Easter Sunday, April 9, 2023 - Reality and Relevance of the Resurrection - 1 Corinthians 15:3-26

 1 Corinthians 15:3-26 Reality and Relevance of the Resurrection

Good morning and welcome! We are so glad to have you all here this morning with us as we celebrate the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ!

We are all here this morning, whether it’s your first time visiting, or you have been coming here Sunday after Sunday for a long time, we are all here today because it is by far the most important day on the church calendar, a special reminder of the most important day in the history of mankind, the day that Jesus rose from the dead.

JP Lange wrote, “[The resurrection of Jesus] is not a point on which we are at liberty to form any opinion we may choose without prejudice to our own salvation.”

What we believe about the resurrection of Jesus matters. So, with that in mind, let’s pray.

It seems to me that looking over the Easter sermons I have delivered over the years the focus has been squarely on the reality of Jesus’ resurrection, or at least trying to convince people of its reality.

I’m not a lawyer, and I’m not going to pretend I’m any kind of legal expert, but I do know that eye witness accounts help to establish facts in any given case. And if eye witness accounts from two or three people are enough to prove the facts then the eye witness accounts of over five hundred people make the case iron clad. This is the case with the death and resurrection of Jesus.

This morning I’d like to turn your attention to 1 Corinthians 15:3-26, that’s on page 961 in the pew Bibles so you can see it for yourselves.

1 Corinthians was the first of two letters written to the Corinthian church by the Apostle Paul about twenty years after the death and resurrection of Jesus. 

The city of Corinth was at the heart of an important trade route in the ancient world. Like many cities that thrive on trade, Corinth had a reputation for sexual immorality, religious diversity, and corruption. The church that the Apostle Paul planted there floundered under all of these influences and began to divide over various issues. Many people compare the church in Corinth to the church in America but you can decide that for yourself after reading it.

Paul wrote toward the end of his letter, in chapter 15:3-11:

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, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas (that’s Peter), then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 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. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. 11 Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

Paul was writing this letter to the church, not just the those who gathered regularly on Sunday mornings, but to those who put their trust in Jesus, not those who agreed with the facts that Jesus lived and died but those who were dependant on His death and resurrection for the forgiveness of their sins.

The reality of Jesus’ death and resurrection was already established and remains so to this day. Those who choose not to believe this are rejecting facts, rejecting reality, and most importantly rejecting the Savior Jesus.

As I said at the beginning, the resurrection of Jesus is not a point on which we are at liberty to form any opinion we may choose without jeopardizing our own salvation.

The resurrection of Jesus from the dead is at the very heart of the Christian faith, it is the central point of the Bible, without the resurrection of Jesus there is no forgiveness of sin, without the resurrection of Jesus there is no church, without the resurrection of Jesus there is no hope for the future or hope of life beyond death.

In other words, the resurrection of Jesus is extremely relevant.

Paul goes on to write,

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? 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.

There is so much to unpack here but I’ll try to be brief. The resurrection of Jesus from the dead proves that those who have faith in Jesus will one day be raised from the dead too. The resurrection of Jesus gives us hope for the future because of the forgiveness of our sin, it gives us hope for the future that lies beyond this life, beyond the death of these natural bodies.

Verses 17-19 point out the wonderful benefits of the resurrection of Jesus for those who trust in Him in the negative: 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.

But let’s turn it around and read it in the positive. “Since Christ has been raised from the dead, your faith is fruitful and you are no longer in your sins. And those who have fallen asleep in Christ are alive. Since in Christ we have hope in this life and beyond, we are of all people the most joyful!

And Paul conforms this in verses 20-26.

20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 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. 23 But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. 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.

We are all by nature children of Adam, and as such we have inherited his sinful nature, the nature that chooses sin over and over. The Bible makes it clear that the wages of our sin, what we earn, is death.

But God offers forgiveness for our sin freely, He offers salvation from eternal death freely through faith in Jesus. 22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.

We have hope for this life and beyond because Jesus was raised from the dead. Jesus is the firstfruits from the dead, alive forevermore, and the promise for us that belong to Him through faith is that when He returns we too will be made alive forevermore. Jesus will destroy every other rule and authority and power and that will include death itself.

There are a lot of people in the world, perhaps even you this morning that think that the idea of Jesus being raised from the dead is ridiculous, they scoff at the fact that we are gathered here this morning. 

There are those in the world that think the resurrection of Jesus from the dead is at least reasonable, after all, lots of people were killed for talking about it. It seems unreasonable that anybody would give their life up for a fairytale.

But I’ll say it again as I have tried to represent it in every Easter sermon I’ve preached so far, the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is a reality and it is a reality worth staking your life on.

Alistair Begg posed three questions regarding the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead: Is it ridiculous? Is it reasonable? And most importantly, is it relevant?

