140420 The Purpose of the Resurrection

1 Corinthians 15:1-11 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word 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 in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy 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 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. Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is different from all “near death” or returning from the dead experiences known to man. Jesus himself called a widow’s son back from the dead and his friend Lazarus as well. These that have experienced a “resurrection” would all continue to age and eventually would die again. In Peter’s first sermon he stated without a doubt that, “God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it.” Jesus’ resurrection did not result in him returning to a condition of aging only to die again. He was raised up to never be touched by death again.

Now, the apostle Paul writes to the Corinthian church to produce the evidence for the resurrection. And yet, he presents the case that the gospel he preached is essentially tied to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It’s strange to consider that there are those who think that somehow the gospel can be presented apart from the resurrection! Paul wants us to see that it is…

Of first importance — Christ died for our sins! 1 Peter 2:24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.

Some people are confused at the reference to “the tree”. Obviously, the tree referred to here is the Roman cross that Jesus was nailed to. Peter shows us that Jesus, having taken our sins into his own body, died to sin in order to live to righteousness. It is of first importance that Jesus, the Son of the living God, turned aside the Father’s wrath by dying for us. If that had not happened then the rest of the things that happened would mean nothing. He who had never known sin of any kind became sin for us so that we could be the righteousness of God in him. It is of first importance that he nailed our sins to the cross. And then…

He was buried. The rulers of the people that had organized three mock trials in order to convict him of blasphemy wanted to be certain that Jesus stayed in the grave. They knew that he had said that he would come back from the dead and they wanted to be sure that would not happen. So they placed a guard on the tomb to keep it sealed because they expected his disciples to try to steal his body. That is an amazing idea to me! The men who ran away at the first sign of armed opposition are now expected to be bold enough to hide his body and pretend that he had been raised from the dead! Peter was the leader of the group and he had denied Christ three times during the trials! Apparently the religious leaders were the only people that expected there to be any “resurrection”. The disciples certainly didn’t expect Christ to come back. They were hiding in an upper room. The women came to the tomb on the first Easter Sunday to finish the preparation of the body. They didn’t expect him to be gone from that tomb! Later, Paul could say…

On the third day he was raised again! Jesus had promised it would happen. Listen while I read from Matthew 12:38-40. Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered him, saying, “Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.” But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

It was of first importance that Christ died for our sins. After that he was buried and then on the third day he was raised again! Jesus himself had told them that’s what would happen. Why did they not believe him? Or is it simply that they did not understand? The religious leaders had come to Jesus to ask him to give them a sign. One of the popular ideas among the unbelievers was that Jesus was some kind of “magician” and he could perform tricks for their entertainment. During one of his trials King Herod Antipas had wanted Jesus to do a miracle for him. When he was approached by the religious leaders he called them an evil and adulterous generation who were looking for a sign. Then he told them what sign he would give them. He would give them the sign of Jonah! Now just in case you ever doubted the story of Jonah, take note that Jesus believed it was real! Using Jonah as his example Jesus said that he would be in the grave for three days and nights just as Jonah was in the belly of the fish for that period of time. Not only was Jesus crucified for our sins, was buried and raised again on the third day…

He appeared to many eyewitnesses. Remember what Paul said in Vs’s 5-9? …that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.

It is clear that Paul wanted the Corinthian church to know that there was plenty of contemporary evidence that Jesus had been raised from the dead. Obviously they trusted Peter, whom he called “Cephas”, Paul calls on the twelve as eyewitnesses to this resurrection. Then, he pointed to an event that is mentioned nowhere else. He appeared to more than five hundred witnesses at one time! Paul assured them that most of these five hundred were still alive. Then he pointed out that James, the brother of Jesus, saw him along with all the apostles! Then Paul said that last of all Jesus appeared to him on the Damascus Road when he was going to persecute the church. Because of his severe opposition to the church Paul considered himself to be the least of the apostles. This is evidence that…

He was recognizable, but different! Let’s look at the testimony of John found in John 20:14-16. Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.”  Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher).

