fruit all the time. If you see a lemon tree giving lemons, the next fruit from that will also be lemons.

Jesus rose from the dead as the first fruit, and so we too will follow in his steps, afterwards. On that first Easter morning, Jesus had a real physical, material body, and we too will have a real physical, material body built for a new earth, a new creation which is going last forever.

In this chapter Paul then goes on to talk a little about the resurrection. He says from verse 42

1 Corinthians 15:42–44 NIV

So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.

Paul talks about the body that is sown, that will be raised again. He uses an image like planting a tree to show the creative power of God.

The seed, in order for it to become what it is meant to be, it has to be buried and die. Only after that does it get a new body, it becomes something more, it produces flowers or fruit and so provides life for us. If you had never seen a seed and a plant before, you will not get the connection, because they are so different. But they are also similar. Everything the plant becomes is already inherent in the seed. The plant isn’t the rejection of the seed, but the fullness of the seed. And so, the Christian hope of the new body is like that. The resurrection isn’t a reconstruction, God isn’t going to try and somehow put all the pieces back together again like we are some sort of Humpty Dumpty. No, our body will die and then we will rise again in a new body, for the new creation. Unless we are still alive when Jesus returns, then we are told that bodies will change “in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye” (v52).

It sounds like a fairy tale to be immortal. But Jesus is alive and we live in the same real world that Jesus rose from the dead. He was the first fruits, or the prototype of what is going to happen to those who trust in Him.

At the moment our current body is described as perishable, it is weak, it is natural. And death is still around and is a great enemy that ruins so many things.

Death is not fair. No matter what David Attenborough or The Lion King told you about the circle of life, death is un-natural. We were not made for death. It is only because we share in the image of Adam that we die, but there will come a day when we will share in the image of Jesus. Death is not fair and something inside us should cry saying that it is not right. And right now, we are not clothed in immortality, and death the great enemy is on the side sitting just off the stage ready to take us all.

The world says it is life now and death later. They say, “You only live once”. You need to write your bucket list, because when your dead, you can’t do anything afterwards. But this passage is saying “no”. There is death now and life after.

Because of Jesus, the great final enemy of death will be killed. Death will die and we will rise again. When we put on the imperishable then we can taunt death

from verse 55-57

“Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.

But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Cor 15:55-57)

God gives us the victory that Jesus achieved. Jesus rose from the dead and conquered sin and death and everyone who submits their life to Jesus gets to share in that victory. On that day Death will not get a resurrection, we will.

Death is now on the losing side. Death tried to swallow Jesus but got swallowed. Death is now foolish. He is now a sub-contractor for Jesus doing resurrection agriculture. Think about your body as a seed. Death is just planting bodies in fertile soil. What is the worst thing you can do to a seed if you want to get rid of it? You don’t put it in the ground. Planting a seed will mean it will become the fullness of what it is meant to be. We will turn into something that is imperishable and glorious. Our resurrected bodies will never end.

Christians now may mourn, but they do not mourn as those without hope. Jesus felt the full sting of death and came out the other end. Jesus clothed Himself in death, so we can be clothed in life. Death may hurt, but it is not fatal. We have hope. It may be night now but the day is coming.