A Matter of First Importance!

A Matter of First Importance! (1 Co 15:1-11) The background to this chapter is important. Paul is writing to the church at Corinth. He planted that church. However, some of his early converts are denying the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ. Paul is concerned. Without belief in Christ s bodily resurrection there is no gospel and therefore, there is no salvation. The stakes couldn t be higher, So, Paul concludes this letter with a long chapter defending and proving the necessity of the Resurrection. It opens with these 11 crucial verses. Verses 3 & 4 tells us that Christ s resurrection is a doctrine of first importance. That is our theme. It is of first important because, as we have mentioned, without it there is no Christian faith. We want to draw two propositions from today s text 1 st The resurrection is a matter of first importance. 2 nd The resurrection is a rational teaching. I. The Resurrection is a matter of First Importance. 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, The resurrection is a matter of first importance for two reasons. 1 st The resurrection was the vindication of Christ, 2 nd The Resurrection was the Justification of all Believers. A. THE RESURRECTION IS A MATTER OF FIRST IMPORTANCE BECAUSE IT WAS CHRIST S VINDICATION. The Resurrection vindicated Christ s claim and deeds. On the basis of that vindication, God the Father appointed him the Judge of the living and the dead. Jesus made some serious claims. If they are true everything changes. He claimed to be the long awaited Messiah. If he was the Messiah he was the fulfillment of everything the OT prophets predicted. Jesus also claimed deity. When He claimed to be I am that am, the OT name for God, the Jews tried to stone him for blasphemy. They knew that he was making a claim to deity. People worshipped Him, and He did not stop them. 1 of 9

He also claimed exclusivity. He said, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father accept through me. Jesus stated that you cannot worship God under a different name Allah, Buddha, etc. and worship the true god. Jesus said, if they reject my words and my claims they reject not just me, but Him who sent me. In addition, He claimed the existence of both Heaven and Hell. He promised infinite, lavish rewards to those that believe the gospel and follow him. He promised exquisite pain and torment to those who reject him, or are ambivalent toward him (Mk 9:47-50) And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell, where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched. For everyone will be salted with fire. He claimed to be the Word of God. He was the author of the Bible. Were these the statements of a delusional man, or true statements made by One who really knew what he was talking about? The Resurrection answers that question. The Holy Spirit raised Jesus from the dead. By doing so he vindicated (or justified) Jesus. The resurrection vindicated everything Jesus said and did. The Resurrection points us to Christ. It opens our ears to listen to him. On the basis of his vindication, the Father appointed Jesus the Judge of the Living and the dead. Jesus is the perfect candidate for this job. As man he knows our frame. He understands our struggles. He is compassionate. As God he is infinitely holy. He upholds the Father s righteous demands. He judges with omniscience. He judges impartially. The judgment should not surprise us. The Bible teaches that we live in a moral universe. All men and women will someday give an accounting for their thoughts, words, and deeds. God the Father didn t raise Jesus to sit on a cloud and play a harp. God raised Christ to seat Him at His right hand, and receive all authority, all sovereignty, and all power. He now reigns as each person s King and Judge. In a speech to a group of Greek philosophers, the apostle Paul made this point. (Ac 17:31) [God] has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead. " Here is Paul s point. If Christ is raised, and you are not a Believer, the day will come when you will stand before Him to account for your life. At that moment you will believe in the Resurrection, but it will be too late. And now, the One you spent your life ignoring, 2 of 9

ridiculing, or maybe mocking, will be your Judge. The scene will be so unpleasant that, in the words of Rev 6:16, you will cry out To the mountains and rocks, Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb. This is not what God wants. He wants to be reconciled to you. He paid an infinite price to bring this to pass. He wants all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. That includes everyone listening this morning. In summary, The Resurrection is a matter of first importance because it was Christ s vindication. B. THE RESURRECTION IS A MATTER OF FIRST IMPORTANCE BECAUSE JESUS IS OUR JUSTIFICATION In Rom 4:25 Paul tells us that Jesus was raised for our justification. For this reason, on the Day of Judgment Believers will stand before Christ with great confidence. God didn t just raise Jesus for his vindication. He raised him for our vindication/justification also. So, what does it mean that Christ was raised for our justification? To understand this we must define Justification. Justification is a declaration of innocence. Justification means not guilty. Justification is the opposite of condemnation. Anecdote: Self-Justification. It is important to remember that death is the penalty for sin. However, Jesus never sinned. Therefore, he should have never died. In fact, he was only able to die because he bore our sins on the cross. Because Jesus died, it looked to the Romans and Jews watching that he was a sinner like us. Therefore, to vindicate his sinlessness, and everything that he said and did, (i.e to justify him), the Father reversed death, and raised him from the dead. (Ac 2:24) God [the Father] raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it." Christ s perfections were the basis of his justification. Here is the connection between Christ s justification and ours. When one confesses their sin and believes the gospel, their faith unites them with Christ in such a profound way that the Believer becomes everything that Christ is and was. 3 of 9

