PRIORITY #1 - THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST
1 Corinthians 15:1-20
This is resurrection Sunday, the day of the year where we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. In reality, the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and the power behind the resurrection, is something that should be celebrated every day in the life of the believer. The Bible says that the same Spirit who raised Christ from the dead dwells inside of us. As we ponder the implications of that, it should cause us to leap for joy or do a jig because the Power that raised Christ from the dead lives inside of us! The Holy Spirit. But before I talk about the resurrection of Jesus Christ, I want to take a few minutes to lay the foundation of where we’re going in this study.
For the past month, I’ve been announcing that I feel impressed by the Holy Spirit to do a series of messages titled, “Pentecostal Priorities.” By that I mean things that should be priorities for us as Pentecostals. And over the next several weeks, I’m going to share with you what, in my opinion as I understand Scripture, those priorities should be. You say, “Pastor Jason, this sounds like it’s going to be heavy and boring. Why would you want to do a series of messages on this?”
Well, Pentecostals today are having an identity crisis. The apostles certainly knew who they were and what they had to do after the Day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit descended upon them in the upper room. Those men were transformed into Pentecostal people, thousands of years before there ever was a denomination.
The people who experienced the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at the Azuza Street Revival knew what it meant to be Pentecostal. That Revival sparked a worldwide movement with presently over 500,000,000 people worldwide claiming to be Pentecostal, and that number is growing.
The early fathers of the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada and the Assemblies of God knew what it meant to be Pentecostal as they traveled from shore to shore planting churches and seeing the Holy Spirit descend. But today, “Pentecostal” people have no clue as to what the “Pentecostal Experience” is all about. When asked, “What makes you a Pentecostal?”, the response of the majority of people today is, because my church is PAOC Church. I believe with all my heart folks, that the power of the Early Church needs to be restored, and that will only happen when Pentecostal believers know who they are. That is the reason, by the Spirit’s prodding, that I feel a need for this kind of preaching.
All of that being said, there really is only one Pentecostal Priority. This is the foundation. All of the priorities that I am going to share with you in the coming weeks are built on this foundation. Listen carefully, because this is important.
I have taken this partly from Charles T. Crabtree’s excellent book, “The Pentecostal Priority.”
Matthew 28:18 says, “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” These words immediately precede the famous passage that we know as “The Great Commission,” where He instructed the apostles to teach all nations the truth of God by teaching people to obey God’s commandments and to baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, promising to be with them to the end of the age. Keep in mind that this takes place before His ascension, and ten days prior to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. He’s getting them ready for Pentecost.
The main purpose of these coming “Pentecostals” was the preaching of the Gospel. And that’s what happened. The apostles obeyed Christ in this commission. Mark 16:20 says, “Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.” What isn’t mentioned here is that between Mark 16:19 and verse 20, the Day of Pentecost took place. After they became Pentecostals, they preached everywhere and God worked through them with signs following.
This was reiterated to a group of disciples who were confused about the resurrection. You can read about that in Luke 24. Luke 24:44 says, “He said to them, ‘This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.” He saw the fearful and powerless disciples and He knew that the Great Commission would not be accomplished if they remained the way they were. That’s why in Acts 1:8 He gave them a promise of power. Something that would energize them and give them the power to accomplish this Great Commission.
The apostles were asking Christ all kinds of questions that had absolutely no bearing on the fulfillment of their commission. In Acts 1:7 He said, “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by His own authority.” He was telling them to forget about those things and get their minds focused on what really matters. That’s why in Acts 1:8 He said, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Jesus had that commission on His mind and He wanted His disciples to have that commission on their minds. So He promised them power (a reference to the Baptism of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost), and the evidence of this power is the fulfillment of the Great Commission. “The primary evidence was their becoming effective witnesses of Jesus Christ by the power received through the Holy Spirit” (Crabtree 5).