I believe that the passage we’ve looked at answers all three questions but let me drill down on the last one: is it relevant?

That is if to say, what difference does it make that Jesus was raised from the dead?

Simply put, the resurrection of Jesus from the dead gives us a way to be connected with God the Father and satisfy the deepest longings of the human heart.

When tragedy strikes and we are shaken to our core we all look to God because we are made in His image and are made to long for Him, whether we are shaking our fists in anger or asking Him why He allowed such tragedy to happen, at our core we go to God because He is the answer to the deepest longings of the human heart.

What difference does it make that Jesus was raised from the dead? It is the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ that provides forgiveness for our sin. His sacrifice provides our salvation through faith in Him. It is the gift of God by faith.

And because we have been forgiven through faith in Jesus, in His life, death, and resurrection, we no longer have to fear death any more than we have to fear falling asleep because we know that on the other side we will be with Him forever. Christ is the firstfruits from the dead and when He returns we who belong to Him will be raised too. No guilt in life, no fear in death, this is the power of Christ and His resurrection.

You have to ask yourself the question: is the resurrection of Jesus ridiculous, is merely reasonable, or is it truly relevant?

If you have never accepted Jesus as your Savior, never accepted the fact that His death on the cross was for your sin, but want to, it’s as simple as asking God for forgiveness in prayer, declaring that Jesus is Lord and believing in your heart that God raised Him from the dead and you will be saved, forgiven, and adopted by God as His child.

Would you all stand with me as we pray?

Easter 2022 The Completion of the Great Exchange - April 17, 2022

 Easter 2022 The Completion of the Great Exchange

Good morning and welcome! Happy consummation of penal substitutionary atonement day… I mean happy Easter!

People all over the world are gathering today to celebrate the resurrection of Christ, Jesus has risen from the dead, the stone was rolled away and the tomb is empty because Jesus is alive! Hallelujah!

I’d like to welcome all of you that have joined our church family this morning to celebrate along with us this morning!

Jesus’ resurrection from the dead, over two thousand years ago, is one of the best attested facts in human history. It was predicted in the Old Testament, predicted by Jesus Himself, and after he rose from the dead He appeared over the course of forty days to over five hundred of His disciples, eating and drinking with them. He was no ghost, He is alive!

On Easter Sunday we celebrate the event of Jesus rising from the grave, but there is significance, not only in the event itself, but in the meaning of His resurrection. 

What does it mean that Jesus rose from the dead? That’s what we are going to talk about today.

But first, let’s pray.

So what is it that makes today special?

The resurrection of Jesus from the dead is the central event in all of history and it is definitely worth celebrating. And while the event itself is amazing, that someone who was dead would come back to life, it’s the meaning behind Jesus’ resurrection that has the most profound impact on all of humanity.

The old song says, “Because He lives, I can face tomorrow. Because He lives all fear is gone…” But why? Simply because Jesus is alive? Well, yes and no.

The reason to celebrate Easter really is the consummation of penal substitutionary atonement!

I know how much you all like to show off your vocabulary to your friends!

When Jesus rose from the dead He proved His last words from the cross as recorded in John 19:30, “It is finished.”

What was finished is what the scholars call, “The Great Exchange.”

The idea is based on 2 Corinthians 5:21, which says: For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

This is the definition of penal substitutionary atonement. 

The word, “penal,” has to do with punishment.

“Substitutionary,” means that Someone took the place of someone else.

“Atonement,” means to reconcile or to right a wrong.

Jesus was punished in our place so that we could be made right with God through faith in Christ. Jesus’ resurrection from the dead was the consummation of that work, the proof that it was completed.

So now you can with your friends and family a happy Consummation of Penal Substitutionary Atonement Day! Together we can celebrate the completion of the great exchange.

John Piper wrote, “God lays our sins on Christ and punishes them in Him, and in Christ’s obedient death, God fulfills and vindicates His righteousness and credits it to us. Our sin of Christ; His righteousness on us.” That is the great exchange.

If you’re sitting there listening to this and thinking something like, “I came to church to feel good and here this guy is telling me about sin, saying that I’m a sinner…”

Yup. Actually it’s God that defines sin, and He recorded that definition in the Bible. He gave us His Law so that we would know what sin is and so we would seek His forgiveness for our sin. The Bible also tells us that if we break one part of the Law we are guilty of breaking all of it. God summarized this Law in what we know of as the Ten Commandments.

If you want to know if you are a sinner try this out, see if you can make it through this little test.

1st Commandment: You shall have no other gods before me. Have you ever considered anything or anyone more important in your life than God?

2nd Commandment: You shall not make any idols. Have you ever considered your stuff more important than God or tried to change God to fit your opinions of who He should be or do or think?

