
Our Future in the Resurrection
November 24, 2024
1 Corinthians 15:12-34
12 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? 13 If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. 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. 16 For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.
20 But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. 22 For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. 23 But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. 24 Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, 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 he “has put everything under his feet.” Now when it says that “everything” has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ. 28 When he has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all.
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? 30 And as for us, why do we endanger ourselves every hour? 31 I face death every day—yes, just as surely as I boast about you in Christ Jesus our Lord. 32 If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus with no more than human hopes, what have I gained? If the dead are not raised,
“Let us eat and drink,
for tomorrow we die.”
33 Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.” 34 Come back to your senses as you ought, and stop sinning; for there are some who are ignorant of God—I say this to your shame.
Read 1 Corinthians 15:12-19
1. Why is the resurrection of Jesus such an important reality for Paul?
2. In the earliest days of the Church, the Romans and the Jewish religious rulers tried desperately to stop the growth of the problematic ‘sect’ of Jesus followers. Based on Paul’s teaching here, what would have been the most effective way to do that?
3. What would have happened if the Jewish leaders or the Romans had produced Jesus’ dead body and demonstrated that he was not alive as the disciples insisted he was?
Read 1 Corinthians 15:20-28
4. What does it mean that Jesus is the firsfruits of those who have died?
5. If what Jesus experienced in his resurrection is an indicator of what we will experience, what can we learn about our own resurrection? What do we know about the resurrected body of Jesus? What does this suggest about our own resurrection?
6. Verse 28 describes Jesus once again submitting himself to the Father. How many instances in the Bible can you name where Jesus submits himself to the Father or the Father’s will? What does this suggest about how our own interactions with the Father should be conducted?
Read 1 Corinthians 15:29-34
7. Based on these verses, how should our understanding of the resurrection shape the way we experience resistance or persecution for our faith now?
8. “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” To what extent does this phrase resonate with the culture around us today? In view of this passage, what is wrong with this ideology?
9. In your experience, how does bad company corrupt good character? Would the converse be equally true? Does good company cultivate good character? How does this work?