The point is clear in Scripture, if we have any hope of fulfilling the Great Commission, we need the Pentecostal experience mentioned in Acts 2, which we’re going to look at in more detail next time. “Our Pentecostal identity is a baptism in the Holy Spirit for the purpose of identifying with the work and ministry of the Holy Spirit. As witnesses, that work and ministry is to present Christ and all He is and means to a lost and dying world. That is the Pentecostal Priority” (Crabtree 5).
We must have a clear understanding of this if we’re going to know who we are in Christ as Pentecostals. I’m not talking denomination here, I’m talking about being identified with the Holy Spirit through the Pentecostal experience. This is the Pentecostal Priority.
That being said, all the priorities that I am going to share with you over the next several weeks will be built on this foundation and all will aid us in fulfilling our destiny as Pentecostals.
Now, let’s get back to the passage we read at the beginning. 1Corinthians 15. The reality and doctrine of the resurrection is the most important doctrine in Christianity. In fact the apostle Paul says in this passage, in verse 17, “And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.”
Without the resurrection, our faith is futile. That word “futile” is translated from the Greek word “mataios” and it literally means “to no purpose.” Get this! Without the resurrection our meeting here has no purpose! It’s empty. Without the resurrection there is no hope of heaven because we’re all still guilty of sin. If Christ had not risen from the grave, you and I would be condemned to hell and there would be nothing we could do about. Without the resurrection, Christ’s death was an absolute waste of time. Without the resurrection of Jesus Christ there is no remission of sins, no healing of our bodies and no eternity in heaven. Understanding that Christ rose physically from the grave is of utmost importance!
It carries a special meaning for Pentecostals because, as I mentioned a few moments ago, our identity is in the baptism of the Holy Spirit, and our priority is The Great Commission. The Bible says that the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead dwells in us. If Christ had not risen from the grave, there would be no promised Holy Spirit, and the Great Commission becomes a waste of time, energy and resources. Mistakenly, people say that everything hinges on the death of Jesus Christ. But that is only half of this thing called redemption. I’m here today to say that everything hinges on the resurrection! Because without it, the death of Jesus accomplishes nothing!
This amazing passage in 1 Corinthians 15 answers several questions about the resurrection and I want to look at those today. I certainly will not exhaust this subject because it is vast. There are 4 questions that I think need to be answered regarding the resurrection. When did the resurrection happen? Why is the resurrection necessary? Is there proof to substantiate the resurrection? How did Jesus come back to life? Let’s go through each of these.
1. When did the resurrection happen?
This is the easiest of the questions to answer, and though it may seem elementary, it is important! In 1 Corinthians 15:1, Paul said, “Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I have preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand.” Now, this is written in a context of the resurrection. He is talking about the resurrection and he immediately says that it’s the gospel the he preached to them, and it is the gospel on which they have taken their stand. He continues in verse 2, “By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise you have believed in vain.” Belief in the resurrection is necessary for salvation.
Romans 10:9 says, “That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” It’s not simply an acknowledgment of the death of Jesus, it is also an acknowledgment of the resurrection of Jesus. Those 2 things. Nothing more. Nothing less!
In our passage, in verse 2, Paul tells them they are saved if they hold firmly to the word he preached to them. So belief in the resurrection is key! If they didn’t believe it, their belief is in vain.
Verses 3 and 4 answer for us our first question. “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.” So His resurrection occurred on the third day. It’s important to realize this because if He had been raised on the second day or the fourth day, He would not have fulfilled Scripture. So remember that. He was raised back to life and it was on the third day!
2. Why is the resurrection necessary?
There are several reasons why the resurrection is necessary. Let me give them to you.
A. The Fulfillment of Scripture.
The resurrection of Jesus is predicted in the Old Testament. One passage that comes to mind is Psalm 16:10 which says, “Because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay.” That is a reference to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Isaiah 53:11 says, “After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.”
In verse 4 of our passage it says that, “He was raised on the third day according to Scripture.” So the resurrection was necessary to fulfill Scripture.