Christ was and is justified. Because Believers are united with Christ by faith His resurrection becomes their justification. Christ s resurrection becomes the justification of all Believers. (Ro 6:4) Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father." In summary, God raised Jesus to vindicate him and to secure our Justification. II. The Resurrection Is a Rationale Teaching The Resurrection was a miracle. Dead people don t come to life. Therefore, the resurrection means that God overturned the laws of nature. This presents a problem. Many today reject the possibility of miracles. Philosophical Materialism is the obstacle. It assumes miracles are impossible. Philosophical Materialism is the most influential worldview in Western Culture, and it is a major obstacle to belief in the Resurrection. Philosophical materialism is different from greed. Philosophical materialism is the belief that Matter has always existed. Matter had no beginning. Nothing exists but matter. Unless you can detect it with the five senses, or a scientific instrument, it doesn t exist. There is nothing beyond this life. Therefore, miracles are impossible. To this mindset, the resurrection is ridiculous. However, there is a problem with philosophical materialism. Like theism it is a statement of faith. It is not science. It is a religious position. It cannot be proven. Science cannot validate it. In fact, Philosophical Materialism is a religious system. Once we accept this proposition, we are no longer discussing a debate between science and religion, but a debate between two competing religions. Once we grasp this the resurrection does not seem so fantastic. Miracles do not seem impossible. In fact, I would assert that Theism, i.e. belief in an a God of an unseen world, and miracles, and therefore the resurrection, is rational. Why? The most basic logic asserts that out of nothing, nothing comes. A well-known Harvard atheist converted to Christianity. When asked why he answered, out of nothing, nothing comes, and there is something. Something has to have a cause greater than itself. Science confirms that nothing is self-originating, that everything in the Universe has a cause. That there is no effect without a cause. If this is true, Philosophical Materialism, not Christianity, is irrational. 4 of 9

In fact, it is a statement of faith to assert that miracles do not occur. It just means that the speaker has never experienced a miracle, or he/she does not know anyone that has, or that he/she is such a skeptic that if one happened before his/her eyes, they would immediately discount it. In either case, it is just your private experience, and your private experience proves nothing. Therefore, it is completely rational to believer that miracles, like the resurrection, are a possibility. If miracles are a possibility, then the next question is did Jesus rise from the dead? To answer that question we need to rehearse the rational reasons for belief in the Resurrection. It is important to consider them for, as we have seen, if Jesus arose from the dead everything changes. His words are true, He is our Lord, He is our judge, and all Believers are justified. Today s text gives us three rationales for the Resurrection. 1 st the Resurrection fulfilled predictive prophecy. 2 nd The Resurrected Christ showed himself alive to many people. 3 rd The witnesses of his Resurrection confirmed their belief with their blood. A. THE RESURRECTION FULFILLED PREDICTIVE PROPHECY 1 Cor 15:3 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. What are the scriptures that Paul had in mind? Mostly the OT. Here is a sampling. Speaking of Christ (Psalm 16:10) "10 For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption." In addition, Jesus predicted his death and Resurrection at least three times. B. THE RESURRECTED CHRIST HAD MANY WITNESSES Verse 5-8. 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. The NT records at least seventeen post resurrection appearances of Christ. He appeared to Mary Magdalen. Then he appeared to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. Then he appeared to the eleven in the Upper Room. Then he reappeared to Thomas 8 days later. He consistently appeared to the disciples for forty days after his resurrection. He appeared to Peter and five apostles while fishing. He appeared to 5 of 9

Stephen as he was being stoned. He appeared to Paul on the Road to Damascus, and John on the Island of Patmos, etc. The Resurrection is easily the miracle most testified to in the Bible. There is only one witness to Islam and Mormonism. Buddhism, Confucianism, Hinduism, and Taoism are not religions. They don t believe in a personal God. They are really philosophies to which witnesses are irrelevant. C. THOSE WITNESSES CONFIRMED WHAT THEY WITNESSED WITH THEIR BLOOD. Popular author, Lee Strobel, notes an important truth. People will die for their religious beliefs if they sincerely believe they're true, but people will not die for religious beliefs that they doubt are false. In the words of Pascal I [believe] those witnesses that get their throats cut. While most Christian s faith is not based on sight, the disciples was. They were in a position to know whether Jesus had risen from the dead with certainty. After his Resurrection, they saw him, talked with him, and ate with him for forty days. As we have seen, the NT records at least seventeen post resurrection contacts. What price did these men pay for this testimony? Peter was crucified upside down. James was beheaded. Andrew was crucified in Achaia. Thomas was burned alive. The Jews tortured Phillip then crucified him, Matthew was beheaded. Nathaniel was skinned alive then crucified. James the lesser was thrown off the temple roof then beaten to death with a club. Paul s sufferings for his testimony to the resurrection were typical. (2 Corinthians 11:23 28) "23 With far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. 24 Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; 26 on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; 27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. 28 And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches." We have made two points. 1 st the Resurrection is a matter of first importance. It was Christ s vindication, and it was our justification. 6 of 9

