1 Corinthians 15:1-2. Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; by which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
What was this gospel, of which Paul thought so highly, and which he says is the means of our salvation? Did it consist in sundry doctrinal statements? No, it contained doctrinal statements, but it did not consist entirely of them. Here is Paul's declaration concerning the gospel:
1 Corinthians 15:3. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures;
This is the solid basis of the gospel.
1 Corinthians 15:4. And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
This is the very keystone of the gospel arch, the Christ who died on the cross, and was buried in Joseph's tomb, «rose again the third day according to the scriptures.» This great truth of Christ's resurrection is so important that Paul dwells upon it at length.
1 Corinthians 15:5. And that he was seen of Cephas,
Peter saw him.
1 Corinthians 15:5-6. Then of the twelve: after that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present,
When the epistle was written.
1 Corinthians 15:6-8. But some are fallen asleep. After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.
There is no fact, in all history, that is so well attested as the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Whether there ever was such a person as Julius Caesar might be contested, though there were, doubtless, thousands of witnesses who saw him, and many who wrote about him; but as to whether Christ rose from the dead, no candid mind can entertain a doubt. He was seen by great companies of believers and by various individuals who had long known him most intimately, and who had many opportunities of judging whether they were deceived or not. Christ's resurrection is not only so well attested, but it is also the most important fact that ever happened in the history of the world, as Paul goes on to show.
1 Corinthians 15:9-14. For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. Therefore whether it were I or they, so we preach, and so ye believed. Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen: and if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.
«We are deceivers, and you are deceived, and the whole Christian system crumbles into dust unless Christ did really rise from the dead.»
1 Corinthians 15:15. Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not.
Between Christ and his people, there is a union which can never be broken; so that, if he rose from the dead, they also must rise. If we are one with him, who shall separate us? And if we cannot be separated, then we must share and share alike with him.
1 Corinthians 15:16-19. For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised: and if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ we are of all men most miserable.
To have been quickened into a life which gives great pain and sorrow would be a miserable thing if this were not compensated by the hope of glory which that life has brought to us. A man who has been always poor can bear his poverty; but let him taste of wealth and luxury for a while, and then go back to penury, and how keen is the pang he feels. And let a man be quickened to know God, and to rejoice in the new life, and then be told that there is no hereafter, and he is, indeed, «of all men most miserable.»
1 Corinthians 15:20-22. But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
All that were in Adam died in Adam, and all that are in Christ live in Christ and shall rise in Christ.
1 Corinthians 15:23-26. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.
Death is an enemy, but it is the last one; and it is an enemy that shall be destroyed; but it shall be destroyed last.
1 Corinthians 15:27-28. For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him. And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.
There will, one day, be an end of the Mediatorial system. Christ shall have restored us to the Father, and then he, as our Head, and we, as making up the family of the redeemed, shall rejoice in the God who is «all in all.»
1 Corinthians 15:29-32. Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead? And why stand we in jeopardy every hour? I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily. If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantageth it me, if the dead rise not? let us eat and drink; for tomorrow we die.
If there is no resurrection, the philosophy of the Epicureans is a true one. If we are to come an end when we die, let us enjoy life while we can, if it is to be a short life, let it be a merry one. You see to what a conclusion this theory would lead us, so let us stand back from it with horror. The logical consequence convicts the statement as falsehood. There is a future state, and there is to be a resurrection of the body.
1 Corinthians 15:33-35. Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners. Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame. But some man will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what body do they come?
You know the almost endless questions that may be asked about this matter, and you know the snares into which a man may fall if he begins curiously to pry into this mystery. Paul will have no prying into the mystery, and somewhat tartly he answers:
1 Corinthians 15:36. Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die.
Would you take the seed into your hand, and begin to argue, «How can that little seed ever become a flower?» Could you guess, apart from observation, what kind of flower would grow out of such a seed as that? You would make a hundred foolish guesses if you tried it. So is it concerning the resurrection of the body; in due time we shall know, and we shall see; but till then, we must wait and trust.
1 Corinthians 15:37-38. And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be, but bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other grain: but God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him, and to every seed his own body.
Every man shall have his own body. There will be differences and peculiarities, even as there are here; and we shall therefore know each other.
1 Corinthians 15:39-42. All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds. There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory. So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption;
You know all about that.
1 Corinthians 15:42. It is raised in incorruption:
What an anticipation for us!
1 Corinthians 15:43. It is sown in dishonour;
For, with all the honour that we can pay to our departed dear ones, it is a dishonour to them to have to lie encased in a coffin, in the cold clay of the cemetery.
1 Corinthians 15:43. It is raised in glory:
Oh, the splendor of that resurrection!
1 Corinthians 15:43. It is sown in weakness;
It is so weak that it cannot get into its own last resting-place, but must be tenderly laid there by others.
1 Corinthians 15:43-44. It is raised in power: it is sown a natural body;
A soulish body, a body fitted for the human soul.
1 Corinthians 15:44. It is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
A body fitted for the new-born spirit which is given in regeneration.
1 Corinthians 15:45-48. And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural, and afterward that which is spiritual. The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven. As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy:
You and I have every evidence about us that we are earthy.
1 Corinthians 15:48. And as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.
Glory be to the name of Christ we belong to him, and already the heavenly light begins to shine upon us, and we are getting ready soon to put on the garments of immortality.
1 Corinthians 15:49-51. And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. Behold I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep,
For some will be here when Christ comes again to this earth.
1 Corinthians 15:51-58. But we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren,
«Let us weep and lament»? Oh, no! That is not the apostle's inference. Therefore, let us throw down our weapons, and say, «It is no good to continue the fight, for we must all die»? Far from it.
1 Corinthians 15:58. Be ye steadfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.
«Ye know,» because Christ has risen, and because you also shall rise and because there is a reward of grace laid up in store for you. The Lord's people may die, but the Lord's church never dies, and the Lord himself, the ever-living One, is always with us, blessed be his holy name!