Mary Magdalene had gone to the tomb of Jesus in the early morning hours. She saw that the tomb was open and so she looked inside where she saw two angels. They asked why she was crying and she answered that it was because someone had taken Jesus’ body. The angels were surprised because they knew that Jesus had told his disciples that he would be crucified, buried and raised again on the third day, at least three times. The last time she had seen Jesus his body was beaten until he was beyond recognition. In the hurried preparations for his burial she would have expected him to be washed but still very battered. The person she saw outside the tomb was not battered and bloody. All of this was very confusing to her! She asked this person where her Lord was. She recognized who he was only when he spoke her name.

Jesus was raised from the dead in the same body he was born with. However, there clearly was a difference! Today…

He has a physical body but, it is a “resurrection” body. We are too quick to condemn our human bodies. Remember Genesis 1:31? And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

At the end of the sixth day of creation God saw everything that he had made and it was very good. Adam’s body was absolutely perfect before he sinned. The “very good” creation included mankind. Had Adam and Eve not disobeyed God, I believe, they would have lived in their magnificent bodies forever! The moment they ate the forbidden fruit they died spiritually and began the process of dying physically. For that very reason God kept them away from the tree of life so that they would not live forever on this earth. Adam and Eve were given death as a gift so that they could go to paradise rather than live on this earth forever. God himself provided the sacrifice for them, symbolically in the animal skins he covered them with, and actually in Jesus Christ. Do I know that Adam and Eve are in heaven? No! But I believe it because, without a doubt, they believed in God and sacrificed to him. Above all people on earth they knew that God exists because they talked with him in the cool of the day for a period of time before they disobeyed him. Jesus’ physical resurrection body affirms the goodness of God’s original creation of man. Not as a mere spirit like the angels but as a creature with a physical body that was “very good”. We must never think that a spiritual existence is somehow superior.

Jesus died for our sins according to the Scriptures. He was buried and raised again on the third day, again in accordance with the Scriptures. He appeared to many eyewitnesses and…

His resurrection gives us a living hope. Listen while I read 1 Peter 1:3-5. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

Peter praised God for causing us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. There is no doubt that Peter linked Jesus’ resurrection with our new birth. Jesus rose from the dead with a new quality of life. He now had a “resurrection life” in a human body and human spirit that were perfectly suited to fellowship and obedience to God for ever. (Grudem, Systematic Theology, p 614) in God’s eyes we also have that special quality of life. Jesus earned us a new life just like his! We still have our old bodies that are subject to disease and death. One day we will have our “resurrection body” to house our “resurrection life”! Our ultimate inheritance is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, securely kept in heaven for us. Nothing could be more secure! In Jesus Christ’s resurrection, we have a confidence that our God will raise us up with him! In fact, according to Ephesians 2 and Colossians 3, God thought of us as somehow being raised “with Christ” and in fact, “seated” with him in the heavenlies. Christ died for our sins, was buried, was raised again on the third day, and appeared before many witnesses. More than that…

His resurrection promises us freedom. Listen to what Paul wrote in Romans 8:1-2. There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.

When we come into this world we are subject to the law of sin and death! All have sinned and come short of the glory of God! That’s every one of us! And, the wages of sin is death! So we are born in trouble unless God acts on our behalf. God showed how much he loved us by coming to the earth in the person of Jesus Christ so that whoever believes in him would not have to perish but instead would have eternal life! This takes us out from under the law of sin and death and puts us under the law of the Spirit of life. So we can see that Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection, promises us freedom from condemnation and…

His resurrection promises us an eternal body. Listen while I read Philippians 3:8-11. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith—that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.

Paul is clearly looking forward to a future time when he will know Christ and the power of his resurrection. This certainly doesn’t mean that Paul did not know Christ and salvation! He met him on the road to Damascus and spent many days in close fellowship with him. More than once Paul was visited by the risen Christ! Without a doubt he “knew him” but he did not know Christ as yet in the power of his resurrection. Paul knew that one day he (and we) will receive a resurrection body that is unimaginably superior to the body we now possess, Praise God!

In one of the last letters written by an apostle we find a remarkable statement. Listen while I read 1 John 3:2. Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.

One thing for certain. We will not be disembodied spirits floating around forever and ever! It is believed that the little letters of John were written when he was at, or about, a hundred years of age. Surely by that time he had begun to tire of this body that he lived in. It was revealed to him that we, who are now God’s children, will be changed because when he appears we he shall be like him. Just as Jesus has remained forever “the man Christ Jesus” we too will be recognizably human in eternity. We will have physical bodies like the bodies that Adam and Eve possessed when they were originally created and before they had sinned.