3rd Commandment: You shall not take the Lord’s Name in vain. Have you ever used God’s Name as a curse word? Or have you claimed to follow God when you really don’t?

Shall I go on? That’s only three! Pick a number!

This is what  God calls sin and we are all guilty of it and that is what makes the great exchange so great.

If you are feeling bad because of your sin, start feeling good because of God’s great love for you that in Jesus he exchanged your sin for His righteousness.

John Piper also wrote, “This is the gospel – the Good News that our sins are laid on Christ and His righteousness is laid on us, and that this great exchange becomes ours, not by [good] works but by faith alone.” 

Romans 4:24-25 says, Righteousness will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord  who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.

Martin Luther was credited with introducing the idea of the great exchange and wrote about it this way, “Therefore, my dear brother, learn Christ and Him crucified. Learn to pray to Him, and despairing our yourself say: ‘You, Lord Jesus, are my righteousness, but I am your sin. You have taken upon yourself what is mine and given me what is yours. You have taken upon yourself what you were not and have given to me what I was not.’”

I asked before, like the old song says, “Because He lives, I can face tomorrow. Because He lives all fear is gone…” But why? Simply because Jesus is alive?  Do we celebrate simple because Jesus is alive? The answer was, yes and no.

I’ve tried to answer, “no,” because we celebrate what Christ’s resurrection from the dead means in that His work on earth was completed, He had taken our place on the cross, bore our sins, and died the death that we deserved. By rising from the dead he showed that the work was in fact completed.

But the answer is also, “yes,” we also celebrate today simply because Jesus is alive! 

By rising from the dead, Jesus Christ demonstrated that he has cleansed the guilt of our past and is able still to help us in our present because he is alive!

In John 14:18-21 Jesus said, 

18 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19 Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. 20 In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. 21 Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and clearly reveal myself to him.”

Because He lives, He continues to guide those that love Him and gives us eternal life.

And because He lives, He continually intercedes for us.

Hebrews 7:23-25 says,

23 The former priests [meaning the Old Testament priests] were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, 24 but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever. 25 Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.

Because He lives He is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through Him, sine He always lives to make intercession for them.

The Old Testament priests offered sacrifice after sacrifice for the atonement of the people but they were never really enough. But Jesus, the Great High Priest, offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for us and continues as our Great Intercessor.

That is what Jesus is doing right now, alive and standing before the Father interceding for us, praying for us. When the Father, in His holiness, looks at us, He no longer sees our sin on us, he sees Christ’s righteousness on us His dearly loved children.

I think we can all agree with Martin Luther, whether you’ve had faith in Jesus for years, or are just believing in Him for the first time today.

“Learn Christ and Him crucified. Learn to pray to Him, and despairing our yourself say: ‘You, Lord Jesus, are my righteousness, but I am your sin. You have taken upon yourself what is mine and given me what is yours. You have taken upon yourself what you were not and have given to me what I was not.’”

Amen.

Easter 2021 - Romans 5:6-11 - April 4, 2021

These are the Sermon Notes for our Easter Service on April 4, 2021. We are meeting at the church with specific procedures and protocols that need to be followed. Read our Covid-19 plan here. You can still watch our livestream service every Sunday at 9:37 am on our facebook page or watch the livestream recordings any time.

 Easter 2021 Romans 5:6-11 

Good morning, He is risen!

Every year on Easter we participate in several traditions, we get up early for the sunrise-ish service, we usually have Easter breakfast, our regular service, and then a big lunch with family, maybe you do some egg hunts or Easter baskets in there somewhere too.

One of the traditions within all that is to focus on the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Nate read that at sunrise and I’d like to read another version of it for you now.

Matthew 28:1-10

Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. 4 And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. 5 But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you.” 8 So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 And behold, Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.”

Let’s pray

Today Christians all over the world are celebrating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead and I think the celebration in its various forms is for at least two reasons.

Reason #1 that we are celebrating is that Jesus is no longer dead! We serve a Risen Savior, He is alive forevermore! Amen?!

Reason #2 that we are celebrating is that Jesus’ death and resurrection actually accomplished something wonderful for us, for the whole world! And that’s the reason for celebrating that I would like to focus on this morning.

We are going to pause our study on 1 Peter for today and look at Romans chapter 5, verses 6-11, that’s on page 942in the pew Bibles.

6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. 10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. 11 More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

There are a few words used in Scripture that can’t stand alone, they are words that signal that a thought is part of a larger context. I’ve said it before that the word “therefore” is one of those words, you can’t simply begin your study at a place that begins with a “therefore.” It’s a signal that you have to go back and read the text before that word to get a handle on the original author’s intent, what the original author was trying to say.

