We Believe And We Live
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Paul has been addressing a hypothesis: Christ has not risen from the dead. That hypothesis leads to some difficult conclusions:
Faith is vain or meaningless. See 1 Corinthians 15.14
14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.
Faith is vain or meaningless.
Faith is also fruitless. Think about that in the context of the Fruits of the Spirit- Galatians 5.22-23
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
That would mean there is no real love. no real joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control in a believers life- we are actually full blown hypocrites to claim otherwise!
WE believers, actually still carry the guilt of their sins and are not justified.
Additional context: SEe 1 Cor 15.18
18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.
There is no hope whatsoever for those who have died.
There is no reason to put up with hardship or persecution for their faith.
and in the 19th verse that we have read this morning, we find that we are the most pathetic, or pitied people, on earth- If Christ has not been raised from the dead.
19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.
So now, let’s summarize:
If Christ Has Not Risen, Faith is:
Meaningless
Fruitless
Nullifies Forgiveness
Hopeless
Persecution For Our Faith is Worthless
Let’s begin:
19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.
We are most pitied…pathetic..... that is the final conclusion.... so, Paul is about to answer the hypothesis:
20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
The “But in fact” or “But indeed” is a hallmark of Paul’s speech. He uses this term throughout scripture to make vital points in an emphatic and conclusive way.
In Romans 3.21, Paul says, But in fact righteousness.....
In Romans 6.22, he says , but in fact you have been set free from sin
Romans 7.6 he says, but in fact we are released from the law.
And so , he says here, but in fact emphatically and conclusively that the resurrection of Christ is an integral part of the gospel message of Christ.
At the beginning of this chapter, he said this in 1 Corinthians 15.1-4
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,
Because believers faith is predicated upon the resurrection of Christ, believers must also take the conclusion of the fact that Christ is “firstfruits”- that there are also second fruitsj- and that means the Christian dead.
The image of the “first fruits” in the OT is meaningful in the book of Leviticus. Firstfruits were the first sheaf of the harvest offered to the Lord- it was prior to the main harvest and also an assurance that the remaining harvest was on its way.
Christ rose first. bodily. And He is the guarantee of the resurrection of the Christian dead at his second coming.
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.
The man who brought death is Adam. The one who will bring about the resurrection of the dead is Christ. See 1 Corinthians 15.45
45 Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit.
The whole human race, represented by Adam, will die or have died.
All who are in Christ- God’s redeemed people- will be made alive at the resurrection. Remember John 5.25
25 “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.
23 But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.
Paul is stressing different times: Christ, the firstfruits, was made alive in three days after death.
For Christians believers, they will be made alive at the “Parousia”- his second coming. The word here can simply mean at a person’s presence, but when used of Christ it always refers specifically to his second coming… REmember Matt 24.27
27 For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
24 Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
Remember, Paul is talking about time sequences. In verse 24 he continues and that is shown by the word “then”, a participle.
“Then” refers toe the time of Christ’s second coming and the resurrection. I am not an expert in eschatology, but you can count on it that this “time” is referred to in Revelation 20.4-6
4 Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.
Paul’s “then” means that the next thing in order, after this time, is the process of Christ handing his kingdom over to His Father, God.
Note what Paul says in this passage- he turns over His kingdom after destroying every rule and authority and power.
Christ will have conquered every power and authority at this time. Look at Colossians 1.16
16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.
This is complete. Every kingdom and power and government of this world must be conquered- they were created by him and for him and He will reign over even them.
Look at the 25th verse, “For”
“For” He , Christ, must at that time continue his reign… his millennial reign of Revelation 20:4-6. Until all his enemies are under his feet.
“Under His Feet” equals total conquest.
It is an allusion to Psalm 110.1
1 The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.”
Finally, in 1 Corinthians 15.26, the last enemy to be destroyed is death.
Brace yourself.
If you wanted to tear this passage completely apart- and someday we may- it would take you at least 8 sundays, in my opinion. And then, we’d have lots more to discuss. The time frame here involved is a very long time, and not a precise time by design. God said no one knows the hour, not even the Son Himself.
And that reign I mentioned in Revelation 20: it is a thousand year millenial reign.
And I didn’t even talk to you about the fact that not only us- but all of creation will be resurrected: The new heaven and the new earth are the resetting and recreation of what God intended in the original creation....
But you don’t want 8 weeks today, so I better cut back.
But before I do , Listen to Romans 8:18-25
18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. 23 And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.
Romans 8:18-23 is all about our world our lives and the Christian resurrection that is coming.
But in 24-25, Paul is talking about faith. And why do I mention this? Because remember, back in the beginning of the message, Paul was talking about faith. He was talking about faith, and the hypothesis that if Christ hadn’t been raised we had no hope. It looked like this:
If Christ Has Not Risen, Faith is:
Meaningless
Fruitless
Nullifies Forgiveness
Hopeless
Persecution For Our Faith is Worthless
So, what does Paul say in Romans 8.24-25
24 For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.
1 But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared.
2 And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb,
3 but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.
4 While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel.
5 And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?
6 He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee,
7 that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.”
8 And they remembered his words,
Look at that last verse. They remembered.
Christ Rose From Death That We Could Live In Hope
Faith In Christ Is Fuel For Life
Faith In Christ Is Fuel For Life
The early church believed every Sunday is a little Easter. We celebrate the resurrection of Christ.
But for many people, the Monday through Saturday can be a little Good Friday. Some people can die a few times, or a thousand times.
Watch people and how they respond to the deaths that are dealt to them. They will either die a little, or live a little more. What’s the difference?
I believe it is the presence of Easter, or the lack thereof, in our lives.
If Christ is Risen and Risen Indeed- then the Christian is Risen, and risen indeed.
Jesus lived his entire life knowing that He would be ridiculed, abandoned, mocked, unaccepted and left out. Yet He lived.
Jesus knew He would be put on trial under false pretenses, lied about, betrayed, abused, and slandered. Yet He lived.
Jesus knew they would beat him, scourge him, and ultimately crucify Him. yet He lived.
And Jesus knew that He would die, at the hands of people He actually loved- some of whom at one time loved Him. And He died.
And in His death, He knew that it was not without meaning or purpose. No, His death would actually be a death that was required to offer forgiveness to the very people that destroyed and killed him. And He died.
But the forgiveness He offered, the Love He declared, is all a moot point if all he did was die.
But He Rose.
And He is the Firstfruits of our own resurrection, according to scripture.
And you’ve heard me say many times, “Because He lives, We can live.”
But I want you to understand that today. Living is hard work. Some days are better than others. Some days are spectacular. But few people go through life without the difficult and the hard.
And when those days come, be mindful. This difficulty, this hardship, likely was unexpected. There is grace in that. If you know the job was going to be lost or your spouse was going to contract cancer, there’s probably not much you could have done- but pray that it didn’t come. Jesus lived knowing full well what He would face every day until his dying day. And He lived.
“Because He Lived, We Can Live.”
The resurrection fully is fuel for life. Faith in His Resurrection is the fuel for uor livng.