God saw all this happening before he created the earth. He knew that our original parents would sin and he knew that he would send his son, Jesus Christ, to bear our sins in his own body, be buried, and be raised from the dead on the third day. In the power of his resurrection he will give us new bodies so that we will live eternally with him free from sin. In the meantime…

His resurrection gives us power over sin. Listen while I read Romans 6:11-14. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

Romans 6:14 contains one of the greatest promises in Scripture. The resurrection of Jesus Christ, when applied to our lives, gives us a new power to gain more and more victory over the sin remaining in our lives. This last verse that I just read says without qualification, “sin will have no dominion over you”! Sometimes I have thought that will be impossible but God’s word says that it is true. The resurrection power that enables us to minister on behalf of the kingdom of God also enables us to gain victory over sin in our life. We have a new kind of freedom in Christ Jesus. We are free from condemnation because of the Spirit of life and we are, day by day, gaining victory over sin because of the power God has released in us through the resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ.

This new power released on the disciples of Jesus is the power of the resurrection allowing them (and us) to be able to proclaim the gospel in miraculous ways. I wish I could explain all of this better. The Christian life is not just a collection of beliefs it is the power of God for salvation to those who believe.

The most important thing that Paul shares with us in this passage of Scripture is that Christ died for our sins. This was done, not according to some myth, but according to Scripture. Jesus was nailed to the cross and we were nailed with him. He became sin for us so that we could become the righteousness of God in him. He was buried in the grave and left our sins there. When he was raised from the dead we were raised with him. His resurrection power gives us eternal life and enables us to walk in newness of life. When we come to the end of our physical life we are able to go to be with him and live eternally with a resurrection body. Do you know him today? If not, today is the day of salvation! Confess him as your Lord and believe with your heart that God raised him from the dead and you’ll be saved.

All scripture quotes are from: The Holy Bible: English standard version. 2001. Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.

The Resurrection Body 130505

Celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is what Easter is all about. Earlier in this chapter the Apostle tells us, "For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you're still in your sins." Then he notes that someone will ask, "How are the dead raised? With what kind of body do they come?" Paul calls that person "foolish". Then Paul uses the same metaphor as Jesus. Jesus' words were, "...unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit." Jesus, of course, was talking about his own death. Paul expands on the idea showing that the seed is much different from the plant that grows from it. And then he moves on with the comparison in verses 42-49.

1 Corinthians 15:42-49, So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. 43 It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. 44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 45 Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 46 But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. 47 The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. 48 As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. 49 Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.

As the metaphore unfolds Paul shows us that he is talking about the resurrection body as being different from the earthly body. He does so by comparing Adam to the resurrected Jesus.

Let me hasten to say that the term "spiritual" does not mean immaterial. Jesus was not a spirit in his resurrection body but he was flesh and bones raised to perfection. Now, let's see how this comparison plays out and what it has to do with us today.

The first man — Adam. Was, at the time of his creation,…

In the image of God. We sometimes forget what Adam was like before he sinned. Listen while I read from the creation account. Genesis 1:26-27, Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. (And verse 31a) And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.

Adam, the federal head of the human race, was created in the image of God. He was given dominion over all creation. Male and female were both resident in the original Adam. In order for there to be a female person something had to be taken from the side of the man, Adam. At the end of each day's creation God said that it was good. At the end of the day when man was created God said that it was very good! Sinless and perfect in every way, Adam and Eve lived in the world as rulers over all creation.

When sin came into the world mankind, who was above all the creation, was…

Fallen. Listen while I read from, Genesis 3:17-24, And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; 18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” 20 The man called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. 21 And the LORD God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them. 22 Then the LORD God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever—” 23 therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. 24 He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.

It's hard to imagine the emotions brought on by the fall of man. Adam and Eve rebelled against God and broke the one rule they were given and immediately they suffered the consequences. They awoke one morning the Lords of creation. Established by God over everything else that was created. At some point during the day they listened to Satan speaking. They doubted God! They believed that God would withhold a good thing from them! They believed a lie spoken by the master liar — Satan himself! And when they did they were immediately experiencing emotions they had never felt before. Suddenly they were ashamed of their bodies! When they heard the voice of the Lord God of the afternoon of that day they do not rush to meet him, instead, they tried to hide themselves from the creator of the universe! They covered their body with leaves and cowered in the shrubbery. They now found themselves to be…

Inherently sinful. Paul describes the immediate consequence of their sin in Romans 5:12-14, Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned— 13 for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. 14 Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come.