B. The Forgiveness of Sins.
Have a look at 1 Corinthians 15:17 which says, “And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.” You see, it all hinges on the resurrection. If Jesus just died, and was buried and then nothing else happened, we would still be guilty of our sins and we would all be on our way to hell! The resurrection secures the victory that we have in Jesus.
I want to read a brief paragraph that was given to me this past Wednesday. It was written by our very own Alex Trafford. Listen to this:
“Before Jesus died, He took our sins upon Himself. Then in our stead He died, the penalty for those sins. Then He rose again, those sins now paid for, and the Word now declares us risen with Him, guiltless!”
Isn’t that powerful? He took our sins upon Himself, and died in place of us enduring the penalty of those sins. Three days later He rises again and His Word tells us that we are risen with Him to new life, completely guiltless. If we’re saved, we have the assurance of Christ’s forgiveness in our lives and we’re going to heaven. All possible by the death and resurrection of Jesus. It has to be both of those. Without the resurrection, the death would mean nothing. But because of the resurrection, we are victorious as Christ won the victory over sin and death!
C. The Hope that we have.
Have a look at verse 19. It says, “If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.” There are many atheists out there who believe there is no God and that there is no heaven or hell. If Christ had not risen from the grave, the atheists would be correct! If only for this life we have hope in Christ we are to be pitied more than anyone else. Why? Because the resurrection substantiates Christ’s claims. He claimed to be the Son of God...the resurrection proves it. He claimed that He would forgive us our sins...the resurrection made that possible. He claimed that we would be in heaven with Him someday...the resurrection assures of that. He claimed that He would come again and receive the church unto Himself in an event we call the rapture...the resurrection made that possible as well. If Christ had not risen...then He is not the Son of God; He would not be able to forgive us our sins; there would be no hope of heaven for us; and there would be no rapture! You see why the resurrection is so important?
A lot of people say, “Christianity is just another world religion like Buddhism, Hinduism, Sikhism, and Islam. They all claim to possess the truth. What makes Christianity true and the rest of them false?” That’s a great question and the answer is so simple. If anyone asks you that question, you give them this 5 word answer: “The resurrection of Jesus Christ.” That’s why Christianity is true. If you go to the tomb of Buddha, you will find that his remains are still “resting in peace.” You go to the tomb of Hari Krishna and you will find his remains there. You go to the tomb of the people who started Sikhism, they are still in the grave and if you go to the tomb of Mohammad, he’s still in the grave. But if you go to the tomb of Jesus Christ, that tomb is empty because He physically rose from the grave. He’s not there! He is risen! He is reigning! He is victorious! That’s why Christianity is the truth, because Jesus Christ rose again!
By the way, true Christianity is not a religion, it’s a relationship with the risen Lord!
D. The effectiveness of our preaching.
Look at verse 14. “And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.” I know this sounds redundant, but if Christ had not risen, our faith is useless, and you might as well fire me, because if Christ had not risen from the grave, my preaching is useless. You’re paying me for nothing!
Every sermon you hear from this pulpit or from others, only becomes effective and helpful if Christ had risen from the grave. In just a moment, we’re going to examine some of the proofs of the resurrection. We preach because Christ rose from the grave. Remember the Pentecostal Priority? Identity with the Holy Spirit for the purpose of being Christ’s witnesses? If Christ had not risen from the grave, the Great Commission is useless. Our preaching is useless. Our witness is useless!
There are more reasons why the resurrection is necessary, books could be written and I won’t get into them today. So we looked at when the resurrection took place, and why it had to happen. There is a third question.
3. Is there proof to substantiate the resurrection?
That is a great question! Our passage in 1 Corinthians 15 answers this question to a certain extent, but to get a more complete answer, I will need to quote other passages as well. The proof of the resurrection lies in how many people Jesus appeared to and how many testified to seeing Jesus alive after His death.