2 nd The Resurrection is rational teaching. It is reasonable to believe it happened as described. The Resurrection fulfilled prophecy, Jesus appeared to many people, and they were willing to suffer rather than deny their testimony. III. Application In closing I want to address two groups of people Non-Christians, and Committed Christians. A. NON-CHRISTIANS Maybe you are here with a relative. Maybe you walked in off the street. Maybe your parents are members here. In either case, I plead with you to be open-minded. Examine this doctrine. The Resurrection is no backwater subject. If it is true everything changes. If the resurrection happened then there are transcendent truths to which God will hold you accountable. It is very trendy to believe that there will be no final accounting after death. For example, post modernism teaches that there is no truth, that all truths are just subjective constructions. However, most clear thinkers agree that Post Modernism is full of holes. For example, if post modernism is true, then the statement that postmodernism is true is also fallacious. If post-modernism is true then the statement that there is no transcendent truth is also a subjective construction. In addition, the teaching of postmodernism does not meet the sniff test. It is not how the world really works. Because God made us in His image we are all moral creatures. Thus we all intuitively know right from wrong. In fact, it is impossible to live without an overarching set of truths that gives meaning and coherence to life. The Bible teaches that truth exists. God will someday hold us all accountable to that Truth. God raised Jesus to convince us that he will be our judge. God raised Jesus to convince us that all of his words were true. This means that if the resurrection is true, and you don t believe it, as we have suggested, your future is in great peril. Someday, you will die. You appear before the judgment seat of Christ. Because you spent your life mocking, rejecting, or ignoring him he will be angry with you, but it will be too late. The time for reconciliation will be over. All future hope will be extinguished. Your eternal prospects will be worse than horrible. But if the Resurrection is true, and you do believe, you have an infinitely wonderful hope. Which will it be? So, please explore this subject. If, when you are done, you are not convinced at least you can say you gave Christianity an honest hearing. If there is any chance that what I am 7 of 9

saying is true, any rational person, any one truly tolerant, any one truly open-minded will check it out. If the truth is known, most of our objections to Christianity are emotional, not rational. Maybe a Christian had disappointed you. Maybe you know a Christian who was bigoted or legalistic. They lacked joy. They were socially awkward, and you can t identify. Maybe the problem is fear? You are not willing to let go of your life? Maybe the only thing you know about Christianity is what you have heard from the media. Christianity isn t cool, and you want to be cool. Anecdote: A. N. Wilson. B. CHRISTIANS If you are a Christian, one increasingly convinced that Jesus arose 2000 years ago, then Easter Sunday is the happiest day of the year. Why? Easter means that all of Christ s statements and promises about himself are true. He is Lord. He is Savior. He is God. He is your Judge, and he loves you with an infinite love. Easter also means that for you the future holds no fear. No event in life is an accident. Jesus Christ has been raised. That means he lives! He reigns! He sits at the Father s right hand. He has received all power and authority. On the basis of that truth all the events in your life are under God s glorious control. Easter means that your Judge is your advocate. Jesus is your attorney arguing your case. God raised his Son to be judge of the living and the dead, but the One who will judge you is the same One who died to save you from your sin, and rose from the dead to secure your justification. He loves you. He is your advocate. You have nothing to fear from the Day of Judgment. Easter means a New Creation is coming. Jesus rose to begin a New Creation, a Creation that all believers will someday celebrate and enjoy, a creation in which you and I will gloriously and joyfully participate. (Revelation 21:4) "4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away. " Last, Easter means Personal Immortality. Jesus arose to ensure our future resurrection. The Resurrection means that 8 of 9

(Is 25:8) [God] will swallow up death forever." (Isaiah 26:19) "19 Your dead shall live; their bodies shall rise. You who dwell in the dust, awake and sing for joy! For your dew is a dew of light, and the earth will give birth to the dead." (Daniel 12:2) "2 And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt." In summary, the resurrection is a matter of first importance. God raised Jesus to vindicate his words and deeds. God raised Jesus to justify us, and to give us reason to hope. It is rational to believe in the Resurrection because it happened as prophesied, because hundreds saw him alive, and because their willingness to suffer testified to the authenticity of their experience. Those who really believe in the Resurrection live differently. They are willing to suffer for this truth. They increasingly meditate on the life to come. They have not received God s grace in vain. (1 Corinthians 15:10) 10 God s 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. 9 of 9