“Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel
which I preached to you, which also you received
and in which you stand”
– 1 Corinthians 15:1 –
In 1 Corinthians 15, the apostle Paul presents five great themes:
- He recognizes his unworthiness and affirms that he is an apostle only by the grace of God (vv. 7-11).
- Christ’s resurrection was a historical event, witnessed by many individuals and groups (vv. 3-6).
- Christ’s resurrection is the foundation of our faith and the guarantee that the plan of salvation will be completely fulfilled (vv. 12-22, 24-28).
- At the second coming of the Lord the dead in Christ will rise first (v. 23; 1 Thess. 4:14-16).
- Christ’s return implies the destruction of death (v. 26).
Christ’s resurrection is essential for the Christian faith, because if He did not resurrect, we have nothing to believe, and nothing to announce or wait for (see vv. 15-19). Thanks to God, this event is completely trustworthy.
After His crucifixtion, Jesus was buried in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea by His heartbroken followers. On Sunday, after the crucifixtion, a group of Jesus’s followers found the grave empty. The empty grave is confirmed by ancient independent sources. At different times, different individuals and groups of people witnessed sightings of the risen Christ. The disciples beleived and proclaimed that Jesus had risen from the dead.
Dead does not have the last word; Christ has the last word.
He has resurrected to show us that whoever dies in Him will rise to eternal life. Resurrection means “rising from the grave” and the restoration of full life.
This is a sory of a family that lived in Brasilia, and the mother had to go to Buenos Aires for work. She was working at the headquarters of the South Amrican Division. The son travelled to visit and spend some time with her, because the doctors had found lung cancer and determined that she needed to undergo chemotherapy. She trusted in God’s promises, and had only one request, which was not to suffer and for the Lord to do His will. On Sunday morning, mother and son said goodbye, they prayed together, and as the son left, the mother told him, “Son, please hurry back.”
The son traveled back to Brasilia. On Monday at noontime that daughter of the son called him, and amid tears, told him: “Grandma just passed away.” The son did hurry back, but his mother did not know it. He travelled with his wife from Brasilia to Buenos Aires and arrived at midnight on Monday. There was his mother, resting in the promise to which she always clung. The painful goodbyes were filled with hope. Her last words to her son were, “Son, hurry back.”
My beloved brothers and sisters, if you suffer because of the absence of a loved one you have lost,
remember that the Son of God is not delaying His return.
Strenghten your faith, assert your hope, and accomplish the mission.
In a short while, He will fulfill His promise
and those who rest in Jesus will rise first.
May the Lord bless you…