He appeared first of all to Mary Magdalene. Mark 16:9 says, “When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons.” So he appears to her first. If you read the rest of that passage, she then goes immediately to the apostles to tell them and they didn’t believe her.
Second, He appeared to two women. In Matthew 28, we have the story of the two women going to the tomb. There was an earthquake and the angel of the Lord appeared and sat on the stone that had been rolled away. Of course the ladies were afraid and the angel told them to not be afraid because Jesus is alive. Matthew 28:8-9 says, “So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. ‘Greetings,’ he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him.”
Third, He appeared to Simon Peter as our text mentions in verse 5. That is substantiated in Luke 24:34 which says, “‘It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.’”
Fourthly, He appeared to two disciples on the road to Emmaus. I won’t take time to read the whole passage, but you can. It’s found in Luke 24:13-31. They didn’t recognize Him at first. They invited Him to stay with them. When they sat down to eat, He took bread, gave thanks and broke it and began to give it to them. Luke 24:31 says, “Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight.”
Fifthly, He appeared to all the apostles except Thomas. John 20:19 says, “On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them.” John 20:24 says, “Now Thomas (called Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came.”
Sixthly, He appeared to all 12 disciples as our text says in verse 5. It is substantiated in John 20:26 which says, “A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “peace be with you.”
Seventh, He appeared to the disciples again on the sea of Tiberias. John 21:1 says, “Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias.”
Eighth, He appeared to the apostles again in Galilee. Matthew 28:16-17 says, “Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.”
Ninth, according to 1 Corinthians 15:6, “After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.” Apparently, there was a gathering, and 500 followers of Christ were there, and He appeared to them all at the same time.
Tenth, according to our passage in verse 7, He appeared to James.
Eleventh, He made another appearance to all of the apostles according to verse 7 of our text. This is substantiated in Acts 1 which you can read for yourselves which is the account of the ascension of Christ to the right hand of God the Father, only after He promised to give them power to be His witnesses.
Finally, according to verse 8 of our passage, Jesus appeared to the apostle Paul on the road to Damascus, and you can read about that account in Acts 9.
There is a vast amount of proof for the resurrection of Jesus having been witnessed by at least 515 people after He rose again.
4. How did Jesus come back to life?
The answer to this question is very simply, the power of the Holy Spirit raised Christ back to life. Romans 8:11 says, “And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, who lives in you.”
It was the Holy Spirit who raised Christ from the dead. The life-giving power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus said to His apostles in Acts 1:8, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you.” What kind of power? The same power that raised Christ from the dead! Resurrection power!
When we become born again, the Holy Spirit, who raised Christ from the dead, dwells in us. But until we can learn to cooperate with the Holy Spirit, we will never know the power that Christ was talking about in Acts 1:8. In Acts 2, 120 people were baptized in the Holy Spirit for the first time and they began to speak in tongues. All of a sudden, these people were energized with resurrection power. They were transformed forever.
That’s why they were able to witness with absolutely no fear. That’s why they endured the persecutions they went through. That’s why signs and wonders followed them wherever they went. That’s why they were able to save the lost, heal the sick, cast out demons and raise the dead back to life. Without that resurrection power of the Holy Spirit, they would not have been able to do these things.
That’s the way God wants us to live. The mandate given to the apostles is the same for us. They were to go into all the world, preaching the truth of Jesus Christ, teaching them to obey His commands. Involved in that is what is mentioned in Mark 16:17-18 which says, “And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.”
If we don’t see these things happen, we’re not operating in resurrection power like the apostles had on the day of Pentecost. Don’t drink deadly poison or pick up snakes. That’s not what Jesus is saying here. What he’s saying is that signs and wonders must follow those who believe. Drive out demons, speak in tongues heal the sick and raise the dead. The Spirit who raised Christ from the dead lives in us!
Conclusion
I hope now that you can see the importance of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is the center of our faith. Today is Easter Sunday! But let’s celebrate the resurrection everyday, by choosing to be “Pentecostal” people and operate in resurrection power!