Notice that Paul does not say that sin came into the world through one woman! Yet it was Eve who was deceived and drawn into temptation. It was Eve that discovered that the fruit was good for food, a delight to the eyes and desirable because it would make one wise. It was Eve who ate the fruit and gave it to her husband. Eve was deceived! Adam volunteered! It was Adam who had been given instructions by God concerning the tree and its fruit. Therefore, it was Adam who sinned. When he took the fruit and ate sin came into the world and death through sin. Inherited guilt came to the human race! And when that happened death came to all who descended from Adam and Eve. Man, created in the image of God, was now fallen from the loftiest heights imaginable to the depth of degradation and sin and inherently sinful. In an instant the grace of God was removed from mankind and immediately the innocent creation began to suffer. In order to cover man's guilt and shame innocent animals died to give their skin as clothing for the guilty pair.

Just as we inherit body shape, hair color, skin color and so many other things we also inherit Sin! A debt we could not pay was now imposed on the entire human race. We needed a Redeemer! The first man, Adam, brought sin and death into the world and we needed…

The second man — Jesus. The Offspring of the woman was…

Promised. Listen while I read Genesis 3:15, I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”

From the beginning of creation God had a plan to meet the needs of sinful man. That plan included hostility between Satan and the woman, Eve. And here, at the beginning, God promised an offspring from the woman who would bruise the head of Satan. What the human race needed was a new family, a new federal head — Jesus Christ the son of God.

That promise was fulfilled. One of the best descriptions of the coming of the son of God is found in Galatians 4:4-6, But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!”

God sent forth his son. Not as a conqueror on a white horse leading an army of angels to destroy his enemies. He sent a baby, born in a stable, born of a woman, born under the law in order to provide redemption. Sent forth his son! The concept is hard to imagine! The creator of the universe entered into a Virgin's womb, was born in a stable, raised in the house of a carpenter in a minor village of an obscure Roman province. He remained in obscurity except for a brief incident at the age of twelve. He worked with his hands as a carpenter until he was 30 years old. And all things he was…

Pleasing to the Father. Let's read the words of Scripture found in Matthew 3:13-17, Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. 14 John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. 16 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; 17 and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

The apostle John adds an interesting note to this event. When John the Baptizer saw Jesus coming toward him he immediately knew, perhaps for the first time, who Jesus really was. And he said, "Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world." He saw that Jesus, his cousin, was not just a boy he grew up with. This Jesus was the sacrifice required for Adam's sin inherited by all of us and for the sins we all commit and cannot pay for ourselves. John saw that Jesus was the answer to the question of sin's guilt.

Getting back to Matthew, we see that John hesitated because he knew that he needed Jesus' baptism. John baptized with the baptism of repentance but only Jesus could cover man's sin. Jesus ordered him to go ahead, not because Jesus needed to repent, but in order to fulfill all righteousness. In other words, to do what was right in the plan of God.

And when they did this heaven opened, the Spirit of God descended onto the scene, and a voice — the voice of God — said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased"! What was it God said after the creation of Adam? He saw everything that he had created, completed by the creation of man, and he said that it was very good.

Now, the Lamb of God is introduced to the world to walk the dusty roads of Galilee and Judea, oh yes, and Samaria as well. He lived among them a perfect life with no sin of his own. He taught them what only God could teach. He confirmed his teaching with multiple miracles. And finally, he came back to Jerusalem to be taken into custody, to be beaten and crucified. Then on the third day he rose from the dead proving that he had power over sin and death. He received his resurrection body in a tomb just outside Jerusalem on the first Easter morning. Now, God could provide…

Redemption in Christ.

Transferred citizenship. We were born sons and daughters of Adam and Eve and as such received our inheritance from them. We were born dead in trespasses and sins. But when Jesus came… Listen to what Paul wrote to the Colossians. Colossians 1:13-14, He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

You see we were born in the kingdom of darkness. Now, because of the work of Christ on the cross in the grave and through the power of the resurrection we can be delivered from the domain of darkness. God transfers those of us who come to him through faith into the kingdom of his beloved Son!

