There are several different opinions on different doctrines
in the Bible, and people can believe different things about a lot of stuff and
still be saved. But believing in the of the resurrection of Christ from the
dead is non-debatable. Our faith hinges on the resurrection. Paul calls the
resurrection, along with the death of Christ for our sins, "of first
importance." He says in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 - "For I delivered to
you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins
according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on
the third day according to the Scriptures."
It also says in Acts 17:2-3 - "And according to Paul's custom, he went to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and giving evidence that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, "This Jesus whom I am proclaiming to you is the Christ."" It says it was Paul's custom to explain and give evidence that Jesus had to suffer and rise from the dead. He always taught from the Scriptures the death and resurrection of Christ, because these two things are what our faith is based on. We know that Christ died, though there are a few groups that question that, but there are far more who question the resurrection. And for that reason Paul, in 1 Corinthians 15, takes the time to give proof and show the importance of the resurrection. In 1 Corinthians 15:12 Paul asks the question - "Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?" Apparently in the Corinthian church there were some who were teaching against the resurrection, but since Paul knew that the resurrection was fundamental to our faith he both gives evidences that the resurrection is a fact, and shows the problems that arise when the resurrection is taken out of the picture.
1 Corinthians 15
He begins in verses 1-4 by plainly stating the gospel, that is that Christ died and rose again. - "Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures."
In these first four verses Paul states the first proof of the fact of the resurrection, that is that the Scriptures bear witness to the fact. Since we as Christians know that the Bible is the eternal, infallible word of almighty God, this first evidence is the strongest proof there is for the resurrection. When Paul says "according to the Scriptures" And back in Acts when it says that Paul "reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and giving evidence that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead." The Scriptures he is referring to are the Old Testament Scriptures. At this point the New Testament hadn't been written. "Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures." I'm sure that Paul used passages like Psalm 22, and Isaiah 53 and other passages like that to show that the Messiah must die, however, Old Testament passages about the resurrection are more scarce. Nevertheless the truth of the resurrection is presented in the Old Testament. Psalm 16:10 is probably one of the clearest Old Testament passages about the resurrection, but I'm sure there are others such as Hosea 6:2. Passages like these are the first evidence that Christ died and rose again. But on top of these we also have the New Testament Scriptures. In each of the four gospel we're given an account of the resurrection of Christ, as well as a period of forty days afterward where He continued to appear to people. On top of that, most of the epistles either directly speak of, or else allude to the resurrection of Christ from the dead. So the first and most reliable proof of the resurrection is "according to the Scriptures".
The second proof Paul brings up in verses 5-11 is the testimony of those who saw the resurrected Christ. - "And that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also. For I am the least of the apostles, and not fit 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 toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me. Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed."
We know that this isn't an exhaustive list of those to whom Jesus appeared after His resurrection, because we're told of His encounters with others in the four gospels, but this list is pretty convincing. Many of those who followed Jesus before His death thought that He was going to conquer Rome and set up His kingdom here on the earth. When the resurrected Jesus asked the two on the road to Emmaus what they were discussing Cleopas answered Him and said "The things about Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word in the sight of God and all the people, and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to the sentence of death, and crucified Him. But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, it is the third day since these things happened." This was the attitude of many of the disciples, and when Jesus was crucified they were afraid and confused. But after they saw the resurrected Christ they were drastically changed.
The first eyewitness mentioned is Cephas, more commonly know as Peter. After Christ was taken prisoner by the Roman soldiers, Peter denied that he even knew the Lord three times. And after the death of Christ, Peter went back to his old life. But when Peter encountered the resurrected Lord He was a changed man. This is the man who preached the first sermon in the book of Acts, when 3000 souls gave their lives to Jesus Christ. This is the man through which God showed the message of salvation to the Gentiles. This is the man who, church history tells us, was crucified upside down because he did not count himself worthy to be crucified in the same position as his Lord.
-The second eyewitness account is of the twelve disciples. The night before He died, Jesus took His disciples and went to the garden of Gethsemane to pray. While He was praying, Judas Iscariot came with a group of Roman soldier to arrest Jesus, and we're told that "His disciples left Him and fled." Because they were so closely associated with Jesus they feared for their own lives. We are only told of two of them being at the Praetorium when Jesus was being tried, and only one of them showed up at the cross, and not a single one of them came to claim His body. If they showed themselves they were in danger of losing their own lives so they decided to lay low for a while. But once they encountered the resurrected Jesus they were completely changed. They hit the streets proclaiming that Jesus was alive. Where did this sudden boldness come from? Throughout the book of Acts we see these characters speaking boldly about Christ and "rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name." Most of these men were killed because of their faith in Jesus Christ.
