O Grave! where is thy Victory?
1 Corinthians 15:51-58
When Paul heard of what was going on in the Church at Corinth which he had founded, he must have wondered whether he had just wasted a year and a half of his life establishing the church. The church was divided into factions. Some held to Paul, others Apollos, others Cephas (Peter), and others Christ. There was moral depravity in the church. Members in the church were suing other members in court. People were boasting about the spiritual gifts as though this made them better than everyone else. The church met at the Lord’s Supper and were seated according to social rank. And what was worse than all this, there were those who denied the resurrection of Jesus Christ. After fourteen chapters of dealing with the former problems, he spends the long 15th chapter dealing with the resurrection of the dead. Of all the issues in the church, this was the most vital.
Paul in this chapter rebukes sharply those who denied the bodily resurrection of Jesus. without the resurrection of Jesus, then there is no resurrection of anyone. Without the resurrection, there is no forgiveness of sins either. What is the use of coming together as a church if they denied the resurrection? Did Paul suffer rejection, beatings, imprisonments, an shipwreck to start a philosophical debate club?
Paul goes on to present evidence of Jesus’ bodily resurrection. In this, he agrees with the gospels. He does mention additional evidence such as the appearance to James, the Lord’s brother and the appearance to over 500 men at one time. There were a lot of witnesses to the resurrection. Jesus ate fish with them and invited them to handle (grope) Him to prove that He truly arose in a body and not as a phantom. There was something different about His resurrected body as it could appear in the middle of a locked room. Paul affirms that we also will have our mortal bodies transformed at the final resurrection. Jesus rose as the firstfruit from the dead on the Hebrew Day of Firstfruits. His resurrection is a prototype of our resurrection. The firstfruits of the barley harvest is the same grain as the rest of the crop, even though it is set apart as being especially holy. Jesus participated in the weakness of human flesh in a mortal body. He arose in a new immortal body. So shall we. It is called a spiritual body, but it isn’t just a spirit. It will be like His.
At the end of this 15th chapter, we come to today’s text. It begins with the well known: “Behold! I tell you a mystery.” We need to understand here that to Paul, a mystery is something which was once not known and is now been revealed. God now wants us to know this truth. It is not to be kept a mystery.
Paul then tells us that we all shall not sleep (the sleep of death) but we all shall be changed. The pronoun “all” is placed first in the sentence in Greek for emphasis. All of us will not taste death. there will be those who are alive at Christ’s return. Paul affirms in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 which is also implied here in 1 Corinthians 15:52. whether by way of the grave or we remain alive to hear the last trumpet, we shall be transformed.
This transformation will be instantaneous, in the blink of an eye. The Greek actually uses “in an atom.” the atom is the smallest division that can be made. But “in the blink of an eye” is more poetic and soothing. I like the German “augenblink” which says it in a single word. There is no intermediate state. To die in this life is to be with the Lord. when we close our eyes in death, the next awareness will be to be in the presence of God. There is no waiting room in which we have to endure while awaiting the resurrection.
This transformation will occur at the last trumpet. In the old Testament, the trumpet was sounded to announce the beginning of a feast. At the time of a wedding where the groom came to the city of the bride, the best man brought a trumpet which he sounded as the groom was arriving at the bride’s village. That bride was transformed in the sense that until recently, the bride left the surname of her father and took the last name of her husband.
We know that men are continuously trying to find ways to live longer. They are looking to stop the wear and tear on our DNA. They are trying through science and technology to cheat death and live for ever. But what kind of “eternal” life would that be? There can be no quality of life, no matter how long it be prolonged, if we have to live in sinful bodies an a sinful world. Could you imagine having to hear the 6 o’clock news for eternity, a world in which tyrants never die and strife never ends. Huxley’s “Brave New World” does not sound like heaven to me. We would still through violence manage to kill each other, even though our bodies would stop aging. People would commit suicide out of despair to end having to live in such a world.
This is why we need to be totally transformed. It is much more than having an incorruptible body. We will also be transformed in soul and spirit. The world will also be totally transformed as well. There will be no sin or evil there, but joy unspeakable and full of glory, as Peter puts it. This mortal body will put on immortality, and the corruption of our entire being will be made incorruptible, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye. It is then we can sing “O death, where is thy sting! O grave, where is thy victory!” It is said that we are swallowed by death when we die, but God says it is death itself which shall be swallowed up. For this, we give thanks to God through the Lord Jesus Christ. He has given us the victory over sin and death. Death has no sting! The Law no longer condemns.
We mentioned earlier that Paul may have been encouraging himself when he wrote this. Preachers often preach to themselves. Ministry can be very discouraging at times. I can say as a minister coming to the end of my career, that it has caused me wonder whether it was worth the effort. It seems that the victories are few. I am not the only minister who feels this. What do I need to hear to push on in the ministry. It is these words that Paul says in verse 58, that my labor in the Lord is not in vain.I just need to be faithful and do my labor “in the Lord. I must remain steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the Lord. So I take courage from this passage.
The Holy Spirit inspired Paul to write these words for all Christians, not just himself and the preachers. He wrote beyond the local church situation in Corinth. He writes to the church and believers of all ages. He writes this for us. He challenges the weak in faith to become steadfast. I remember reading about Johannes Brahms, a composer who wrote a work called “A German Requiem.” It was a discouraging time for him. He had lost his mother and his friend Robert Schumann, a fellow composer, recently. The mid 1800’s saw German theologians undermining the faith of the people in God and the truth of the Bible.In this work, he tries to find meaning for it all. At one point, the words “Alles fleisch ist wie die Gras” (“All flesh is as the grass) is angrily shouted out. This text comes from Isaiah 40:6. In a chapter which begins with strong words of comfort, Brahms finds this verse on the transitory nature of life. Then in another part, there is the serene “How amiable are Thy tabernacles, O LORD, God of Hosts (Armies). (Psalm 84)The Requiem runs the full gamut f emotions that we feel when we face death. But what is most impressive is his treatment of this passage from 1 Corinthians. The selection ends with the taunt of death “O Grab, wo ist dein seig” (O grave! Where is thy victory?) I don’t know whether Brahms found the peace he so desired, but the work is a masterpiece which should inspire hope in those who listen.
This passage is often cited in funerals, either in the service or at the graveside. It is to comfort those who remain behind that our Christian brother or sister who died, did not die in vain. But funeral services are for the living. They are times for us to come to grips with our loss. It is the realization that all is well with them. But these words also encourage and admonish us to keep the faith, to be steadfast and abounding in the work of the Lord. This helps sooth the sting of death. what seems to be lowering the dead body of our loved one into the earth is being swallowed by the earth is actually the planting of a seed into the earth in hopes of resurrection.
Jesus died and was buried. the disciples were totally distraught. Their faith had utterly failed them. This looked like the end, and now they were in danger. They locked themselves inside as they tried to hide. But we remember on this Easter Sunday that He arose. what seemed to be the end was transformed into a new and glorious beginning. He revealed himself to the disciples on these several occasions. The disciples who were cowards in death were now became lions of courage. they became steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord. It was this certainty which inspired them in face of the many dangers, toils, and snares they would face. Their hope in Jesus was resurrected. they did great works in His name. And when the time of their martydoms came, they could face death with the certainty that they would be with the risen Jesus. Death, which separates us in this world becomes the means of reunion in heaven.
Life is uncertain in this world. It is full of loss, discouragement, and other difficulties. Even in the trials of life in tis world, God still gives us moments of blessing, a foretaste of the greater blessings which await us. But we get weighed down by the affairs of this life, we need to remind each other of the truth of this passage. We have a glorious future. So let us bust ourselves in he work of the Lord.
