1 Corinthians 15:12-34
Paul now turned toward a new issue. There were those in the church who believed that – though Jesus raised from the dead – his followers would not.
(The Sadducees were “sad, you see” because they did not believe in the resurrection from the dead. Thank you, @veggietalesofficial .)
And Paul was all, “Then what in the world have I been doing risking my life every day? I’ve been fighting wild beasts over here, y’all. I could have just been eating and drinking and loving life!” {The Stacy translation of v 31-32.)
He goes on to say that, if our faith gives us only earthly hope, people should pity us.
👉 The resurrection means hope for here AND hope for heaven.
If there is no resurrection for believers, then not even Christ was raised (v 13).
And – if Christ was not raised – then (v 14-18)…
• the apostles’ preaching was in vain
• the people’s faith was in vain
• they were all still in their sins
• loved ones who had passed had perished
Sometimes we say we do or don’t believe in something but we don’t understand the if/then scenarios that follow. I love that Paul was like, “Let’s follow that train of thought all the way down the tracks and see where it takes you.”
BUT (remember – no small buts in Scripture 😉)…
Christ, in fact, has been raised from the dead (v 20) and, in Him, all shall be made alive (v 22). ♥️
And that, my friends, is good news.
Happy Monday!