Now we have a new family. I remember how clearly Miss Bertha Smith illustrated the concept. She put up a flannel board. Oh, I know, the younger ones can't even imagine what that means. Just imagine that she put up a large touchscreen tablet and this will all make sense to you.

On the flannel board she put many cutouts of the Chinese character for "man". They were all black because they were born dead in trespasses and sins. Then, she placed a cross up on the board along with an image of a tomb and she explained that Jesus died on the cross for the sins of man. Then she said that when a person believes on the Lord Jesus Christ they are taken to the cross and placed there with Jesus. From there the little image of the man was taken to the tomb and then brought out covered in white. In so doing she demonstrated the…

Transformed image. Listen while I read 2 Corinthians 3:18, And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

Do you ever wonder why all these things happen to you? I used to have a large button with the letters PBPWMGIFWMY on it. Occasionally someone would ask, "What on earth does that mean?" And I would tell them that those letters mean Please Be Patient With Me God Isn't Finished With Me Yet. Thank God he has better plans for us than we currently are enjoying. In 2nd Corinthians 3:18 we are told to look on the glorified Jesus because we are being transformed into the same image. Amazing! We are being transformed into the image of Jesus! That being true God certainly isn't finished with me yet! Yes, God himself is transforming us from one degree of glory to another. One day we will be glorified with him and…

Transported with him. What will my resurrection body be like? How did Paul describe it to the Philippians? Listen while I read Philippians 3:20-21, But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.

Remember last week's sermon? We are already, in God's eyes, raised up with Jesus and seated with him in heavenly places. We have been naturalized as citizens of heaven. The power of God raised Jesus from the dead with a new body, a resurrected body, a glorious body and that same power will transform our lowly body to be like his.

John said the same thing, perhaps a little simpler,

1 John 3:2, Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.

Now we are God's children and when he appears we shall be like him. What happens in the meantime? Do we wait for the resurrection? I certainly don't have all the answers but I do know something of what the Scriptures teach by illustration. When Saul asked the witch of Endor to call up the spirit of Samuel and it really happened, much to her amazement. Saul recognized Samuel when he appeared. When Jesus took Peter, James and John up on the mount of Transfiguration they recognized Moses and Elijah.

When Jesus told the story of the rich man and Lazarus, the rich man, in hell, looked into paradise (how horrible that must be! To be in hell and see paradise) he recognized Lazarus, the beggar that had lain at his gate, along with Abraham. In every case these people looked as they had before they died.

I do not believe we turn into ghosts, or spirits, at death. And we certainly do not become angels! The Scriptures teach that to be away from the body is to be present with the Lord. There is no sleeping in the grave nor is there a spirit world we will live in. Jesus turned to the believing thief on the cross and told him, "…today you will be with me in paradise." In Revelation we are told that paradise is a physical place where we will be able to eat fruit from the tree of life. But that's another sermon.

John tells us, "what we will be has not yet appeared." However, we have a lot of evidence that Jesus had a physical body with "flesh and bones", and he could eat and drink, break bread, prepare breakfast, and be touched. Jesus rose from the tomb in the same physical body that had died. He repeatedly appeared to his disciples over a period of 40 days in that same physical body. He ascended into heaven in that same physical body and promises to return again in the same manner. Jesus clearly shows us that his resurrection body was a physical body. Remember, at salvation, we are raised up with him and seated with him in heavenly places. Paul told the Philippians that he will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body. I don't know about you but I daily grow more eager to be transformed. Put your faith in him who died for you that you might have life eternally.

All scripture quotes are from:The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001. Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.

130414 Evidence for the Resurrection

1 Corinthians 15:1-8, 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, 5. And that 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.

It is interesting to me that in the first century questions were raised and answered about the validity of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. I have often said that if Jesus were not raised then the Romans would have produced the body. The Romans ran a very tight government and controlled everything around them for hundreds of years. They had no regard for civil rights or human rights and would have crushed this new religion if there was no resurrection. Paul now tells us of the eyewitnesses he knew about. So far as we know, Paul was not in Jerusalem at the time of Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection. I believe he would've made mention of it if he had been there. Now, he lists for us several eyewitnesses.

