Category: 1 Corinthians

Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost.  If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied (1 Corinthians 15:18-19).

Wow

What fools we would be if it were not true, if the Resurrection were not real.

And all those through the ages who have died believing that they would be raised to life again in that great gettin up morning…

Idiots 

Morons

Imbeciles 

If, that is, the Resurrection weren’t true.

I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for Paul to turn the corner on this idea.

Joyful joy–he’s about to.

Happy Wednesday, Beloved

For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins  (1 Corinthians 15:16-17).

Your faith is futile.

You are still in your sins.

Those words terrify me.

Many moons ago, I was visiting a church. During the worship service, a young woman was sharing some original poetry. The poem came from the heart of someone who had known betrayal and deceit, and it was addressed to God. The poem asked God, in essence,

What if I give you my whole heart, and it turns out you’re not real?

I don’t remember the exact words, but I remember the effect they had on me.

Much the same effect as this verse.

Praise God that he is real, and the resurrection true.

No, seriously–praise him for that today.

Happy Tuesday, Beloved

If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised (1 Corinthians 15:15).

You’re on the witness stand.

Are you gonna lie?

About God?

Paul found himself, perpetually, a witness for the Almighty.

Paul took his job seriously. He testified to the truth that had been revealed to him. And he was not about to let any man call him a liar.

You’re a witness too, Beloved. If you claim the title Christian, then you must be prepared to be called to the stand at any moment.

Do you know what you believe?

Do you know why you believe it?

If you don’t, then do the work to figure it out. If you do, stand firm in that belief. Hold fast to the truth that has been given to you, and let no man call you a liar. 

By his grace.

For his glory.

Happy Monday, Beloved

If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith (1 Corinthians 15:13-14).

I doubt that anyone has ever accused Paul of being overly subtle.

He’s right, though.

Obviously

You can’t pull the foundation out from under a house and expect it to stand.

Jesus defeated Death when He rose from the grave.

Take away the resurrection and Death is not defeated.

Which means Death still reigns…even over Jesus.

Why would you follow a god who dies and stays dead? Frankly, I could do that myself.

But I won’t, because I serve the One who laid His life down, then picked it back up.

Kicking Death to the curb in the process.

Your faith is not useless, Beloved.

Your God is not dead.

Happy Thursday

But if it has been preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead? (1 Corinthians 15:12)

The Spanish Inquisition had at least something right.

You probably weren’t expecting that this morning, were you?

But then, no one expects the Spanish Inquisition.

The historically heavy handed and rather sadistic inquisitors wanted to keep Church doctrine pure. There were a lot of people from other faiths converting to Christianity, and some of them were bringing false ideas and beliefs with them. 

The Church opposed those ideas…vigorously.

Paul is not, so far as I can tell, calling for headscrews or the rack, but he is calling out those who are walking away from the gospel. As Paul is going to explain in the next verses, the resurrection is essential to our faith. Peter preached it, Paul preached it–Jesus himself preached it. 

And some of the folks at Corinth were tossing it aside. 

It doesn’t matter why. It does matter that in denying this one idea they were undermining the foundation of the faith.

Paul was not having it.

Neither should you.

Beloved, put the thumbscrews away–what are you even doing with those?

But do keep your eyes open and your brain alert. Hold firm to the truth of Christ crucified

and 

risen. 

Indeed

Happy Wednesday, Beloved

Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed (1 Corinthians 15:11).

Who’s your favorite apostle?

Do you go for Peter?

Are you Team Paul?

Maybe you’re a Bartholomew guy. Personally, I’ve never thought Bartholomew gets enough press.

Doesn’t really matter where you get the antidote to your soul poison.

What matters is that you take it, drink deeply, and let it work in you, healing and restoring and strengthening and… 

Shall I go on with the metaphor?

Nah, you’ve got the picture. You’re a bright one.

Happy Tuesday, Beloved

But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them–yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me  (1 Corinthians 15:10).

Working for grace is heresy– 

unless, of course, you have a boss named Grace.

Working by grace, on the other hand–

that’s the ticket.

Happy Monday, Beloved.

For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve 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 to me was not without effect  (1 Corinthians 15:9-10).

Read those verses again.

Aaand one more time

Those two verses tell the story of Paul’s life.

And probably yours

No, I don’t imagine that you’ve traveled the country having the children of God thrown in prison and standing watch at the occasional stoning. Nor is it likely that you have planted dozens of churches in multiple cities and been, by the Holy Spirit, the driving force in the conversion of a continent.

I mean, maybe you have, but probably not.

But you have lived your life. You remember your own personal B.C., and you know what God has done in you since. You know what grace has done 

in you

for you

through you.

Rejoice today, Beloved of God, for you are not who you were.

You are who you are, and the grace of Almighty God has not been without effect.

Happy Friday, Beloved.

Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born (1 Corinthians 15:7).

Well, I mean, I guess it’s true.

It was a bit of a strange birth, so to speak.

Paul was not one of the disciples. He hadn’t lived and traveled with Jesus for three years. He had not been at Supper, or in the garden, or at the cross, or at the tomb, or in the upper room. Paul had not received the teaching or the promises or the Holy Spirit. Paul had not seen Jesus calm the storm or feed the masses or raise the dead.

Paul had not been on Team Jesus.

To say the least

But once again, Jesus went and did the unexpected,

the impossible,

the vaguely ludicrous.

He chose to transform his avowed enemy into his champion.

I don’t know why–I certainly wouldn’t have picked him.

But then, we’ve been over that before, haven’t we?

Beloved, if you ever think

even for a moment

that you are not good enough

or strong enough

or wise enough

or righteous enough

or godly enough to serve Christ,

know this:

you’re absolutely right.

Then, think of Paul

and bow your head

and rejoice.

Happy Thursday, Beloved

Then he appeared to James…  (1 Corinthians 15:7).

This is one of those bits that I have read numerous times but only recently stopped to think about. My trusty NIV Study Bible identifies this James as the brother (well, technically half brother) of Jesus. This makes sense, since the other Jameses we know about are part of the Twelve, and the previous verse already says that Jesus appeared to them.  

This, then, is the James that did not believe Jesus was the Christ, who Mark says thought Jesus was out of his mind.

That, of course, was before the Resurrection.

Jesus made a point of appearing to this man, the brother he had grown up with and who did not believe. 

What grace was offered in that meeting between Jesus and James?

What mercy?

What challenge?

Did they share an inside joke, the kind that only brothers would get?

Did James apologize for not believing his brother was the Christ? Did Jesus grin and say, “I told you so?”

We don’t know what happened in that meeting, but James went on to join the ranks of the believers, to become an apostle and to write the book that bears his name.

And to be  martyred for it.

So we can bet that, whatever was said, it was life changing.

As meetings with Jesus so often tend to be

Happy Monday, Beloved