1 Corinthians 15:20-34 What the Resurrection Means for You
10/24/04 D. Marion Clark
Introduction
What do you hope for? A good job? A good marriage? Financial security? Good health? What makes the top of your list? It is an important question, because what we hope for influences how we live, as we shall see.
Text
But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
You can picture Paul now slamming his fist in his other hand and pacing the floor as he dictates this line. “But in fact…” He doesn’t say, “But in my opinion” or “Let me suggest” or, as liberals like to say, “It is meaningful to me to think that Christ has been raised.” No! Christ has been raised, and that’s a fact!
And what more, he is the first to rise of many others who have died. His resurrection signals a resurrection for all others who have died in him. Paul then explains.
21 For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.
Adam is the head of the human race. By living in obedience to God, he was to pass on the blessing of eternal life that God would have bestowed on the human race. Instead, he sinned, and far from passing on the blessing of life, he passed on the curse of death. Thus, in Adam (as descendants of Adam) all die. But Christ, as head of the redeemed race, has restored the blessing of eternal life, so that all who are in Christ through faith shall be resurrected from the dead.
The fates of Adam and Christ represent the fates of their people. Adam died; Christ died, but he rose from the dead. The whole human race must die; but those who are in Christ will rise again. But they do not merely represent our fates. They are responsible for them. By his disobedience, Adam brought death; by his obedience, Christ brought life. Therefore, Christ is not merely the first to be resurrected. It is his resurrection that makes ours possible. Paul goes on to elaborate:
23 But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.
Christ’s resurrection comes first; at his second coming, our resurrection will also occur. The theologian I quoted last week presented Paul as teaching that Jesus was but the first of a general resurrection that had already begun. That general resurrection has not begun. It is ready to begin at God’s timing, and the event that will kick start it is Jesus’ second coming. Besides the resurrection of his people, here is what Christ will do:
24 Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death. 27 For “God has put all things in subjection under his feet.” But when it says, “all things are put in subjection,” it is plain that he is excepted who put all things in subjection under him. 28 When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God may be all in all.
What will Christ do? He will deliver the kingdom over to his Father. Right now, God the Son reigns over God’s kingdom. He is, even now, continuing the work that he began at his resurrection – overcoming “every rule and every authority and power” that exists and works against God’s kingdom. This is his work as our King. He has already struck Satan’s head by his sacrifice and resurrection. Now he continues to direct the advance of his kingdom against the gates of hell – against the spiritual rulers who are Satan’s demons and against whatever power there may be that is part of the curse on mankind and creation. The last enemy to be destroyed will be death itself. Death will die. At that time, when all things have been brought under subjection of Christ, he will turn them and himself over to the Father to be under God the Father’s subjection. Thus, God may be all in all. By him and for him are all things.
These are inspiring words. The ones that follow, however, are perplexing.
29 Otherwise, what do people mean by being baptized on behalf of the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized on their behalf?
This verse seems to come out of nowhere. It is perplexing for two reasons. First, the theology it implies is contradictory to what the Bible teaches about baptism. For all the debates that Christians have about baptism – who should be baptized, the mode, its ramifications, etc. – there simply is nothing to support the idea of the dead needing or profiting from a living person standing in for them for baptism. Such a concept is not debated among Christians, because no one can come up with supporting Scripture other than this one obscure reference. How many references are needed? Shouldn’t one be enough? This doctrine certainly needs more. If in truth, it is essential for the dead to be baptized by proxy in order to obtain the resurrection of eternal life, it is unexplainable that the Bible would have no other teaching or even implication about it.
The second reason for it being such a curiosity is that there is no known record of the practice ever taking place outside this reference. The early church had more than its share of heretical groups and practices, but this one has yet to be discovered. How could a practice that is true and essential for salvation not have a single record of being carried out?
But Paul appears to be making reference to something that is happening in the Corinth Church. Some persons are practicing baptism for the dead. Why, then, does Paul not condemn the practice? Perhaps he has. This is not the only letter to the Corinthians. My own thought is that these practitioners are the very persons teaching that there is no resurrection of the dead. Paul’s purpose here, then, is to demonstrate the absurdity of their practice in light of their own teaching. Thus, he is saying, “What is this I hear about baptism on behalf of the dead? And yet you teach there is no resurrection of the dead? What on earth for?”
Paul then turns to himself. If there is no resurrection of the dead, what on earth is he doing risking his life for the gospel?
30 Why am I in danger every hour? 31 I protest, brothers, by my pride in you, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die every day! 32 What do I gain if, humanly speaking, I fought with beasts at Ephesus?
How tough was Paul’s life? Here is a quick list he put together in 2 Corinthians 11:23-28:
…imprisonments…countless beatings, and often near death. 24 Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; 26 on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; 27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. 28 And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches.
But otherwise, he had it easy! So strongly Paul feels right now, he makes an oath using his true pride for his Corinthian children. “I am telling the truth. I die every day for my Lord and for the people he has given me. What am I gaining if there is no resurrection? What wealth am I accumulating? What comforts? What pleasures? It is as though I’ve been fighting ‘wild beasts’ in Ephesus, the attacks against me have been so bad.” And you want to tell me there is no resurrection? Well then…
If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”
Live like the pagans. Take what pleasures we can get now. If there is no resurrection, living for tomorrow makes no sense.
