Is The Resurrection Even Real

Sometimes, when we read the Bible, our cultural context and 21st-century mindsets can lead us to disregard the testimonies or accounts as irrelevant. We might struggle to connect with them, believing that our circumstances are vastly different. However, many of the issues addressed are often the same, occurring in a different time frame and perhaps spoken of differently, or even more sinister, just a hidden belief or attitude of the heart.

It is now Easter weekend, a time to acknowledge the death and celebrate the resurrection of Christ. For many, this weekend provides an opportunity to reflect on Jesus and His sacrifice. Some may mock or question the legitimacy of this weekend, viewing it merely as a tradition or a story that didn’t happen and has no real consequence. Some may feel a sense of holiness as they stop and acknowledge something truly profound, but apart from this time of the year, Jesus is just a byword for the Easter season.

My question is, do you believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ?

In many of Paul's letters, he addressed various false and misleading doctrines affecting the Church, causing members to stray from the pure teachings he and the other apostles had imparted. It seemed that there were always small issues arising, and Paul was quick to extinguish them and discipline those responsible for the false teachings, even going so far as to remove some individuals from the congregation who were, by their conduct, maligning the Word of God and not willing to repent.  (1 Cor 5:1-13, 1 Tim 1:20).

In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul is addressing an issue regarding the resurrection of Christ.

1 Corinthians 15:1-4, 6, 8-9, 11 ESV [1] Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, [2] and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. [3] For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, [4] that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, [6] Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. [8] Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. [9] For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. [11] Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

1 Corinthians 15:12 ESV [12] Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?

This does pose an excellent question: 1 Corinthians 15:29 ESV [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?

Paul's argument here is quite striking. He is addressing a group of people who have been taught the authentic doctrine of Christ's death, burial, and resurrection. Yet, despite this, they do not believe it but would insist on following a tradition of being baptized on behalf of those who have died unbaptized. This practice is quite ludicrous.

Here is the real question: Why partake in an act that you don’t believe in? This is why tradition, or cultural rituals, can be so dangerous. They have a persona and outward appearance of something pure and holy, but they are dead works and worthless to provide salvation.

1 Corinthians 15:13-19 ESV [13] But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. [14] And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. [15] We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. [16] For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. [17] And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. [18] Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. [19] If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.

In the way that Paul addresses this issue, several things are evident. It’s almost as if he has taken the believers by the collar and is vigorously shaking them, asking, “What in the world are you believing? You have received pure doctrine!”. At the same time, he explains the foolishness of their beliefs, emphasising the seriousness of the accusation against God that arises from the apostles' teaching if the resurrection of the dead is indeed untrue.

He goes on: 1 Corinthians 15:31-34 ESV [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? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” [33] Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” [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.

You can truly sense the passion in Paul’s heart here. If the doctrine of resurrection is not true and if there is no life, then everything the prophets and apostles preached and declared is in vain; it amounts to nothing. Furthermore, their faith, as well as our faith—those of us who believe what they preached—would be in vain as well, without effect, empty, imaginary, and unfounded. And all that suffering, the imprisonments, the floggings, the lashes, beatings with rods, being shipwrecked, and all the subsequent sufferings would have been in vain. (1 Cor 11:16-33) And they were just what Paul suffered.

1 Corinthians 15:35-38, 42-49 ESV [35] But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body do they come?” [36] You foolish person! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. [37] And what you sow is not the body that is to be, but a bare kernel, perhaps of wheat or of some other grain. [38] But God gives it a body as he has chosen, and to each kind of seed its own body. [42]  So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. [43] It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. [44] It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. [45] Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. [46] But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. [47] The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. [48] As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. [49] Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.

John 3:3 BLB Jesus answered and said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, except anyone be born from above, he is not able to see the kingdom of God."

What Paul is saying aligns with the teachings of Jesus. There is a necessary death to that which is born of the dust so that what is born of the Spirit can come to life. When we come to Christ as a person formed from dust and receive His resurrection life, we are born from above. The old nature resembles a kernel of wheat; it is sown into the death represented by the burial of Christ and is raised by the Spirit into a new, imperishable life that has been born from above.

In verse 31, Paul states, "I die daily." Jesus wrote: Luke 9:23 KJV [23] And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.

Paul not only risked natural death daily but also learned what it meant to deny himself and take up his cross to follow Christ daily. He was no longer living for his own desires but for Christ!

There is true resurrection life that can only be found in Jesus. He was crucified, buried, and raised to life. We have been invited into a brand-new existence, a life from above where our old nature is crucified daily, and we are increasingly filled with the power of His resurrection life. In a moment of genuine repentance and belief in the One whom the Father sent, we can enter into new life. No tradition, and certainly no mediation from another person, can offer us the brand-new life that comes from above. Only Jesus can provide this. Can we pray for the unsaved? Yes, most definitely. Can we be baptised on their behalf, whether dead or alive, for salvation? No!

I pray that this Easter you gain a deeper, ongoing understanding of all that Christ has done, transforming it from a fleeting thought into a daily, dedicated pursuit of Him.