-The third eyewitness account is by more than five hundred brethren at one time. This is the only place in Scripture that this appearance is mentioned, but the significance is in the numbers. By Jewish law, in order for action to be taken it had to be on the basis of at least two witnesses. And someone may say that the resurrection was a conspiracy by the twelve to make people believe that Christ had risen. But this was no small inside job. He wasn't only seen by the twelve, but on one occasion He was seen by more than five hundred people.
-The forth eye witness mentioned is James the brother of Jesus. We know from John chapter 7 that during His earthly ministry none of Jesus' brothers believed in Him. On the cross while Jesus was dying He said to John His disciple, "Behold your mother." and to Mary His mother, "Behold your son." We're not told of any of the rest of His family being at the cross, and so Jesus put His mother into the care of His closest brother. But after He rose from the dead He appeared to His brother James. This encounter with Jesus Christ changed his life. James went on to write the book of James and went on to give his life for his Lord.
-The fifth eyewitness account given is by all the apostles. In may be that when it said Jesus appeared to the twelve they were not all together and it may have been at different times, But there were at least two times that He appeared to them when they were all together.
-And last of all, the sixth eyewitness account is given by Paul himself. While Saul of Tarsus was on the road traveling to Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven flashed all around him, knocked him into the dust, and Jesus spoke to him. From that point on Paul was a changed man. This one who had been persecuting the church of Christ was now a powerful tool in His hand. He wrote at least 14 books of our New Testament, and was at last beheaded for his faith.
It also says in Acts 17:2-3 - "And according to Paul's custom, he went to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and giving evidence that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, "This Jesus whom I am proclaiming to you is the Christ."" It says it was Paul's custom to explain and give evidence that Jesus had to suffer and rise from the dead. He always taught from the Scriptures the death and resurrection of Christ, because these two things are what our faith is based on. We know that Christ died, though there are a few groups that question that, but there are far more who question the resurrection. And for that reason Paul, in 1 Corinthians 15, takes the time to give proof and show the importance of the resurrection. In 1 Corinthians 15:12 Paul asks the question - "Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?" Apparently in the Corinthian church there were some who were teaching against the resurrection, but since Paul knew that the resurrection was fundamental to our faith he both gives evidences that the resurrection is a fact, and shows the problems that arise when the resurrection is taken out of the picture.
1 Corinthians 15
He begins in verses 1-4 by plainly stating the gospel, that is that Christ died and rose again. - "Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures."
In these first four verses Paul states the first proof of the fact of the resurrection, that is that the Scriptures bear witness to the fact. Since we as Christians know that the Bible is the eternal, infallible word of almighty God, this first evidence is the strongest proof there is for the resurrection. When Paul says "according to the Scriptures" And back in Acts when it says that Paul "reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and giving evidence that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead." The Scriptures he is referring to are the Old Testament Scriptures. At this point the New Testament hadn't been written. "Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures." I'm sure that Paul used passages like Psalm 22, and Isaiah 53 and other passages like that to show that the Messiah must die, however, Old Testament passages about the resurrection are more scarce. Nevertheless the truth of the resurrection is presented in the Old Testament. Psalm 16:10 is probably one of the clearest Old Testament passages about the resurrection, but I'm sure there are others such as Hosea 6:2. Passages like these are the first evidence that Christ died and rose again. But on top of these we also have the New Testament Scriptures. In each of the four gospel we're given an account of the resurrection of Christ, as well as a period of forty days afterward where He continued to appear to people. On top of that, most of the epistles either directly speak of, or else allude to the resurrection of Christ from the dead. So the first and most reliable proof of the resurrection is "according to the Scriptures".
The second proof Paul brings up in verses 5-11 is the testimony of those who saw the resurrected Christ. - "And that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also. For I am the least of the apostles, and not fit 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 toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me. Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed."
We know that this isn't an exhaustive list of those to whom Jesus appeared after His resurrection, because we're told of His encounters with others in the four gospels, but this list is pretty convincing. Many of those who followed Jesus before His death thought that He was going to conquer Rome and set up His kingdom here on the earth. When the resurrected Jesus asked the two on the road to Emmaus what they were discussing Cleopas answered Him and said "The things about Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word in the sight of God and all the people, and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to the sentence of death, and crucified Him. But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, it is the third day since these things happened." This was the attitude of many of the disciples, and when Jesus was crucified they were afraid and confused. But after they saw the resurrected Christ they were drastically changed.
The first eyewitness mentioned is Cephas, more commonly know as Peter. After Christ was taken prisoner by the Roman soldiers, Peter denied that he even knew the Lord three times. And after the death of Christ, Peter went back to his old life. But when Peter encountered the resurrected Lord He was a changed man. This is the man who preached the first sermon in the book of Acts, when 3000 souls gave their lives to Jesus Christ. This is the man through which God showed the message of salvation to the Gentiles. This is the man who, church history tells us, was crucified upside down because he did not count himself worthy to be crucified in the same position as his Lord.