33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” That is, the bad teaching of bad company ruins good morals, which is what is happening to you. You really are becoming like pagans. Your obsessive focus on being “spiritual people” have made you like the worse of fleshly sinners. You engage in sexual immorality; you break up marriages and families; you sue one another; you shame one another and lead each other into sin. See what your false doctrines are doing to you.
34 Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning. For some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame.
“Wake up to what is happening! You are drunk. You don’t know what you have become. These teachers with their supposed superior revelation and wisdom don’t know what they are talking about. They don’t know God. I say this to your shame, I who am your spiritual Father. I who take pride in you, my children.”
Do you feel Paul’s pain? Do you sense the emotions he feels for his spiritual children who have been spiraling downward morally and spiritually through the false teaching of some leaders in the church? He loves these people, and he anguishes over the path they are taking. They think they have chosen the higher road of spirituality, when, in truth, they have taken the lower road of the flesh.
Lessons
There are a number of lessons we can take from this passage. One is to take to heart the importance of right doctrine. The Corinthians present a clear case study of how bad doctrine leads to bad behavior. It is tough enough to obey the commandments of God with the handicap of Satan, the world, and the flesh hanging on to us. But when we get off kilter doctrinally, our sinful disposition is all the more encouraged. We’ll use sexual immorality (a special problem for the Corinthians) to illustrate.
It is difficult, to say the least, to live a sexually chaste life. Satan certainly uses sexual temptation to lead us astray. The world not only makes temptation available, but aggressively puts it in front of us trying to lure us into sin. And then our flesh is ready at any time to carry out its urges. Fighting off sexual immorality is a hard enough battle when we know the enemy. But false doctrine makes us lose sight of the enemy. Because of their skewered view of spirituality, the Corinthians waltzed into sexual sin. Christians do the same today.
The heretical doctrine that we have become entrapped in is that we are to determine what is right for us by the feelings of the heart. This, of course, is the world’s philosophy, but we have made it ours as well. Now that we are in Christ and he has given us a new heart, should we not be able to depend on the way we feel? Now that the Holy Spirit is in us, should we not be in tune with the Spirit of God and know what he is communicating to us? We pepper our speech with such language. “God told me…to move, to go to the store, to leave my job, to change my major.” We speak as confidently about these heart communications as we do about the teachings of Scripture. But these are minor examples. Others are: “God told me to leave my wife.” “I prayed about moving in with my boyfriend and felt at peace about it.” “I can’t defend my homosexual lifestyle from the Scriptures, but I know it must be okay. Why else would I have these feelings?” And thus, professing Christians no longer struggle against sexual sin, but engage in it feeling justified by false doctrine.
Sexual sin is but one example. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that because your eyes are open about that one, that you miss your particular sin. We would all do well to examine and re-examine both our doctrine and the behavior that comes from it.
Another lesson is the importance of keeping before us the true hope of the Christian, which encompasses the resurrection of the dead. Consider these two passages:
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. 23 And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved (Romans 8:18-24).
But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep (1 Thessalonians 4:13-14).
The Romans passage presents us and creation as groaning in our present decaying bodies. Our hope is for the redemption of our bodies. In this hope of resurrection and redemption we are saved. The Thessalonians passage urges us not to grieve as others who have no hope about what happens after death. It distinctly says that because Jesus died and rose, we know that all who die in him will rise again and be present when he returns.
Brothers and sisters, that is our hope for ourselves. That is the ultimate goal for which we strive. Don’t lose sight of that hope. Don’t let the troubles of this world cover your eyes to what really matters – eternal joy, peace, and freedom from all pains. Don’t let the pleasures of this world make you lose focus on what is the real treasure – our glorious inheritance in Christ Jesus. Our Lord will return in glory, and we will be raised in glorious bodies. Neither the sufferings nor the pleasures of this present time are worthy comparing with the eternal glory and joy that await us at the Resurrection Day. All of us have turned to Christ in a large measure because of what we experience today. We count our daily blessings. Turning to Jesus helped us to cope with sorrow or overcome a besetting sin. Now that our lives are straightened out, we experience better relationships and peace of mind. These are good things, but they are only the appetizers while waiting for the main course. Someday we will sit (clothed with our resurrected bodies) at the banquet table with our Lord. The full meal will be before us and we will never experience hunger again.
So when hard times get you down, remember your real hope of everlasting peace. When your body is ill, remember your real hope of a redeemed body that is never in pain. And you feel great and life seems to be going your way, remember your real hope in eternal life in the presence of your Lord. It is for a better city that you journey through this life.
Finally, see the greatness of God the Son who is Lord over all and yet finds his glory in submitting to God the Father. Listen to this description of what God the Father did for his Son:
[God] worked [his great might] in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all (Ephesians 1:20-23).
When all is fulfilled and Christ has achieved all glory, all victory, he will turn to his Father, and say, “This kingdom is yours. Your will be done.” That’s what is has always been about for our Lord. God’s will be done. To do his Father’s will is his highest joy. Truly, what joy and love flow between the Father and the Son. What joy and love flow to us because of their love. Because the Son loves his Father, he dies for our sin. Because the Father loves the Son, he raises him from the dead and will raise us. Because the Father and the Son love us, we share in the hope of the Son that gave him the strength to endure the cross – the hope of resurrection and glory. And what is required of us? To reach out in faith and receive the hope. To make that hope our greatest joy for which we live.