The empty tomb is one evidence of the resurrection but it is not proof of the resurrection. There are ways it could be explained. Over the centuries the empty tomb has been explained in many ways beginning with the religious leaders saying that Jesus' disciples stole the body. Everybody knows that crowd was not even brave enough to stand up for him much less overcome a troop of guards and hide his body and then "pretend" that he had been raised from the dead. No one person, much less a group of people, would be able to act with boldness and courage even to death to defend a lie! Paul's arguments were based on Scripture and eyewitnesses. Eyewitness testimony is the best testimony in any questionable situation. The more witnesses the better. Now Paul said that certain things happened…

According to the Scriptures. Paul patterned his life after the teaching of Scripture and we must also. If your faith is simply a matter of your own opinion it is empty and useless. If your faith is based on the living Word of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Bible will come alive to you as the written Word of God. According to the Scriptures…

Christ died for our sins. Listen while I read from the prophet Zechariah 13:7, “Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, against the man who stands next to me,” declares the LORD of hosts. “Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; I will turn my hand against the little ones. (see also Isaiah 53)

About five hundred years before the birth of Christ (in the case of Isaiah 700 years) a very clear prophecy was put forth about the servant of the Lord, or the shepherd. In both cases God's servant (Jesus) would suffer and die. Isaiah goes into more detail by clearly presenting what happened to Jesus. Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures and according to the Scriptures…

He was raised on the third day. Listen while I read from Peter's sermon on the day of Pentecost. Acts 2:22-32, “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— 23. this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. 24. God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it. 25. For David says concerning him, “‘I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken; 26. Therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; my flesh also will dwell in hope. 27. For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One see corruption. 28. You have made known to me the paths of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’ 29. “Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30. Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, 31. he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. 32. This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses.

Peter clearly understood the words of David as predicting that Jesus would be raised up. And they stood before the crowd as eyewitnesses of the resurrected Christ. Jesus himself saw the symbolism of Jonah being three days in the belly of the fish as picturing, or foreshadowing, his own descent into the grave and resurrection on the third day.

The evidence is overwhelming that…

Jesus appeared alive after his crucifixion.

To Cephas (Peter). The various eyewitness accounts give a different sequence of appearances. Paul wasn't trying to accurately list in chronological order the appearances of Jesus but simply to provide proof of the evidence for his resurrection. Listen while I read from Luke's account. Luke 24:33-35, And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, 34. Saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” 35. Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread.

Here we find the gospel historian, Luke, recording what he had been told of the eyewitnesses. The people in this story were the two men on their way to Emmaus who were intercepted by Jesus. Jesus had told them, from all the Scriptures, the things concerning himself. He began by saying that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and enter into his glory. They had heard the women say that Jesus was raised from the dead but left town without any further proof. When Jesus broke bread with them they suddenly understood who he was and rushed back into town to tell the others of their experience only to find that they had missed seeing him in the upper room. However, I'm sure their walk and talk on the road to Emmaus would burn in their hearts until they stood before the throne in heaven. And then, as they recounting this Jesus appeared…

To all the twelve. Listen while I read further, Luke 24:36-43, As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!” 37. But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. 38. And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39. See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” 40. And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. 41. And while they still disbelieved for joy and were marveling, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” 42. They gave him a piece of broiled fish, 43. And he took it and ate before them.

Oh, how wonderful it would have been to be in that room when the living Lord Jesus stood in their midst and proved that he wasn't a ghost. He encouraged them to look at his feet and his hands. Though he now lived in his resurrection body he still has the scars that he earned atoning for our sin. I suspect that part of our being like him when he returns will include scars earned in service to him. His heavenly body, or resurrection body, still has flesh and bones but they are perfect flesh and bones! Yes, Jesus appeared to the twelve after he had appeared to Simon Peter and the women and the two disciples on the road to Emmaus.

Paul goes on to say that at one point Jesus appeared to above five hundred brothers at one time and that most of them were still alive at the time of Paul's writing to the Corinthians. During the next 40 days Jesus would appear…

To many more. Luke wrote the gospel that bears his name and he also wrote the Book of Acts. Listen while I read from the beginning of that book. Acts 1:1-3, In the first book, (The Gospel of Luke) O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2. Until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3. He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.