-The second eyewitness account is of the twelve disciples. The night before He died, Jesus took His disciples and went to the garden of Gethsemane to pray. While He was praying, Judas Iscariot came with a group of Roman soldier to arrest Jesus, and we're told that "His disciples left Him and fled." Because they were so closely associated with Jesus they feared for their own lives. We are only told of two of them being at the Praetorium when Jesus was being tried, and only one of them showed up at the cross, and not a single one of them came to claim His body. If they showed themselves they were in danger of losing their own lives so they decided to lay low for a while. But once they encountered the resurrected Jesus they were completely changed. They hit the streets proclaiming that Jesus was alive. Where did this sudden boldness come from? Throughout the book of Acts we see these characters speaking boldly about Christ and "rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name." Most of these men were killed because of their faith in Jesus Christ.
-The third eyewitness account is by more than five hundred brethren at one time. This is the only place in Scripture that this appearance is mentioned, but the significance is in the numbers. By Jewish law, in order for action to be taken it had to be on the basis of at least two witnesses. And someone may say that the resurrection was a conspiracy by the twelve to make people believe that Christ had risen. But this was no small inside job. He wasn't only seen by the twelve, but on one occasion He was seen by more than five hundred people.
-The forth eye witness mentioned is James the brother of Jesus. We know from John chapter 7 that during His earthly ministry none of Jesus' brothers believed in Him. On the cross while Jesus was dying He said to John His disciple, "Behold your mother." and to Mary His mother, "Behold your son." We're not told of any of the rest of His family being at the cross, and so Jesus put His mother into the care of His closest brother. But after He rose from the dead He appeared to His brother James. This encounter with Jesus Christ changed his life. James went on to write the book of James and went on to give his life for his Lord.
-The fifth eyewitness account given is by all the apostles. In may be that when it said Jesus appeared to the twelve they were not all together and it may have been at different times, But there were at least two times that He appeared to them when they were all together.
-And last of all, the sixth eyewitness account is given by Paul himself. While Saul of Tarsus was on the road traveling to Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven flashed all around him, knocked him into the dust, and Jesus spoke to him. From that point on Paul was a changed man. This one who had been persecuting the church of Christ was now a powerful tool in His hand. He wrote at least 14 books of our New Testament, and was at last beheaded for his faith.
How do we explain these changes? The change of cowards into bold witnesses? The change of murderers into martyrs? How do we explain the difference in these peoples lives? I tell you that the change in these poeples lives can be attributed to one thing and one thing alone, that their Savior is alive.
In the next 8 verses Paul goes on to show the worthlessness of our faith if Christ has not been raised. Verses 12-19 - "Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied."
Our faith completely falls apart without the resurrection. If there is no resurrection of the dead, first of all, that means that Christ is still dead. Our eternal life rests in Christs life, but if Christ is still dead, then we are still dead in or transgression and sin. Christ did not come to make bad men good, or even to make good men better. He came to make dead men alive. We are all dead in sin and Christ came to give us life. He said "I am the resurrection and the life." If the resurrection and the life is dead then we have no hope of either. Second, if there is no resurrection, our preaching and faith are both in vain. If Christ is still dead we have nothing to look forward to. A faith in a dead person is a dead faith, and preaching a dead faith is foolishness. Third, if Christ is not raised, we are false witnesses of God. Because God says in His Word that He raised Christ, But if Christ is still dead, God is actually a liar. But let God be found true and every man a liar. Fourth, if Christ is not raised, our faith is worthless and we are still hopelessly lost in sin. We are to be dead to sin and alive to God, but Jesus is or access to the Father. So the only way we can be alive to God is if Jesus is alive. Because of the resurrection our sins are taken care of. But if there is no resurrection then we are forever hopelessly lost in our sins and there is no way we can ever gain access to God. Fifth, If Christ has not risen, everyone who has ever died has perished. If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.
However, Christ has been raised from the dead, and because He lives God has made us alive together with Him. He is the resurrection and the life and we have both through His life. Because He lives we can preach a living way of access to God which Christ inaugurated through His death burial and resurrection, and our faith, rather than worthless is saving. "By grace you have been saved through faith." Because He lives we are true witnesses of Gods power. Because He lives we are no longer in our sins because He has paid the price for them and is now able to present s alive to God. Because He lives all those who sleep in Jesus have eternal life rather than eternal death, and we can hope in Him, not in this life only but also for the life to come.
He is Risen!
Job 19:25 - "As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will take His stand on the earth."
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