Another one of those words is the word: “for.” It’s a connecting word, a word that signals the connection between thoughts. So we cannot simply start our study this morning with verse 6 because it needs to stay connected to the whole argument that Paul is making.

Verses 6-11 have been used many times for evangelistic sermons and challenges to show people that God loves them and has made it possible for them to be saved from their sins by the death of Christ on the cross, that forgiveness and reconciliation are available by God’s grace.

All of that is true. It’s all true even though that was not the point that Paul was trying to make.

Verse 6 starts with the word “for,” a connecting word. So let’s go back and see what it’s connected to…

I would like to tell you that it’s quite simple, we just have to read two or three verses prior to these and we will get the larger context and be able to make sense of the whole thing. But that’s not how this letter works at all.

In fact, almost every paragraph in Paul’s letter to the Romans either begins with a “for,” or a “therefore” or a question. This may be a little tricky!

Up until now, in this letter to the Roman Christians, Paul has represented God as holy, righteous, and just. He has represented Him as a keeper of His promises and the justifier of the faithful. And all that is well and good and true but here in this section Paul reintroduces an old attribute of God, the idea that God is loving. Here in verse 5 is the first time in this letter that Paul mentions God’s love and I think that’s significant.

The idea that God is loving was not new. God’s “steadfast love” was mentioned almost 200 times in the Old Testament. But here in this context we can see that salvation AND suffering, like we talked about last week from 1 Peter, salvation and trials are both evidence of God’s love.

So let’s skip back to  verse one of Romans 5.

 5:1Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. 

6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. 10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. 11 More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

Last week we talked about about the purpose of our trials because when God is involved pain is productive, we are refined by our trials. Trials and pain produce patient endurance, and proven character, and confident hope and it is evidence that God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit. God proves His love for us in our pain.

Through our pain God is making us into something more, making us more like Jesus, more loving, more patient, more dependent on Him.

Paul is saying that God uses pain to accomplish His purposes and His greatest proof of that is at the cross of Jesus Christ.

6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.

When the timing was just right, when it had been proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that mankind was powerless to save ourselves from the wrath of God, God stepped in Himself and died on the cross for the ungodly.

Jesus Christ died for those who were powerless to save themselves.

Jesus Christ died for those who had no regard for God, who had given God no place in their lives.

7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

It’s rare that a person would die for his friend. Though exceptions can be found it is still rare. And rare as it is, it is a demonstration of a person’s character and love to lay down one’s life for a friend. 

Jesus said in John 15:13, “Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”

But God does one better. We were not His friends. We were not the chosen few who were good enough to earn His favor. 

We were His enemies.

While we were powerless to save ourselves, while we had given no place for God in our lives, while we stood opposed to Him and His principles… Jesus Christ died for us.

9 Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. 

Through the blood of Christ we are no longer what we once were, we are no longer weak, ungodly sinners who are enemies of God who are under His looming wrath! Our identity has completely changed!

Do you know what you’ve got? Do you know who you are? Don’t you know that through your pain God is working to make you more like Him?

God had a purpose in Christ’s pain, to reconcile you to Himself, and Christ’s pain ended in death!

Even if your pain ends in death, like Christ, you will be resurrected to live eternally!

We are saved from the wrath of God through the blood of Christ, so whatever you’re going through it has nothing to do with His wrath, and everything to do with His love! Through faith in Jesus Christ, God is no longer angry with you.

10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.11 More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

We were once weak, ungodly, sinners, and enemies of God but through faith in Jesus we aren’t anymore!

Because of Christ’s death on the cross in our place we are now no longer weak but powerful, not because of any power that comes from us but from the Holy Spirit living and working in us.

Because of Christ’s death on the cross in our place we are no longer ungodly, but we give God the place He deserves in our hearts, the throne, He is our King!

Because of Christ’s death on the cross in our place we are no longer sinners but saints! Our lives are marked by the fruit of the Spirit, by love and joy and peace not by sin and shameful behavior. Our lives are lived for His glory not ours!

Because of Christ’s death on the cross in our place we are no longer enemies of God but we are His adopted children. We are reconciled and made His own! We are His and He is ours!

John Calvin wrote: “[Paul] now ascends into the highest strains of glorying; for when we glory that God is ours, whatever blessings can be imagined or wished, ensue and flow from this fountain; for God is not only the chief of all good things, but also possesses in Himself the sum and substance of all blessings; and He becomes ours in Christ.”

That’s what the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead accomplished for us, we are Christ’s and He is ours, We are the Father’s and He is ours.

Our pain, Christ’s pain, is all evidence of God’s love. By faith in Him we are adopted as His own, no longer enemies but His beloved children.

As Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:8-9, “Though you have not seen Him, you love Him. Though you do not now see Him, you believe in Him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”

Amen. May grace and peace be multiplied to you.