Jesus' disciples saw him many times during the 40 days he walked on earth after his resurrection. He did this to prove beyond a shadow of doubt that he was alive. You see, many of them had seen him being beaten and abused in the courtyard and through the streets of Jerusalem. Many of them had seen him hanging on the cross and saw the soldier push the spear into his side. They had seen him die! They had seen Nicodemus and Joseph take him down off the cross and take him away to Joseph's tomb. And, by the way, that too was according to the Scriptures. Isaiah had said, "…they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death," All of this had happened in the presence of the eyewitnesses who later became the eyewitnesses of his life in victory over death!

All of this became a large part of…

Paul's gospel. Paul did not speak of "the gospel". Instead, he spoke of "my gospel" and he considered it to be unique. It was the gospel…

That he preached. Listen to what Paul wrote to the Corinthians. 1 Corinthians 1:20-25, Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21. For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. 22. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23. But we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24. But to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

God, in his wisdom, had turned away from human wisdom and instead had turned to what the world thinks of as foolishness. The world demands some kind of demonstration of God's power to convince them. Like the crowd by the seashore whom Jesus fed with the lad's lunch. They would follow him if he gave them some demonstration of power. Paul preached Christ crucified, buried and raised again. And he wanted us to understand that this risen Lord is alive.

What he taught them was the same gospel that has been taught around the world in thousands of different cultures and languages for the past 2000 years. It doesn't matter where you turn for evidence everyone is saved by grace through faith in the living Lord Jesus Christ and not by works of righteousness.

The gospel Paul preached is the same as…

That which we received. The simplest presentation of the gospel is found in what we call the "Roman Road" look at the simple power for salvation found in the gospel we received. Romans 3:23, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God All includes everybody! The standard is set too high for a human to reach. Because the standard of perfection is the glory of God. Without a doubt all fall short of that standard. We are all in the same boat and faced with the same justice! Look at Romans 6:23, For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. As Jerry Clower would say, "If that's the case we are in a heap of trouble." All have sinned and the wages of sin is death. We are all in a hopeless mess. It's good news that the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus but how do we get there? Look at, Romans 5:8, but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. What a great demonstration of love. Without waiting for mankind to become good (which would be a hopeless wait) in fact, while we were still sinners Christ died for us. He took our sins into his own body and nailed them to the cross. In so doing he put them as far away from us as the east is from the west or, in another example, he put them in the bottom of the sea. Both of those are Old Testament prophecies. The wages sin is death. All have sinned. If we pay the price for our sin we are dead! Jesus paid the debt he did not owe and we could not pay. So that, we find in Romans 10:9-10, … if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.

Never say, about salvation, "You simply have to…". There is nothing simple about the perfect Son of God paying the price for our sin. There's nothing simple about speaking the words, "Jesus is Lord". There needs to be a sense of God's call, or drawing, of a person to salvation and a change in their heart that causes them to believe that God raised Jesus from the dead. And with such belief they can proclaim that Jesus as their Lord and Savior. This was the gospel…

That Paul had received. Paul wrote to the Galatians the following words. Galatians 1:11-12, For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man's gospel. 12. For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.

"… Not man's gospel." There are lots of human teachers who present a false gospel usually based on giving them wealth and power. Paul would have none of that! He did not receive his gospel at Bible school or seminary. He was an opponent of the gospel to the point of bringing people to trial and execution for simply believing in Jesus Christ. On the road to Damascus Paul was struck down by Jesus himself and called to salvation. He spent three years preaching "his Gospel" before he went up to Jerusalem to meet with the apostles. When he did they did not correct anything he had been teaching. He left Jerusalem and spent another 12 years preaching without any apostolic direction before he was brought into prominence as an elder of the church in Antioch.

Everywhere Paul went he preached Jesus and the resurrection. It didn't matter whether he was talking to workers on the street or speaking to the philosophers on Mars Hill in Athens he preached the same thing because only in that message is there power to change the heart and mind of fallen mankind. The resurrection is absolutely essential!

If Christ was not raised then Christianity is an empty shell and our faith is empty as well. Religion has some value in that it provides spiritual discipline for its followers. However, a religion that is not focused on the living Lord Jesus Christ is ultimately empty. This is not a human opinion it is based on the word of God. Peter stood before the ruling Council and said, "… there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." Only in Christ Jesus is salvation. The greatest evidence for the resurrection is a life that has been changed by faith in Jesus Christ. Turn to him in faith and he will receive you and save you.

All scripture quotes from:The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001. Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.