IF CHRIST HAD NOT RISEN FROM THE DEAD : UNDERSTANDING THE IMPORTANCE OF THE RESURRECTION
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OUTLINE
1. THERE WOULD BE NO GOSPEL TO PREACH
2. OUR FAITH WOULD BE IN VAIN
3. ALL THOSE WHO PROCLAIM THE GOSPEL WOULD BE LIARS
4. THERE WOULD BE NO SALVATION FOR OUR SOULS
5. ALL THOSE WHO DIED IN CHRIST ARE LOST
6. BELEIVERS WOULD BE THE MOST PITIABLE PEOPLE ON EARTH
7. THERE WOULD BE NO NEWNESS OF LIFE AND OUR BAPTISM WOULD BE MEANINGLESS
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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1 CORINTHIANS 15:12-19, 29-32
But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?
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.
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.
Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost.
If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.
Now if there is no resurrection, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized for them?
And as for us, why do we endanger ourselves every hour?
I die every day—I mean that, brothers—just as surely as I glory over you in Christ Jesus our Lord.
If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus for merely human reasons, what have I gained? If the dead are not raised, "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die."
THE MESSAGE
IF CHRIST HAD NOT RISEN FROM THE DEAD : UNDERSTANDING THE IMPORTANCE OF THE RESURRECTION
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1. THERE WOULD BE NO GOSPEL TO PREACH
If Christ had not risen from the dead ,there would no gospel to preach. All our preaching would be useless as we cannot preach the gospel of salvation and healing and deliverance and blessing without a living Christ. A dead Christ cannot help suffering humanity.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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1 CORINTHIANS 15:12-14 , 16
But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?
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.
For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either.
2. OUR FAITH WOULD BE IN VAIN
If Christ had not risen from the dead , then all our faith would be in vain . There would be no basis for our faith and confidence. We cannot trust in a dead Christ to be with us in our time of trouble to deliver us.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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1 CORINTHIANS 15:14
And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.
1 PETER 1:21
Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.
HEBREWS 13:5-6
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."
So we say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?"
3. ALL THOSE WHO PROCLAIM THE GOSPEL WOULD BE LIARS
If Christ had not risen from the dead , all those who proclaim the gospel would be liars. Even the great apostles would become liars , because they preached the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We cannot go to all nations and boldly preach the gospel if Christ was dead. It is the presence of the living Christ who has all authority in heaven and earth which enables us to proclaim the gospel with confidence to the ends of the earth.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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1 CORINTHIANS 15:15
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.
MATTHEW 28:18-20
Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
REVELATION 1:18
I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.
4. THERE WOULD BE NO SALVATION FOR OUR SOULS
If Christ had not risen from the dead , there would be no salvation for our souls. We would still be in our sins. Faith in the resurrection of Christ is essential to our salvation. Without a resurrected Christ , we would still be sinners without hope of eternal life.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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1 CORINTHIANS 15:17
And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.
ROMANS 10:9
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.
ROMANS 4:22-25
This is why "it was credited to him as righteousness."
The words "it was credited to him" were written not for him alone,
but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.
He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.
5. ALL THOSE WHO DIED IN CHRIST ARE LOST
If Christ had not risen from the dead , all those who died in Christ are lost. We would have no hope concerning our loved ones who died beleiving in Christ. We would have no assurance that they are in the presence of God or that we would see them again one day when Christ returns. We would unable to comfort those in sorrow as we would have no hope concerning those have died. It is the resurrection of Christ that gives us hope concerning those who died in the Lord and enables us to comfort those who mourn.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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1 CORINTHIANS 15:18
Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost.
1 THESSALONIANS 4:13-18
Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.
We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.
According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.
Therefore encourage each other with these words.
6. BELEIVERS WOULD BE THE MOST PITIABLE PEOPLE ON EARTH
If Christ had not risen from the dead , beleivers would be most pitiable people on earth. We would have no hope concerning our own resurrection. All the suffering and the sacrifices and services we have made for the Lord would be in vain. If there was no reward for us in eternity and death was the end of everything , then we might as well live selfishly and enjoy all the pleasures of this world. There would be no difference between the righteous and the wicked. But because Christ rose from the dead, we also have the assurance of the resurrection and surely there is a reward for all our labour and sacrifices for the Lord. All those who lived unjustly and wickedly would face judgement.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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1 CORINTHIANS 15:19, 30-32
If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.
And as for us, why do we endanger ourselves every hour?
I die every day—I mean that, brothers—just as surely as I glory over you in Christ Jesus our Lord.
If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus for merely human reasons, what have I gained? If the dead are not raised, "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die."
LUKE 14:12-14
Then Jesus said to his host, "When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid.
But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind,
and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."
JOHN 5:28-29
"Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice
and come out—those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.
ACTS 17:30-31
In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.
For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead."
7. THERE WOULD BE NO NEWNESS OF LIFE AND OUR BAPTISM WOULD BE MEANINGLESS
If Christ had not risen from the dead , there would be no newness of life and our baptism would be useless. when we are baptized we identify with the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We shed our old way of living and enter into a new and transformed way of life. we experience a total transformation in our lifestyle and our value system. All these experiences take place because of the work of the living Christ who resides in our hearts. If Christ had not risen from the dead , then we cannot experience any newness of life and our baptism would be meaningless.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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1 CORINTHIANS 15:29
Now if there is no resurrection, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized for them?
ROMANS 6:3-10
Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?
We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection.
For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin—
because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.
Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.
For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him.
The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.
2 CORINTHIANS 5:17
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
COLOSSIANS 3:1-3
Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.
For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
EPILOGUE
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Since Christ has risen from the dead , we also have the assurance of resurrection in our own lives. Our bodies will experience a five-fold transformation at the resurrection .
1. Our bodies will be sown in corruption and raised in incorruption.
2. Our bodies will be sown in dishonour and raised in glory.
3. Our bodies will be sown in weakness and raised in power.
4. Our bodies will be sown a natural body and raised a spiritual body.
5. Our bodies will be sown as a mortal body and raised as an immortal body.
Morever during our lifetime on earth we can experience the power of the resurrection in our life. The Holy Spirit will quicken our mortal bodies. The Apostle Paul was eagerly longing to experience the power of the resurrection in his own life. He also prayed that the beleivers would receive enlightenment concerning the incredibly great power that is at work in their lives. The Lord wants us to live our lives in the service of the resurrected Christ and bear witness to the resurrection of Christ with great power.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
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JOHN 11:25-26
Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies;
and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"
1 CORINTHIANS 15:42-44,53
So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable;
it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power;
it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.
For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality.
ROMANS 8:11
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.
PHILIPPIANS 3:10-11
I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,
and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.
EPHESIANS 1:15-23
For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints,
I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.
I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.
I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints,
and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength,
which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms,
far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.
And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church,
which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
2 CORINTHIANS 5:14-15
For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died.
And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.
ACTS 4:33
With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all.
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